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Tigersoft FileSpider Pricing, Integrations, and Use Cases

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Getting Started with Tigersoft FileSpider: Tips for AdministratorsTigersoft FileSpider is an enterprise document capture, processing, and workflow automation platform designed to help organizations ingest, classify, extract, and route documents with minimal manual effort. This guide walks administrators through initial setup, configuration best practices, security considerations, common workflows, troubleshooting tips, and maintenance tasks to get the most from FileSpider.

Overview: What FileSpider Does and Who Should Administer It

FileSpider automates end-to-end document processing: from scanning or importing digital files, through OCR and data extraction, to validation, indexing, and routing into ECM (Enterprise Content Management), RPA, or line-of-business systems. Administrators responsible for FileSpider typically handle installation, integrations, security, performance tuning, user access, and ongoing maintenance.

Pre-installation Planning

  1. System requirements and sizing

    • Verify server OS, CPU, RAM, disk space, and .NET/Java prerequisites according to your Tigersoft version.
    • Plan storage for scanned images, intermediate files, logs, and backups. Fast I/O (SSD or NVMe) reduces processing bottlenecks.
    • For high-volume environments, consider a distributed architecture: separate scanning/ingestion nodes, processing workers, and database servers.

  2. Network and security planning

    • Ensure secure connectivity between FileSpider components and external systems (ECM, databases, email servers, SFTP).
    • Prepare service accounts with principle of least privilege for all integrations.
    • Decide on encryption requirements for data-at-rest and data-in-transit.

  3. Backup and disaster recovery

    • Identify components to back up: configuration, databases, custom scripts, and content repositories.
    • Establish RTO/RPO objectives and a tested restore process.

Installation and Initial Configuration

  1. Installation steps (high level)

    • Install prerequisite software (web server, runtime frameworks).
    • Deploy FileSpider services and components (web UI, processing engine, queue managers).
    • Configure the database (SQL Server, Oracle, or other supported DB) and run any required schema scripts.
    • Start services and verify connectivity.

  2. Licensing and activation

    • Apply the license key(s) early in the process to unlock enterprise features and avoid trial limitations.
    • Verify license entitlements: number of processing cores, connectors, modules.

  3. Configure storage and repositories

    • Set paths for incoming, processing, and archival repositories.
    • Apply retention policies and purge rules to control disk usage.

  4. Connectors and integrations

    • Configure connectors to ECM systems (e.g., SharePoint, OpenText), cloud storage, ERP, and RPA tools.
    • Test each connector with sample documents to confirm metadata mapping and security context.

User Roles, Authentication, and Permissions

  1. Role design

    • Define roles such as Administrator, Process Designer, Operator/Validator, and Read-Only Auditor.
    • Map roles to duties in your organization to enforce separation of duties.

  2. Authentication options

    • Integrate with Active Directory/LDAP for centralized user management.
    • Consider SSO (SAML, OpenID Connect) for simplified access and stronger security.

  3. Permissions and access control

    • Use least-privilege access: restrict administrative functions to a small group.
    • Apply folder- and document-level permissions where supported to limit visibility of sensitive content.

Designing Processing Workflows

  1. Capture sources

    • Common sources: network folders, email inboxes, MFP/scanners, mobile uploads, APIs.
    • Normalize file types and perform pre-processing (deskew, despeckle, image enhancement).

  2. Classification and extraction

    • Use template-based and machine-learning classification to categorize documents.
    • Configure OCR and zonal/field extraction rules; validate results with confidence thresholds.
    • Combine rule-based extraction with ML models for improved accuracy on semi-structured documents.

  3. Validation and human-in-the-loop

    • Design validation queues for human verification where confidence is low.
    • Provide operators with easy correction interfaces and quick access to original images.

  4. Routing and publishing

    • Map extracted metadata to target system fields.
    • Configure conditional routing rules and error handling (dead-letter queues, retry policies).

Performance Tuning and Scalability

  1. Parallel processing

    • Tune worker counts and thread pools to match CPU and I/O capacity.
    • Balance between throughput and resource contention; monitor queue lengths and processing latency.

  2. Database optimization

    • Index key tables, archive old records, and tune queries if processing delays occur.
    • Consider a separate DB instance for reporting to avoid contention with transactional workloads.

  3. Caching and file handling

    • Use caching for frequently accessed reference data.
    • Store large files on performant storage and use streaming where possible to reduce memory usage.

Monitoring, Logging, and Alerting

  1. Health checks

    • Monitor service uptime, queue sizes, processor utilization, and disk capacity.
    • Implement synthetic transactions (sample imports) to validate end-to-end processing.

  2. Logging

    • Centralize logs (e.g., ELK, Splunk) with structured messages to speed troubleshooting.
    • Keep detailed audit trails for document events and user actions for compliance.

  3. Alerts

    • Configure alerts for processing backlogs, connector failures, license expiration, and low disk space.
    • Prioritize alerts by business impact to reduce noise.

Security Best Practices

  1. Encryption

    • Enable TLS for all network communications.
    • Encrypt sensitive content at rest and secure backups.

  2. Hardening and patching

    • Apply OS and application updates promptly.
    • Disable unnecessary services and follow secure configuration baselines.

  3. Audit and compliance

    • