Once your organization embarks on a digital transformation journey, there’s no turning back. Your leaders will now be on a never-ending mission to further improve and streamline business processes. As enablers of digital transformation, IT teams are expected to turn ambitious visions into reality. Well, I’m sure you’re up to the challenge. Why else would you be here?
Your current task at hand, which is to automate file transfer workflows, is not exactly a walk in the park. File movement might seem like a straightforward process. But when you put it in the context of a business environment, you must take several factors into account. Is it secure, performant, scalable and reliable enough? Does it meet regulatory compliance requirements? These are just some of the many considerations involved.
Since file transfer automation is a complex undertaking, it requires a strategic approach. In the following sections, you’ll find a roadmap that will guide you through this task to completion.
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1. Understand your objectives for implementing file transfer automation
This first step is a critical prerequisite to a fruitful file transfer automation undertaking, so please bear with us. Before you start throwing precious resources on this project, you have to establish why you’re doing this in the first place. Yes, your primary goal is to steamline business processes. But that goal can be broken down into clear and, if possible, measurable objectives.
Here’s a hypothetical use case that illustrates what we mean.
Let’s consider a sample scenario wherein a retail company initially relies on manual methods to exchange inventory data, purchase orders, shipping notices and other business documents with multiple trading partners. Every day, the company’s IT team has to move files manually.
The mere act of shifting between various systems, such as point-of-sale (POS), inventory management and supplier portals, and interacting with each application’s interface can already be time-consuming. In some instances, files may even have to be retrieved from other sources such as a Windows SMB share or an internal FTP server.
These tedious processes can be further delayed by inconsistent file transfer schedules, human error, network congestion issues and other external factors. For example, if the IT team is already overloaded with more urgent issues, that file transfer may have to wait.
Or, if the file transfer involves large files, it may have to be postponed to a later time to avoid network congestion issues. So, on average, that IT team may have to spend 4-5 hours per day just transferring files.
Since retail companies often operate as part of a supply chain, any delay at their end can impact other companies in that chain. For instance, delays in sending purchase orders, sales forecasts or inventory updates may disrupt a supplier’s production and shipping schedules.
This retail company can eliminate those delays through automation. By offloading data movement tasks to automation tools, actions can be completed in real-time. As a result, those hours can be reduced to minutes. In this scenario, the retail company’s IT team can therefore set a measureable objective of reducing total file transfer processing time by 95%.
Here are some additional examples of measurable objectives that you may set for your automation project:
- Achieve 100% compliance with Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) file transfer-related regulatory requirements.
- Support 100% growth in file transfer volume over the next two years.
- Maintain 99.9% file transfer system uptime
2. Define your requirements
Automated file transfer workflows operate within a larger business ecosystem. As such, you must clearly define operational, regulatory and technical requirements early on to ensure the success of your automation project. Here are some examples for each category.
Operational requirements
Let’s say your business can’t afford extended operational disruptions. You must therefore ensure that your automation solution can reliably withstand high-volume and large file transfers. This typically entails incorporating scalability and high availability functionality, which help maintain high levels of uptime.
Regulatory requirements
File transfer workflows may involve sensitive data. If you’re dealing with certain types of data that are covered by regulations like the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), PCI DSS or the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), you have to know what security controls need to be incorporated into your workflows in order for them to meet regulatory compliance requirements.
Technical requirements
When you transact with a diverse set of trading partners, it’s possible for their protocol of choice to vary. For instance, some partners might prefer to conduct data transfers via Secure Copy Protocol (SCP) or SSH File Transfer Protocol (SFTP), while others might demand a more advanced Electronic Data Interchange (EDI)-ready protocol like Applicability Statement 2 (AS2). Thus, if you want to include transactions with those partners in your automated workflows, your solution should be capable of supporting different protocols.
3. Design your desired workflow architecture
The efficiency, security and scalability of your solution and the overall success of your automation efforts hinge heavily on how well you design your workflow architecture.
Start by mapping out your file sharing and file transfer workflows, including intra-organizational and inter-organizational file transfer processes. Visualize all relevant file movement, from source to each corresponding destination. Identify all endpoints involved. These include systems, applications and services.
In modern IT environments, some endpoints are going to be found on-premises, while others may be hosted in cloud environments like Microsoft Azure, AWS and Google Cloud. Others might even be Software-as-a-Service apps.
Pinpoint key touchpoints and decision points, such as where files are generated and where they have to be rerouted depending on file name, file size, content and other properties. Determine what actions need to be executed in response to events (e.g. a successful file upload) or a pre-defined schedule. Also determine how files are validated and what must happen if an error occurs.
Simplified workflow example
4. Incorporate security into your design
In the past, IT teams usually tacked on security features as an afterthought. That approach often led to a disjointed patchwork of solutions that were prone to security gaps, efficiency issues, higher costs and additional administrative overhead. To avoid these problems, you must adopt a “secure be design” strategy. In other words, you must embed security into your workflow architecture from the outset.
For example, if part of your workflow involves the movement of data across an insecure network, like the Internet, then you should design that segment so that it’s protected with end-to-end encryption. Or if your workflow involves remote users, then you must plan for 2-factor authentication at endpoints where those users are supposed to log on to your system.
Since you would have already identified your security requirements in Step 2, you can use those outputs in determining which security controls should be prioritized.
Recommended read: How to achieve truly secure FTP
5. Choose the right automated file transfer solution
At this point, it should be clear why clearly established objectives, well-defined requirements and a well-thought-out design are essential to the success of your automation strategy. When you start evaluating automation software, these outputs will guide you in making informed decisions.
