Automatically push emailed meter readings into eAuto
Jump to Overview | Variables | Alert Functionality | APP | Mailbox Security | Best Practices & Tips | OnDemand Report | Related Alerts
Overview
Overview
Dealers have lots of options for getting meters needed for billing, here is one more! This process automates entry of meter readings sent by devices as well as your eAgent emailed meter requests.
This process will check your mailbox for new emails, parse them, insert meter readings into eAuto, mark the emails as "read", then move them to a destination folder. Any email that cannot be processed (i.e. body doesn't match format expected, serial number can't be found) will remain in the InBox for someone to handle exceptions daily.
Use ID968 to set how we handle these meter readings. ID398 is ONLY used for pushing meters to us, it does NOT control HOW those meters are handled in eAuto.
Your IT Dept will need to provide us ability to access mailbox directly for initial set up/installation. Please be sure to read our requirements/prerequisites HERE.
As of July 2024, we can parse meters for Brother, Copystar, eAgent, Konica, Kyocera, Lanier, Lexmark, Oki, Savin/Ricoh, Sharp, Toshiba, and Xerox.
Run Schedule: Daily Early AM
Limited in time and frequency we can run as either the process gets locked out and fails to complete because there’s so much competition for users in the meter tables, or worse, it locks out users and even remote tech connections by taking priority over those things.
Type of Output: Email/APP/On Demand Report
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Variables
Variables
**Every variable is required, you will need your IT Dept to help with these:
Variable 12: Enter the unique Meter Source you've created that will be set on any meters entered in eAuto by this alert
Variable 1: Name of Custom Property available at either Customer (location) or individual Equipment level to EXCLUDE from this process altogether
Variable 2: DNS Name or IP Address for your mail server (URL we need to access mailbox on the server we have access to)
Variable 3: The email address the meter will be sent TO (will need to be unique for each manufactuer if multiple manufacturer emails going to the same email box).
Variable 4: Port to be used when connecting to the mail server (i.e. 587)
Variable 5: Mail Server use SSL? 1=Yes, 0=No
Variable X: Enter your Mail Server Connection Type
Variable 6: Username for connecting to the mail server
This MUST correspond to the email address your equipment uses to send meter requests FROM since that's where the responses will be sent
Variable 7: Password for connecting to the mail server
Variable Hidden4: TenantID - for Office365 users we must set this security protocol up (Microsoft requirements), please see THIS LINK for set up.
Variable 8: Template Parser Type, use dropdown to select options (multiple eAgent options available for those running differently for different branches)
Variable 10: Move emails after successfully inserting a meter reading? 1= yes, 0 = no
Variable 11: If moving processed emails, to what folder? When possible, we will create the folder if it doesn't exist. However, not all email server types or connection types will allow this, so it is best if you manually create the folder in advance.
Top level folders are specified with just the folder name, ie. "processed"
Subfolders are specified with their parent folder name as well, ie. "inbox/processed"
Variable Y: Move emails unable to process to folder specified in VariableZ? 1 = Yes, 0 = No
Variable Z: Name of email Failure Folder
Variable 9: Delete emails after successfully inserting a meter reading? 1 = yes, 0 = no
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Alert Functionality
Alert Functionality
1. This integration runs on your ceojuice server, so the communication is accessed and parsed inside your network.
As of June 2022, we can parse meters for Brother, Copystar, eAgent, Konica, Kyocera, Lanier, Lexmark, Oki, Savin/Ricoh, Sharp, Toshiba, and Xerox.
2. This process will check your mailbox for new emails, parse them, insert meter readings into eAuto, mark the emails as "read", then move them to a destination folder. Any email that cannot be processed (i.e. body doesn't match format expected, serial number can't be found) will remain in the In Box for someone to handle exceptions daily. Use ID968 to set how we will handle (push or not push the meters into eAuto).
3. Any email unread in your In Box will NOT be considered by our process.
4. Please be sure to set a mailbox rule to clean up/move emails after 30 days to a subfolder; otherwise, our process will review each and every unread email EVERY time it runs (adding potential hours and room for issues to process).
5. The MOST MOST IMPORTANT (did we mention MOST IMPORTANT?) part of this entire process is the email address these emails are sent to (not from). The email box collecting these meter reading responses will need to be unique for each manufacturer or for eAgent. We CANNOT scroll through an email box with varying types of emails in it (i.e. toner orders, junk mail) and filter through them to determine if a meter reading.
We suggest, if needed, create a rule in your general email box moving/redirecting the meter reading responses to its own unique mailbox by manufacturer (i.e. KonicaMinolta, Sharp). That unique mailbox will be where our alert will go to per your Variable3 settings.
6. If you wish for us to push in different manufacturer's and/or eAgent meters, then you will need to subscribe to a clone (additional) subscription for each so your Variable3 MUST be different for each. This can be done by selecting the plus (+) sign (after you have successfully subscribed to one ID398):
7. We can read emails sent by device and/or from your meter requests sent via eAgent. HOWEVER, we can only "read" meters placed in highlighted area shown here (not anywhere else):
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MailboxSecurity
Mailbox Security
Office 365 Tenant ID
As of October 1, 2022, Microsoft Office365 requires updated protocol for accessing your email boxes that we use for pushing emailed meter readings into eAuto for you. We will install our process using your Tenant ID for access to the needed mailbox.
Please click the link below, log into one of the email boxes you use for the ID398 process and follow the steps: https://login.microsoftonline.com/common/adminconsent?client_id=cb62bf36-19ce-4137-b444-f205a2b19f91&state=12345&redirect_uri=https://www.ceojuice.com
You will need to accept these permissions:
**If you have concerns providing these permissions to all mailboxes, please see attached link (at bottom) process to update O365 to restrict our app to only the mailboxes that we need access to.
