Synchronizing Users and Contacts

After you have specified the sources for the VMP Server, you can synchronize your sources with the server to ensure that all information is up to date. You can synchronize manually or set up automatic synchronization.

The following synchronizations happen automatically, whether or not you have set up automatic synchronization:

Note: Contacts are never automatically synchronized.

The steps of the synchronization process depend on the sources that you have specified. The following screens are included:

Screen Description
Reconfigure/Synchronize only Specifies whether to reconfigure import sources before synchronization. This screen appears if you have already imported at least one source.
Remote Sources Lists the remote sources to be used in synchronization. Also enables you to specify automatic synchronization.
Select Users If you are importing from an Active Directory source, this screen enables you to specify which Organizational Units (OUs) are to be synchronized to create a VMP Distribution List.
User/DL Synchronization If you are importing from an Active Directory source, this screen enables you to specify whether to import users only, or whether to also import the OU hierarchy. If you are importing the OU hierarchy, you can specify whether you want the VMP Server to automatically create Distribution Lists from the imported OUs.
Default DL Permissions This screen appears only if you are importing from an Active Directory source, you are importing the OU hierarchy, and you are automatically converting OUs to Distribution Lists. For the initial Active Directory import, you can configure permissions for the default administrator and any groups selected for import.
Field Mapping For each selected source, this screen specifies how fields in the source are to be mapped to VMP user fields.
Script Creates the internal script that performs the synchronization. In this screen, you can manually specify the users or contacts to be added or updated and configure contact options before running the script. These options can be changed manually at any time after deployment. This screen is useful for defining device and wireless gateway assignments.
Export Address Book Entries to Vocera If you are importing from a Vocera Voice Server, this screen enables you to export a CSV file containing a list of the VMP users that do not have a Vocera ID. You can use this file to create address book entries in the Vocera Voice Server. See Address Book Entry Exporting for more information on this capability.

Follow the steps shown below to perform a synchronization.

  1. In the VMP Administrator, select Users & Groups > Users.
    .
  2. Click Synchronization in the Users view.
  3. If the Reconfigure/Synchronize only screen appears, select Yes, reconfigure settings.
  4. Click Next.
  5. In the Remote Sources screen, you can enable automatic synchronization of user data from the selected sources:
    1. Select the Automatic synchronization checkbox.
    2. Select one of the following:
      • Every: Synchronize after the specified number of hours and minutes has elapsed.
      • Daily at: Synchronize every day at the specified time.
      • Weekly on: Synchronize once a week at the specified day and time.
      Tip: The best auto synchronization time depends on your specific environment. The setting should keep the system updated with new and updated user data and occur when network traffic is not typically heavy.
    3. Select Auto Create and Delete users if users that have been added or deleted in the source are to be automatically added or deleted in the VMP Administrator.
  6. Clear the When a user's wireless gateway is not provided, use checkbox.
  7. Ensure that the Merge primary sources checkbox is selected.
  8. Click Next.
  9. The Select Users screen appears if you have included Active Directory as a source. In this screen, select the Active Directory users to import by clicking the checkbox next to the Organization Unit (OU) name, if you have not already done this.

    Depending on the user import configuration, the options may be included in the following three tabs:

    • Organization Units
    • Security Groups
    • Distribution Groups
    1. To import an OU, select its checkbox.

      To import a sub-OU, expand the OU and select its checkbox.

    2. To limit the display of OUs, use either or both of the following:
      • From the dropdown list, select Selected to display only the OUs that you have selected.

      • To filter the OU list, type text in the field provided and click Filter. Only the OUs that contain the filter text are displayed, along with some OUs that are always displayed.

        To remove the filter, clear the text field and click Filter again.

    3. Click Next.
  10. The User/DL Synchronization screen appears if you have included Active Directory as a source. In this screen, use the radio button selection to configure the Active Directory synchronization options appropriate for your deployment. Depending on the user import configuration, the options are included in the following three tabs:
    • Organization Units
    • Security Groups
    • Distribution Groups
    1. Click each tab to configure the options for the group.
      You can import only the users or import the existing OU hierarchy.
    2. When the options are selected, click Next.
  11. The Default DL Permissions screen appears if you have included Active Directory as a source and are importing the existing OU hierarchy. In this screen, configure permissions for the default administrator and any groups selected for import. Use the tabs to toggle between User and Group permissions. When the configuration is complete, click Next.
  12. In the Field Mapping window, define the field mappings for your deployment, and click Next.

    By default, the VMP Server uses email addresses to synchronize contacts between sources. If your environment does not use email addresses, you can synchronize between the Vocera Voice Server User ID field and the a field in your Active Directory server (such as sAMAccountName). See Synchronizing Using Vocera User ID and Active Directory for details on how to do this.

    Note: For more information about field mappings, see About Contact Fields and About Contact Fields.
  13. The synchronization script is generated by the import wizard options selected and is revealed in a script dialog box. Use the scroll bar to review the script and click Close.
  14. In the Script dialog, configure the script options as needed:
    1. Click Check All to confirm the previously configured values.
    2. To specify that a user imported using this script is to be given access to the VMP Administrator, select the Admin Access checkbox.
    3. To specify that a user imported using this script is to be given access to the VMP Web Console, select the Web Access checkbox.
    4. When you have finished configuration, click Next or Finish to continue. (The button that appears here depends on whether the Export Address Book Entries to Vocera screen appears.)
  15. The Export Address Book Entries to Vocera screen appears if you have included the Vocera Voice Server as a source. In this screen, select the Export Address Book Entries to Vocera checkbox to export a CSV file containing a list of the VMP users that do not have a Vocera ID.

    You can use this file to create address book entries in the Vocera Voice Server. See Address Book Entry Exporting for more information on this capability.

    Click Finish to continue.

  16. The synchronization script runs. When the sync is complete, click OK to close the successful sync dialog, and click Close to close the script window.