For instance, knowing which applications and services must integrate and interoperate with your automation tool can help you prioritize tools that offer better compatibility. Similarly, since you would have already identified the security controls required for regulatory compliance, you can likewise focus on tools that readily meet those requirements.
That said, there are other factors worth considering as well.
If you plan on deploying multiple instances of the same solution in a heterogeneous IT environment, consider solutions with superior deployment flexibility. An automated file transfer software that can run on multiple server operating systems like Windows Server, Linux, UNIX and IBM AIX, can substantially reduce complexity once you reach the implementation stage.
Another criterion worth considering is whether the solution you’re evaluating offers technical support. Technical support engineers can provide guidance or answer any questions you may have during the implementation and deployment stages.
There are numerous solutions for automating file transfers. However, the most commonly used solutions fall into these three categories:
Managed file transfer
Easily the best option when it comes to enterprise-grade automated and secure file transfer solutions, managed file transfer (MFT) is the only category of solutions you should be evaluating if you’re dealing with advanced file transfer workflows.
First of all, the best MFT solutions offer no-code/low code automation tools that make it easy for IT teams to build sophisticated automated workflows. With these tools, you can build workflows without writing a single line of code. Here are a few examples that demonstrate what we mean:
- How to schedule automatic downloads with trading partners
- Set up automated synchronization between a Linux directory and an Amazon S3 bucket
- Auto-generate a list of files that have just been downloaded
- Get an automated email notification showing a list of recent downloads
- How to set up automated downloads from a remote SFTP server
A low-code/no-code automation tool on JSCAPE MFT Server by Redwood
The best MFT solutions are also equipped with an extensive array of security features that easily meet stringent regulatory requirements. Additionally, they offer a wide range of connectors and robust APIs that ensure interoperability and compatibility with various endpoints.
Last but not the least, MFT solutions also support multiple file transfer protocols such as SFTP, File Transfer Protocol Secure (FTPS), AS2 and many others. This will make it easy for you to interconnect with various trading partners.
Cloud-based tools
Organizations that want to avoid the upfront costs and administrative overhead associated with an on-premises solution may try cloud-based alternatives. Like all cloud-based solutions, cloud automation tools are offered through flexible pricing models such as usage-based, subscription-based or tiered pricing. The underlying physical infrastructure is managed by the service provider, which significantly reduces your administrative responsibilities.
While these tools also offer greater scalability, global access and high availability, they may not be the best option if you require tight integration with existing on-premises applications. That being said, they do offer better integration with other cloud-based services.
It’s certainly worth noting that leading managed file transfer solution vendors have now started offering managed file transfer-as-a-service (MFTaaS). These are MFT solutions packaged in a Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) model. If you wish to see how easy it is to build automated file transfer workflows using a leading MFTaaS solution, schedule a quick demo now.
Script-based automation
IT teams have been using scripts to automate FTP file transfers for decades. In Windows systems, script-based automation solutions usually consist of batch files, command-line FTP scripts and the Windows Task Scheduler. In Linux boxes, bash scripts, FTP scripts and the cron service are normally used for this purpose.
Script-based automation works, no doubt about it. However, it’s not the most efficient. It also requires advanced programming skills. Unless you have existing IT team members who can write script code and command-line FTP commands, you’ll need to hire someone who possesses the required skill should you wish to go down this path.
6. Develop and implement the workflow
This is now where the rubber meets the road. At this stage, you can start developing and implementing the workflow you meticulously designed. This would typically involve several tasks, such as:
- Integrating your solution with all relevant endpoints, including databases, network services, network shares and so on.
- Interconnecting with trading partners through their protocol of choice, e.g., FTPS, SFTP, AS2 and so on.
- Exchanging trading partner credentials, such as Secure Sockets Layer/Transport Layer Security (SSL/TLS) certificates or public keys.
- Writing automation code or, in the case of a low-code/no-code automation tool, building and configuring through a graphical user interface.
- Integrating third-party security tools or, if you’re using an MFT solution, enabling required security controls.
- Testing if everything works as expected.
If you run into any issues, don’t hesitate to contact technical support. They’ll help you resolve problems quickly. Now you know why you should include technical support among your key criteria.
When you go through this stage, the difference between a managed file transfer solution and a script-based solution is going to be night and day. You’ll need a considerably longer time to implement your workflow if you rely on scripts.
In addition, if you use scripts, you’ll also have to integrate with third-party tools to implement the necessary security controls. With an MFT solution, on the other hand, all you need to do is enable and configure the required settings through the solution’s administrative interface.
To see just how easy it is to implement automated workflows with an MFT solution, schedule a quick demo now.
7. Deploy the workflow in production and monitor
We can’t emphasize enough. Don’t proceed to this stage unless you have thoroughly tested your solution in a staging environment. Even so, have a backup and recovery plan in place in case unexpected issues arise. Once you have successfully deployed your solution, monitor it.
You may check audit logs or, if your solution supports the capability, generate reports of relevant file transfer activities and then examine them to find potential anomalies. If you notice anything unusual, investigate further and make sure it’s nothing serious. Some issues can remain undetected during testing and only appear after deployment. It’s critical to catch those issues before they affect your operations.
Some vendors offer 24/7 tech support. If your vendor does, consider subscribing to that service, especially if your file transfer workflows play an important role in business-critical processes. A 24/7 tech support service ensures you have access to professional assistance all the time. If you encounter any problem, the on-call tech support engineer can help you resolve the issue immediately.
That’s the last step. If you have questions, we have automation experts who can help you out. Schedule a meeting now.