CMIS Connection (Node Type)

From Grooper Wiki

This article is about the current version of Grooper.

Note that some content may still need to be updated.

2025 202320212.90

cloud CMIS Connections provide a standardized way of connecting to various content management systems (CMS). CMIS Connections allow Grooper to communicate with multiple external storage platforms, enabling access to documents and document metadata that reside outside of Grooper's immediate environment.

  • For those that support the CMIS standard, the CMIS Connection connects to the CMS using the CMIS standard.
  • For those that do not, the CMIS Connection normalizes connection and transfer protocol as if they were a CMIS platform.

Grooper is able to connect to a variety of storage platforms, from simple file systems (such as Windows native NTFS system), to email sources, to full-fledged content management systems. CMIS Connections allow you to configure connection settings, allowing Grooper to integrate import and export control. With these settings saved on a Grooper node, they are easily referenced by an Import Watcher service or Export Behaviors applied by the Export activity for automated batch processing.

Which platform is connected is defined by the CMIS Connection's "Connection Settings". Once the connection is made to a specific storage location, called a "repository", Grooper has direct access to import and export documents from and to folder locations in the repository.

Furthermore, Grooper has import and export access to metadata available to the particular platform. For example, sender and receipt metadata from emails received from email servers. This also gives Grooper the ability to map extracted data elements from documents to corresponding data element locations in a content management system.


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 all available external storage platforms by creating and configuring a CMIS Connection.

  • 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.
  • Because we standardize connection to non-CMIS systems, this includes platforms like NTFS file systems (Windows) that are not CMIS servers.


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 for any storage platform you can connect to with a CMIS Connection.
  • This also speeds up development for adding new connection types for import/export operations.

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:

  1. The CMIS Connection itself
  2. The platform it's connecting to. This is defined by the "CMIS Binding" (aka "connection type") selected for the CMIS Connection's "Connection Settings".
  3. Its child CMIS Repositories
    • "Repository" is just a general term for a location where data lives. Different systems refer to "repositories" in different ways.
      • A folder in Windows could be a repository. An email inbox could be a repository. A document library in SharePoint could be a repository. An application in ApplicationEnhancer (formerly ApplicationXtender) could be a repository.
      • "Repository" is a normalized way of referring to various terms used by various storage platforms.


For newer users, the difference between a CMIS Connection and a CMIS Repository can be confusing. The key distinction is as follows:

  • CMIS Connections connect to storage platforms.
    • It's the phone number you dial.
    • The specific platform you're connecting to is defined in its "Connection Settings".
  • CMIS Repositories represent a location within the connected platform.
    • It's the person on the other end of that phone number you want to talk to.
    • CMIS Repositories represent storage locations (typically folders) in the storage platform. They are added as children to a parent CMIS Connection.
    • The CMIS Repository nodes are what Grooper actually uses when configuring import/export operations.
      • You don't talk to a phone number. You talk to a person.
      • You don't reference the parent CMIS Connection when configuring CMIS Import or CMIS Export. Instead you reference a CMIS Repository.

Basic creation steps

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 CMIS Binding).
    • Enter the connection settings required to connect to the platform (This will differ from platform to platform)
  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 CMIS 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 commonly hear "CMIS Binding" referred to as a "CMIS connection type" or "connection type".
  • Or just "connection", as in an "Exchange connection".

Current CMIS Bindings (aka "connection types")

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

Most Commonly Used

Somewhat Commonly Used

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.


Creating a CMIS Connection and a CMIS Repository

You can't talk about CMIS Connections without talking about CMIS Repositories. CMIS Repositories are the nodes Grooper uses when importing and exporting. For example, When you configure CMIS Export, you export to the CMS storage location defined by the CMIS Repository. You select the CMIS Repository node during configuration, not the CMIS Connection.

  • CMIS Connections define the settings required to connect to a CMS storage location (settings like a folder path, username, password or other required information).
  • Once connected, you create a CMIS Repository in Grooper by "importing" it. This creates a referenceable node in Grooper that represents a storage location in the CMS platform.

This tutorial will show you how to create both a CMIS Connection and a CMIS Repository.

Creating a CMIS Connection

The following are general instructions on how to add a CMIS Connection to Grooper. Which document storage platform you connect to is determined by the Connection Settings. This tutorial will use the "NTFS" CMIS Binding (connection type). The NTFS connection connects Grooper to a Windows File System folder.