Your Tenant ID will then show in the URL (the tenant ID ends before the &’):
Please provide us your Tenant ID (or the entire URL). If you prefer to keep confidential, then please enter via our website (ceojuice.com) under Integrations (this requires user have Admin Security access):
Scroll to the bottom and enter your Tenant ID in MS Credentials:
Gmail
Access/Permissions for Gmail Accounts:
Google has discontinued the use of “Less Secure App,” a feature allowing third-party apps to connect to your Google account, in an effort to make the Google platform more secure.
1. G Suite Admin needs to login to the Google Admin Console. https://admin.google.com/
2. Choose ‘Security -> Access and Data Control -> API Controls:
3. From API Controls screen, choose ‘Manage Domain Wide Delegation’ on the bottom right hand of screen:
4. On API Clients screen, click ‘Add New’ hyperlink which will open a popup window:
5. Enter ‘102441935245555878964’ as the Client ID (CEO Juices registered ClientID)
6. Enter Scope: ‘https://mail.google.com/’ which will allow us access to and the ability to manipulate the mailbox. I.e., read emails, then move to failed and/or passed folders if needed. Also, if failed/passed folders are not created, this gives the permissions to do so.
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Best Practices & Tips
Best Practices & Tips
1. If meters do come through via our alert process, but come through as not billable, eAuto is likely catching them through its meter validation buffer. For example, meters reported frequently may not pass eAuto's validation buffer because eAuto will recalculate the average monthly volume based on days in between meters. So when meters get pushed in often, it can make eAuto think the device is averaging more copies than usual if they do a lot of copies within a couple days. (We recommend meters only come from the device weekly, not daily.)
Custom Property Set Up
Use Custom Property to turn this integration OFF at either Equipment or Customer Level. We build this Custom Property for you and default to ON so this process is effectively ON for everything. You can set the exceptions to OFF at either Equipment or Customer Record level, as needed.
**Please note, setting to OFF at Customer Level will turn off for all Equipment Records showing that customer as Main Customer. For example, if Equipment Custom Property is set to ON and Customer Custom Property is set to OFF, the alert will NOT consider any of the equipment.
Creating the Custom Property if you are missing in eAuto:
Step 1:
Create Custom Property Attribute via Tools / Lists & Codes / Attributes:
Attribute name = ZCJ_DCAMeterImport
Description = ZCJ_DCAMeterImport for ID311/ID968
Data type = User-Defined Lookup
Lookup List = On / Off
Step 2:
Add Custom Property Attribute to both your Customer and Equipment Record Configurations via Tools / Lists & Codes / Configurations (custom properties):
Select New for Group Customer Properties:
Search Available attribute(s) for ZCJ_DCAMeterImport, check off Default value and select ON, then select QuickAdd - don't forget to hit OK to save:
Do the same for Group Equipment Properties:
Now you have this Custom Property available on Customer Record:
and Equipment Record:
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APP
APP
You will need to tell our app which eAuto Meters correspond to the DCA Meters, so we know which meters to insert where in eAuto.
**DO NOT USE INTERNET EXPLORER AS YOUR BROWSER! IE is no longer supported and our Apps do NOT working in the IE environment.
Go to your CEO Juice apps (if you don't know the URL use http://localhost:8888)
Select model-mapping-and-key-services:
The two hyper links at top take you to
(1) Metertypes
(2) Meter Mappings
Metertypes shows the Emailed Meter Type names (based on our parser) and eAuto Meter Type names, indicating if mapped and/or if ignored for mapping:
Meter Types:
To get started go to Meter Mappings to start mapping your MP Monitor or HP Action Center (DCA) Meter Types to eAuto Meter Types:
Once you have mapped all your meters, the app can determine which meters to insert into eAuto.
When you select Add Mapping you are essentially telling us which eAuto Meter Types match the DCA Meter Type.
Within this 'Create Mapping' tool, the DCA Source is driving the DCA MeterType and DCA Fallback to ensure you don't map a DCA Source of Konica to Toshiba, for example.
The 'Fallback DCA Metertype (optional)' is only needed when the same EA Metertype applies to more than one DCA Metertype.
For example:
B\W only device has DCA Metertype of Total Meter which needs to be mapped to EA Metertype of B\W. But a color device has DCA Metertypes of Total Total Meter, Total B\W, and Total Color. You don't want DCA Metertype of Total Meter to go into eAuto as Total B\W clicks.
So you want the DCA Metertype = Total B\W and the Fallback DCA Metertype = Total Meter
Essentially you are telling the app, if Total B\W from DCA does NOT exist, then use DCA Metertype of Total Meter for my eAuto B\W meter.
Example below, shows various mappings that include multiple Meter Types and Fallback Meter:
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OnDemandReport
OnDemand Report
You also have an On Demand SSRS Report to review what has pushed in that day and what has had errors that day. Select on Incoming Source at a time, can not run report for multiple. This is essentially a duplicate to the daily email sent to those emails listed on your ID398 subscription.
Report shows on Page 1, any meters unable to push into eAuto due to error indicated:
Page 2 shows what meters have been pushed into eAuto:
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Related Alerts
Related Alerts
ID311 - HP SDS Action Center & MPS Monitor Integration
ID396 - Emails tech when there is a new service call for equipment with previous meter reading of "estimate/other"
ID968 - Advanced meters & DCA data
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