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How do I use Watchfolders within AdvanceDocs?

Select Settings - Watchfolders from the toolbar menu

It is possible for documents to be automatically saved directly into AdvanceDocs as soon as they are created. AdvanceDocs can be configured to constantly monitor or watch a directory for new documents being placed into them. AdvanceDocs checks this every few seconds, as long as your workstation is switched on and can access that directory. When your computer workstation first logs on each day, it will check for any additional files that have been placed in the watchfolders. As soon as a document is detected in the watchfolder, AdvanceDocs will attempt to import it to the Organizer window, converting any graphics files into PDF format.

Once a document has been processed by AdvanceDocs, it will be removed from the Watchfolder. If the document was not able to be converted to a PDF format, it is moved into a ‘Failed’ directory within the watchfolder.

You may also find that you wish to change the delay time when a new document is received into a watchfolder. This setting is made in the AdvanceDocs.ini file in the user’s directory in the AdvanceDocs directory. The setting Monitor_Watchfolder_delay is an amount in seconds. AdvanceDocs will wait for the amount of time specified in this setting and check that during that time, the file has not been modified. AdvanceDocs will only proceed to process the file when the file has not been modified for a time longer than the delay specified. This is particularly useful if your scanner is placing the scanned image in the watchfolder and it is taking the scanner some time to gradually save the scanned image.

Each user of AdvanceDocs can be configured to watch their own watchfolders, and can monitor as many as you wish at the one time.

If two computers with AdvanceDocs are set to monitor the same watchfolder, AdvanceDocs will randomly choose which workstation gets any new files placed in the watchfolder. This should be avoided.

This feature is particularly useful when scanning documents. Most scanners can save the scanned image as a PDF or TIF document. Many companies are now using networked scanner/photocopiers. Once the documents are scanned they can be saved into a particular directory on your workstation or network. With AdvanceDocs configured to monitor this as a watchfolder, AdvanceDocs can automatically process and launch as soon as a new document is scanned.

Auto Launch

Click this option for a watchfolder if you want AdvanceDocs to launch when a new file is detected. If this is not selected, AdvanceDocs will process the new file, converting it to a PDF format, but will not launch the ‘Organizer’ window of AdvanceDocs.

Auto OCR

This option is available if optional AdvanceDocs OCR Server product is available to the workstation. When checked a PDF or graphic format document placed into the watchfolder will be automatically sent for OCR process before being loaded into the Organizer.

Image & text

This option will bring both an OCR'ed version of the document and the original version of the document into the watchfolder.

Optimize

This option should strictly only be used upon instruction from DocsCorp Technical Support.

Watchfolder colours

Watchfolders shown in ‘grey’ indicate that the path is not currently available. Commonly this will occur if you have a laptop set to monitor directories on your server. When you are away from the office, these watchfolders will not be available and will show in red. When you next logon to your network, any files in the watchfolders will be processed.

For Windows 98 - The watchfolder option is not available for workstations operating under Windows 98.