Course lessons

Setting up your first integration with a Connector package

During our previous lesson, we familiarized ourselves with the Alumio dashboard. Now, we can learn how to set up your first integration, this time using a Connector package.

The first step to create an integration using a Connector package is to open the Alumio dashboard, click on the menu on the left side (that we explored during our previous lesson), and click on “Clients,” “HTTP Clients,” and then create a new client by clicking on the “+” icon:

Then, you can proceed to select from our available Connector packages and choose which Connector package you want:

Once you have chosen the specific Connector package you wish to connect to, you will need to fill in the requirements pertaining to that Connector, which may differ depending on the Connector. In order to fill in the specific requirements, you must first create these environment variables, which you can do by clicking on “Settings” in the left menu and “Environment Variables”:

Create a new environment variable by clicking on the “+” icon and filling in the “Name” and “Value” of your environment variable, which could be, for example, a user or password for the connection to the Connector package. If we chose to connect to Magento, for example, you could create a user name by filling in the “Name” field with “Magento_username,” and the “Value” could be your own name, for example, “Roland.”

If you want to create a password, the name could be “Magento_password.” For a password, you should tick the “Encrypted” box to ensure that the password is not visible anywhere on the dashboard and is redacted from any server and logs. Once the environment variable has been selected, click on “Save & Continue” on the top right of your screen.

Once you have created all your “Environment Variables,” i.e., all the requirements you need to set up the connection with the Connector package, you can copy the “Name” of the “Environment Variable.” You can also start typing the ${ symbols and your existing environment variables should show up. Next, click on “HTTP Clients” on the left side menu, create a new client, select the Connector package (for example, Magento), fill in the “Base URL” field, which is the “Base URL” of the API, select “Bearer token” on the “Authentication type” field and paste the “Name” of the “Environment Variable” (for example, Magento_username) on the “Bearer token” field.

Then, you give it a “Name” (in this case, we used “magento fake test,”) and you click on “Save.”

Once saved, your connection will appear as an “HTTP client,” indicating you have successfully created a connection to Magento. Now, you simply have to repeat the process for your receiving system (for example, Akeneo): create your environment variables and your HTTP client, and then you will have the connection between System A (Magento) and System B (Akeneo) complete.

Then, you must create your incoming configuration, which is essentially the information pertaining to System A. You can create an incoming configuration by selecting “Connections” on the left side menu, and then selecting “Incoming.”

To create a new incoming configuration, you can select the “+” icon on the top right of your screen, and this will appear:

The name we usually write for an incoming configuration is the platform from which it comes, which could be your ERP, CRM, PIM system, etc. An example of an incoming configuration name would be: Akeneo - Get Products, and we must write it in the “Name” field.

Below the “Name,” “Identifier,” and “Description” fields, you will find the “Subscriber” field. This field refers to how we talk to system A, and you can choose from various options. In most cases, we want to talk to an HTTP subscriber, so that is the option we would select if there is no Connector package available.

However, since we are dealing with a Connector package, we can go ahead and write the name of the Connector package on the “Subscriber” field, such as “Adobe Commerce (Magento 2) Subscriber,” “Shopify Subscriber,” “Akeneo Subscriber,” etc.

Fill in the name of the Connector package on the “Subscriber” field, such as “Adobe Commerce (Magento 2) Subscriber.” Then, you can select your “HTTP Client,” which you created in the previous step, (in this case, “magento fake test,”) and the “Entity” you would like to receive information from, which could be, for example, “Products.”

If you want to get a detailed example of how to connect to the Adobe Commerce (Magento 2) Connector package, visit: About the Adobe Commerce - Magento 2 category
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When it comes to a Connector package, there are always the same “Request Parameters” that you must fill in order to retrieve the desired information:

{ "path" : [], "query" : [], "payload" : [] } ‍

To understand what request parameters you should fill in to complete your incoming/outgoing configuration, please refer to our Forum. You can access this information here: How To Use The Alumio Connector Packages

If you want to get a comprehensive overview of how to use the Alumio Connector packages, visit: How To Use The Alumio Connector Packages

Or watch the following video: How to use an Alumio Connector Package

To retrieve specific information regarding a Connector package you wish to connect to, visit: iPaaS Connector Packages

Once the incoming configuration has been created, you can access information regarding the configuration on the menu above, such as logs, scheduled jobs, and alerts, which give you an overview of the status of that configuration:

Want more information on incoming configurations? Watch the following video: The incoming configuration page

Once we have familiarized ourselves with how to set up an initial integration, it is time to create a route.

A route is the connection between the incoming configuration that you have created and the outgoing configuration that you have created (i.e. the bridge between System A and B). In other words, routes represent an integration of a data entity between two systems. An example would be a synchronization of orders between a webshop and an ERP system. A route configuration connects an incoming configuration and an outgoing configuration to enable an integration.

Routes can be created and maintained by navigating to the left-side menu Connections → Routes.