Add the CMIS Connection

Click here for an interactive walkthrough

CMIS Connections are created and configured in Grooper Projects.

  1. Right-click the Project (or folder in a Project) where you want to add your CMIS Connection.
  2. Click "Add", then "CMIS Connection..."
  3. Name your CMIS Connection and click "Execute" to create.
  4. Your new CMIS Connection will appear within the Node Tree.
  • How you name your CMIS Connection node is up to you. We advise including the CMIS Binding (connection type) you're using in the name. Ex: We're our CMIS Connection uses the "NTFS" connection type. So, "NTFS" is in the CMIS Connection's name.

Select the CMIS Binding (AKA "connection type")

Click here for an interactive walkthrough

The "CMIS Binding" defines what storage platform you're connecting to (its "connection type"). Want to connect to an FTP server? That's the "FTP" binding in Grooper. Want to connect to Outlook email servers? That's the "Exchange" binding in Grooper. What to connect to a Windows File system that's the "NTFS" binding in Grooper. We are using "NTFS" for this tutorial.

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

To set your CMIS Binding (connection type):

  1. Select the CMIS Connection in the Node Tree.
  2. Select and expand the dropdown menu of the "Connection Settings" property.
  3. From the dropdown menu, choose your desired platform.

Configure the Connection Settings

The Connection Settings will be configured differently depending on which CMIS Binding (connection type) is selected.

  • Each CMIS Binding has its own Connection Settings configuration.
    • This could include a folder path, or a connection URL, or a username and password or anything else required to connect to the desired platform.
    • However, once connected, CMIS Connections are largely the same regardless of what binding you're using. That's the whole point. CMIS Connections provide a more standardized access to a variety of different storage platforms in terms of how Grooper interoperates with them.
    • Configuration for each provider can be found in their own articles. Click here for a list of all CMIS Bindings

Click here for an interactive walkthrough

Example: To configure an "NTFS" CMIS Connection's Connection Settings:

  1. Expand the Connection Settings property by clicking the arrow to the left (or clicking the ellipses to the right).
  2. Select the "Repositories" sub-property and click the ellipses to configure the connection.
  3. Click the Add button within the Repositories List window.
  4. Enter a UNC path into the "Base Path" property. This will end up being the root of the CMIS Repository.
    • When the path is entered correctly, the "Repository Name'" will auto-populate. You may change this name if you wish.
  5. Click OK to finish.

Creating a CMIS Repository

Verify connectivity (optional)

Click here for an interactive walkthrough

Once you've created and configured the CMIS Connection, you should verify connectivity. To do this:

  1. Select the CMIS Connection in the Node Tree.
  2. From the "CMIS Connection" tab, click the "List Repositories" button.
  3. Should the connection be successful, a list of available CMIS Repositories will appear.
    • If you see no repositories or receive an error message, you may not have entered the Connection Settings correctly.
    • Also, if you do not see a repository you're expecting to see, you may not have entered the Connection Settings correctly.

Import a CMIS Repository

Click here for an interactive walkthrough

Once you have a CMIS Connection created and configured and have verified Grooper can connect to its storage locations, you can import one or more of these storage locations as CMIS Repository nodes in Grooper.

To import a CMIS Repository:

  1. Press the "List Repositories" button.
  2. Select the CMIS Repository you wish to import.
  3. Click the Import Repository button.
  4. Click Execute to import the CMIS Repository.
  5. The CMIS Repository now appears as a child node of your CMIS Connection.
    • Click the List Repository button again to verify its status has changed. Your imported CMIS Repository will have its Imported Status changed from False to True.

You can now use this CMIS Repository for import and export operations. Grooper has full access to this folder location to bring in documents and export processed documents.

Browsing a CMIS Repository

Click here for an interactive walkthrough

You can view files and folders in the connected storage location using the CMIS Repository's "Browse" tab.

  1. Select a CMIS Repository in the Node Tree.
  2. Click the Browse tab..
  3. To view the contents of a folder within the Repository, double-click it.
  4. Click on a file to view it in the Document Viewer.
    • The file must be a file type Grooper can render natively, such as PDF, TIFF and text files.

