CMIS+ (Concept)

This article is about the current version of Grooper. Note that some content may still need to be updated.
2025	2023.1	2023	2021	2.90

CMIS+ is a conceptual term that refers to Grooper's connectivity architecture to external storage platforms. CMIS+ standardizes connections to a variety of content management system based on the CMIS standard. This provides a standardized setup to allow Grooper to interoperate with both CMIS compliant systems and non-CMIS systems. It further provides normalized access to document content and metadata for import (CMIS Import) and export (CMIS Export) operations.

All content platforms are exposed to Grooper under a single framework (called CMIS+) as if they were traditional CMIS endpoints by using a CMIS Connection in Grooper.

The CMIS Connection's Connection Type determines which storage platform you're connecting to.

• For example, if you wanted to connect to a Windows file system, you would create a CMIS Connection configured with an NTFS connection.

Once connected to a platform, Grooper can import from and export to that platform by importing a CMIS Repository that represents a location (usually a folder) in the storage platform.

• For example, if you wanted to import documents from a Windows folder named "Grooper Imports", you would first import that folder location as a CMIS Repository in Grooper. Then, you would point to that CMIS Repository when importing the documents into Grooper.

This provides Grooper the necessary infrastructure to import, access, and publish documents and their metadata to both CMIS and non-CMIS storage platforms, including on-premise and cloud based platforms.

About CMIS+

"CMIS" stands for "Content Management Interoperability Services". It is an open standard that allows different content management systems to inter-operate over the Internet. Grooper expanded on this idea in version 2.72 to create our "CMIS+" architecture. CMIS+ unifies all content platforms under a single framework as if they were traditional CMIS endpoints.

Now, Grooper connects to any external storage platform by creating and configuring a CMIS Connection (not just CMIS 1.0 or CMIS 1.1 servers).

• Once a CMIS Connection is created, Grooper can "interoperate" with these platforms.
• "Interoperability " means Grooper has the same access to control the system as a human being does.
• Grooper has a "one-to-one" connection to the platform, allowing full and total control.

Using this architecture, Grooper is able to create a simpler and more efficient import and export workflow, using a variety of storage platforms.

• You now use CMIS Import providers and CMIS Export, regardless of the storage platform.

Anatomy of a CMIS Connection

When connecting Grooper to external storage platforms, you'll start by creating a CMIS Connection. There are three important parts to understanding a CMIS Connection

• The CMIS Connection itself
• It's "CMIS Connection Type" (aka "CMIS Binding")
• It's child CMIS Repositories

• A "repository", in computer science, is a general term for a location where data lives. Different systems refer to "repositories" in different ways.
  • An email inbox could be a repository. A folder in Windows could be a repository. A folder in a Box account could be a repository. An application in ApplicationXtender could be a repository.
  • We standardize the various terms used by various storage platforms to simply "repository". Put simply, a "repository" a place to put stuff.

For newer users, the difference between a CMIS Connection and a CMIS Repository can be confusing (and it doesn't help that some people use the terms interchangeably!). The key distinction is as follows:

• The CMIS Connection is the node Grooper uses to establish a connection to some external system.
  • The Connection Type determines which specific platform you're connecting to, and any settings required to connect to it.
• CMIS Repositories represent a location within the connected platform.
  • These are created after creating the CMIS Connection.
  • Typically, these represent a folder location in the storage platform.

For example, imagine you want to use Grooper to connect to a Windows file system folder on some networked server.

• First, they would create a new CMIS Connection
• Then they would choose NTFS for its Connection Type
• Then they would import the folder location as a CMIS Repository
  • It is then this CMIS Repository Grooper will point to when importing from or exporting to this folder location.
  • The CMIS Connection is just the thing that allows Grooper to connect to Windows in this case. It is the CMIS Repository that acts as the Windows file system folder in Grooper.

Overview

To reiterate, there are three basic steps involved to connect Grooper to external storage platforms:

1. Create a CMIS Connection
2. Configure the "Connection Settings".
   • Choose what platform you want to connect to (the "connection type").
   • Enter the connection settings required to connect to the platform (This will differ based on the connection type you're using)
3. Add child CMIS Repositories by importing the storage locations.

   • Importing a CMIS Repository is not the same as importing documents to a new Batch.
     • "Importing" here is more like importing a reference (or bringing the repository into a framework Grooper can use).
     • Upon importing the repository, Grooper has full file access to that location in the storage platform.

CMIS Bindings (AKA Connection Types)

How you configure a CMIS Connection only differs based on what platform you're connecting to. Connection settings include folder paths, URL addresses or usernames or passwords.

• Example: Connecting to a Windows folder requires a networked folder's UNC path.
• Example: Connecting to a SharePoint site requires a URL address.
• Example: Connecting to a email inbox requires an server host name.
• Example: Connecting to Application Extender, Box, SharePoint, OneDrive, Exchange (Outlook) and more requires a username and password.

Each platform has its own connection requirements. These connection settings and the logic required to interoperate between Grooper and a specific platform are defined by the different "CMIS Binding"

Each CMIS Binding provides the settings and logic to connect Grooper to CMS platforms and file systems for import and export operations.

• Example: The "Exchange" binding contains all the information Grooper uses to connect to Microsoft Exchange email servers (i.e. Outlook inboxes).
• Example: The "AppXtender" binding contains all the information Grooper uses to connect to the ApplicationEnhancer (formerly AppXtender) content management system.
• Example: The "NTFS" binding contains all the information Grooper uses to connect to a Windows file system.
• And so on.

The first step in configuring a CMIS Connection is choosing what platform you want to connect to. You do this by selecting a "CMIS Binding".

• You will more commonly hear "CMIS Binding" referred to as a "CMIS Connection Type".
• Or just "connection type" or "connection", as in an "Exchange connection".

Current CMIS Connection Types

Grooper can connect to the following storage platforms using below using CMIS Bindings:

Most Commonly Used

• The Microsoft Windows NTFS file system.
• The following Microsoft content platforms
  • The Microsoft Exchange mail server platform.
  • The Microsoft OneDrive cloud storage platform.
  • Microsoft SharePoint sites.

Somewhat Commonly Used

• The ApplicationXtender document management platform.
• The Box cloud storage platform.

Less Commonly Used

• FTP (File Transfer Protocol) and SFTP (SSH File Transfer Protocol) servers.
• IMAP mail servers

Least Used

• Content management systems using CMIS 1.0 or CMIS 1.1 servers.
• The FileBound document management platform.
• The IBM FileNet platform.

See Also

• CMIS Connection
• CMIS Import
• Export (Activity)