Setting up M-Files Ground Link

Before you set up the Ground Link feature, make sure that:

gRPC connections are permitted on the M-Files server.
The server has a valid TLS certificate for the encryption of the gRPC connections.

For more information, refer to the knowledge base document Setting Up M-Files to Use gRPC.

To set up the Ground Link feature, you first install external repository connectors to a Ground Link proxy. Then, you set up repository connections in the vault. After that, you can see and edit the on-premises data directly from the vault.

Enabling Ground Link Connection

To set up the Ground Link feature, write to our customer support at [email protected] to enable the feature for your environment.

Complete these steps to enable the channel connection for Ground Link in a local vault:

Open M-Files Admin and go to a vault.
1. Open M-Files Admin.
2. In the left-side tree view, expand an M-Files server connection.
3. Expand Document Vaults.
4. Expand a vault.
Click Configurations.
In the navigation area, expand Advanced Vault Settings > Configuration.
Click Ground Link.
On the Configuration tab, set Enabled to Yes.
Click Save.
Restart the vault for the settings to take effect.

Note: Taking a vault offline should always be done in a controlled manner and the vault users should be notified beforehand.
In the gray navigation area, expand External Repositories > Ground Link and select Configuration.

On the Configuration tab, specify these settings:


Setting name		Description	Example value
Enabled		This setting specifies whether Ground Link is enabled or not.	Yes
Remoting Service	Shared Secrets	A shared secret lets a Ground Link proxy authenticate the vault. Make sure that the shared secret is complex and long enough. You can specify one or more shared secrets. You must enter the shared secret when you configure the Ground Link proxy.
	Timeouts	The timeout values specify in seconds how long remote calls wait for a response. Use the default values.
	Timeouts > Quick	This timeout value is used for remote calls that will return quickly.	15 (default value)
	Timeouts > Default	This is the standard timeout value that is used for most of the remote calls.	60 (default value)
	Timeouts > Extended	This timeout value is used for remote calls that will take a long time to return.	600 (default value)
	Timeouts > Custom Timeouts	You can add custom timeout values for specific remote method calls if the method operates correctly but it times out again and again. Add custom timeout values only if you know what to do.	Method Name: ICloudAgentV1.Ping() Timeout: 100
Keep Alive Interval		This setting specifies in seconds how frequently the vault makes sure that the Ground Link services are connected.	60 (default value)

Optional: In Tracing, specify the settings related to tracing.
For more information, select a setting and see the Info tab.
Click Save.

Now that the vault uses Ground Link, you can configure the Ground Link proxy.

Configuring a Ground Link Proxy

Before you begin, make sure that:

Your Ground Link proxy server has sufficient hardware resources. See the recommended hardware setup.
You have M-Files Server and M-Files Admin installed on the Ground Link proxy server. However, a separate license for M-Files Server is not necessary.
You are logged in to M-Files Server with a login account that has the System administrator server role. To create a login account, see Creating a Login Account.

To configure a Ground Link proxy:

Open M-Files Admin.
In the left-side tree view, expand a connection to M-Files server.
Click Ground Link Proxies.
On the right-side pane, click New Ground Link Proxy.
Result:The New Ground Link Proxy dialog is opened.
Enter a name for the Ground Link proxy.
Select the database engine for storing Ground Link proxy data.
- To use Firebird, select Use Firebird.
  or
- To use Microsoft SQL Server, select Use Microsoft SQL Server.
For more information, see Database engine and data storage.
Click Define.
Result:The settings dialog for the search engine is opened.

Complete one of these options:

Option	Description
On the Ground Link Proxy - Firebird dialog	Click the ... button and select the file location for the Ground Link proxy data. Click OK to close the dialog.
On the Ground Link Proxy - Microsoft SQL Server dialog	Do the steps from 6 to 10 in Migrating the Ground Link Proxy Database to Microsoft SQL Server.

Click OK to close the New Ground Link Proxy dialog.
Install those external repository connectors that your vault will use to the newly created Ground Link proxy.

Note: If a valid vault application license is necessary for a connector, the license will be for the vault and for the server that contains the vault.

For more information, see Installing and Managing Vault Applications.

Example: To get access to on-premises network folders from M-Files Cloud, install M-Files Network Folder Connector.