Examining CMIS Type Definitions

Click here for an interactive walkthrough

CMIS Repositories normalize content into a storage platform to two different types of objects:

  • cmis:document - "CMIS documents" are files in a file system/CMS platform (and email messages in email-based platforms)
    • Many platforms will have "sub-types" of CMIS documents too. These sub-types will have additional properties and metadata fields. Example: The "Exchange" binding's base CMIS document type is "Item". It has sub-types of "Message" and "Appointment" that have additional fields relevant to those types of items.
  • cmis:folder - "CMIS folders" are folders in a file system/CMS platform (including email folders in email-based platforms).


Depending on the storage platform's capabilities, you will have access to different folder and document metadata. What metadata properties are available will are determined by the CMIS document/folder's "CMIS Content Type" and its definitions. Understanding these properties are often important for understanding (1) what document data you can import from a storage location when importing files into Grooper and (2) what data who can export with a document when exporting it from Grooper.

Examining CMIS Content Type definitions can help you understand these properties.

Example 1: The "Updatability" column is used to determine which properties can be written as part of a document's export.
  • "ReadOnly" properties are only readable.
    • Ex: A file's MIME type.
  • "ReadWrite" properties are both readable and writeable and will differ greatly depending on the CMIS Connection's type and the CMIS document's type (and even sub-type).
    • Writable properties let Grooper adjust properties/metadata when using CMIS Export to map data collected in Grooper to the file's properties or fields in the storage platform.
    • Ex: Most CMIS document's have some kind of writable "Name" property. This can be mapped to a Grooper Data Field or a code expression to name the file on export.
    • Upon exporting Batch Folders, these properties can be edited by mapping property data, such as extracted Data Elements.
Example 2: The "Queryable" column determines which properties can be queried using CMIS Queries to import files with Import Query Results.


To examine a CMIS Repository's type definitions:

  1. Select the CMIS Repository.
  2. Click the "Types" tab.
  3. Within the "Content Types" window, you will see at least two parent CMIS Content Types:
    • cmis:document
    • cmis:folder
    • Each CMIS Binding (connection type) will have different terms for these CMIS Content Types.
      • Example: An Exchange binding's "cmis:document" type is called "Message". An NTFS binding's "cmis:document" type is called "File". Regardless, their "Id" in Grooper is the same: cmis:document.
      • Example: Nearly all CMIS Bindings' cmis:folder type is called "Folder". Regardless, their "Id" in Grooper will be the same: cmis:folder.
  4. All properties and metadata fields associated with the cmis:document and/or cmis:folder types (and any of their sub-types) are found in the Property Definitions window.

Version Differences

2021 Export Behaviors

Version 2021 changed how export operations are performed by introducing the concept of Export Behaviors. Behaviors in general centralize a Content Model and its component Content Types importance in various activities. Export Behavior configurations determine how the Export activity exports content to an external storage platform.

The most drastic changes effect how extracted Data Elements are mapped for file, folder, and data indexing. Whereas previously, these mappings were configured using "CMIS Content Type" child nodes of a CMIS Repository, these mappings now occur as part of the CMIS Export Export Type configuration when adding an Export Behavior.

2.9 Box Integration

Grooper 2.9 sees the addition of the Box.com document storage platform into the CMIS fold via the Box (CMIS Binding).

2.72 Legacy Providers

Old import and export providers should be replaced with this new functionality. While Grooper's older import and export providers are available as "Legacy Import" and "Legacy Export" providers, these components are depreciated. They will still function but will no longer be upgraded in future versions of Grooper.

Grooper can import documents using CMIS Connections via "Import Descendants" and "Import Query Results". Grooper can export via the CMIS Export providers, Mapped Export and Unmapped Export.

2.72 New Connection Types

By creating the CMIS+ architecture, we have been able to create new connections between Grooper and content management systems.

Grooper can now connect to Microsoft OneDrive, SharePoint, and Exchange via new CMIS Bindings. Since these were created as CMIS Bindings, they can be used by the CMIS Import and CMIS Export providers. Instead of having to create three new import providers and three new export providers for a total of six brand new components, we can use the already established CMIS import and export providers in the CMIS+ framework. A user can create a CMIS Connection using the OneDrive, SharePoint or Exchang bindings, and use the same import and export providers for them as any of the other CMIS Bindings.

This will also allow Grooper to create CMIS Bindings to connect to currently unavailable content management systems in the future much quicker and easier.

Retrieved from "https://wiki.grooper.com/index.php?title=CMIS_Connection_(Node_Type)&oldid=29566"