PacSol IEP v2

The Inbound Email Processor (IEP) has been a PacSol product for many years. The IEP allows any number of mailboxes to be monitored for incoming emails and then, if they meet certain basic (configurable) criteria, they are processed. Bespoke scripting allows emails and their content to be processed according to specific customer requirements and anything 'problematic' is sent to a separate mailbox to be investigated or processed manually.

Initially running on Windows PC, the application has also been modified to run on IBM i without a GUI (Graphical User Interface) - it instead produces a comprehensive log file to assist with diagnosing any problems. Running on IBM i also allows the application to be monitored, stopped and started in a more strategic way whilst making use of the IBM Power PC reliability. With IEP licenced on a per server basis rather than by the number of emails processed or mailboxes monitored, it can be an extremely powerful tool in the automation of email process for an organisation.

Of course the original version has its limitations. Version 1 support is limited to the IMAP and SMTP protocols for receiving and sending emails. This had allowed connection to pretty much any mail server to be used with the IEP, however, in recent years companies have been more reluctant to allow direct IMAP access to their mail server (required by version 1). Whilst typically on-premise Microsoft Exchange based mail servers have been the standard that IEP connects too, many organisations are moving to Microsoft Office 365 or other cloud based SaaS solutions.

Enter IEP Version 2.0

As the services utilised by business have evolved, it became clear that there was a need to support Microsoft (MS) Graph as a means to receive and send emails. It would not have been feasible to simply add this code to the original IEP so it was decided to re-architect the product. Version 2 still retains the originals incredible flexibility (both in terms of email data processing and content export options) but with a couple of significant changes 'under the hood'.

The greatest change has involved encapsulation of the basic functions (receiving and sending emails) in an agnostic way, that is, a way that the differing protocols can implement in their own way to achieve the same desired outcome. Modules have been written to implement IEP services against IMAP, SMTP and MS Graph (the new addition) - these modules basically form what might be termed the transport layer. It would be fairly easy to add access to Gmail (for example) by writing another module should a customer have that requirement. This layer approach gives IEP even greater flexibility for our future clients and to handle any future protocols. The core IEP application now focuses on polling the mailboxes, handling shut down, out of hours, sleeping etc and delegates the actual email handing to the transport layer.

Enhancements

So what changes have taken place for the better alongside general performance improvements?

• MS Graph is now supported
• Improved reliability - Email servers do not always behave well. By reading the email fully up front, the IEP guarantees that it has everything needed before it calls the script (passing the email details). This also means that the script never has to access the mail server which in turn simplifies the script and error handling.
• Simplified error handling - If an email fails validation (either by the IEP basic configured validation or is rejected by the script) it is only moved to the 'dead letter' mailbox. IEP v1 used to copy it to the processed folder (if configured) as well, potentially creating end user confusion.

Future enhancements

• Live monitoring of the IEP - future versions will be packaged as a web application allowing live status and processing stats of the IEP.
• Web Configuration Tool - a web based configuration tool will make it easier to configure the IEP and implement incremental configuration changes (without the need for direct configuration file updates).
• Web Scripting Tool - the new web application will provide a basic built in editor for the scripts used to process each email.
• Preconfigured process solutions - PacSol will create a small number of default scripts so that the IEP can be implemented (in a basic configuration) with minimal consultancy time.

Some of the above enhancements are already in development and should be showcased in our newsletter very soon.

Existing IEP Customers

For existing IEP customers running version 1, PacSol will be in touch over the coming months to offer an upgrade to version 2. If your business has an upcoming infrastructure change that may require IEP version 2 to be implemented sooner (Ms Graph required), please contact PacSol support and we will discuss the potential to add your system to our early adoption roster.

And don't forget, our licensing model is per server. If your organisation wants to add further mailboxes to IEP (related to different business areas or process), simply contact PacSol to discuss the processing requirements for the additional stream and reduce the manual burden further.

New to IEP?

If your organisation is regularly processing the content from emails to drive business process, whether shared, specific or even individual mailboxes, IEP could reduce the employee time overhead significantly by automating that initial categorisation, data extraction, secure storage and task allocation. What is more, through automation, the risk of duplication, data loss or failure to process are greatly reduced, making processes not only more efficient but helping to keep clients, regulators and suppliers alike happy.

Come and talk to us at PacSol about where and how our solution could help your organisation streamline email processing.

Mark Wheadon, Managing Director. May 2024

 

 

 

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