Result:The Ground Link proxy is now ready for configuration.
In the left-side tree view, under Ground Link Proxies, select the newly created Ground Link proxy.

On the Configuration tab, specify these settings:


Setting name		Description	Example value
Enabled		This setting specifies whether Ground Link is enabled or not.	Yes
Password		Enter a password that you will use when you apply a configuration for a Ground Link service in the vault.
Channel	Network Address	Enter the network location of the server to connect to.
	Port number	Enter the port that the server listens. If you use the gRPC protocol, use the same port number that your M-Files client uses to connect to the server. For more information, see Adding a Vault Connection. Make sure that the necessary ports are open in the firewall.	7766 or 443
	Secure	This setting specifies whether a secure (SSL encrypted) channel connection is used. In production environments, insecure connections are not recommended.	Yes
	Vault GUID	Enter the GUID of your vault. To see the vault GUID, right-click the vault and select Properties. The GUID is shown in the Unique ID field in the Document Vault Properties dialog.	{990827D8-8AF2-4A4EB1214C1A8AD8ECD0}
	Shared Secret	Copy the shared secret from the vault configuration. The channel connection cannot be established if the shared secret does not match one of the shared secrets specified for Ground Link.
	Reconnect Interval	This value specifies in seconds how frequently the Ground Link proxy tries to connect when the vault is disconnected.	60 (default value)
	Keep Alive Interval	This value specifies in seconds how frequently the Ground Link proxy makes sure that the connection to the vault operates correctly.	60 (default value)
	Timeouts	The timeout values specify in seconds how long remote calls wait for a response. Use the default values.
	Timeouts > Quick	This timeout value is used for remote calls that will return quickly.	15 (default value)
	Timeouts > Default	This is the standard timeout value that is used for most of the remote calls.	60 (default value)
	Timeouts > Extended	This timeout value is used for remote calls that will take a long time to return.	600 (default value)
	Timeouts > Custom Timeouts	You can add custom timeout values for specific remote method calls if the method operates correctly but it times out again and again. Add custom timeout values only if you know what to do.	Method Name: ICloudAgentV1.Ping() Timeout: 100

Optional: Specify the settings in Tracing and Multi-Server Compatibility.
For more information, select a setting and see the Info tab.
Click Save.

The connection between the vault and the Ground Link proxy is established. Next, you can set up repository connections in the vault.

You can see the status of the vault connection on the Dashboard tab.

Configuring Connectors over Ground Link

This example tells you how to configure M-Files Network Folder Connector in a vault as a Ground Link service. For information on support for other connectors, write to M-Files Customer Support at [email protected] or the connector provider.

Before you begin, make sure that M-Files Network Folder Connector is installed to the Ground Link proxy that is connected to your vault.

To configure a connection to a Ground Link proxy:

Open M-Files Admin and go to a vault for which you have enabled the Ground Link connection.
1. Open M-Files Admin.
2. In the left-side tree view, expand an M-Files server connection.
3. Expand Document Vaults.
4. Expand a vault.
Click Configurations.
In the navigation area, expand External Repositories.
Click Ground Link.

On the Dashboard tab, you see the connected Ground Link proxies with the available Ground Link services. Make sure that the service that you want to configure, in this case Network Folder, is online.
In the gray navigation area, expand first the Ground Link node and then the Ground Link proxy whose service you want to use.
In the gray navigation area, select the Ground Link service, in this case Network Folder.
On the Dashboard tab, select Add Connection.
In the confirmation dialog that is opened, click OK.
On the Dashboard tab, click Configure to configure the new connection.
For more information, refer to Installing and Configuring M-Files Network Folder Connector.
Click Save.
Click Apply.
Result:The Enter Password dialog is opened.
Enter the password that is defined in the Ground Link proxy configuration.
Optional: Authenticate background users. After you have given the credentials, save and apply the settings again.
For more information, refer to Installing and Configuring M-Files Network Folder Connector.
Click Save.
Optional: Repeat the steps from 5 to 12 to add more connections.

Now you have access to the on-premises network folders from the vault. The objects in the network folders are shown in M-Files. You can edit them and give them metadata in the same way as objects that are stored in the vault.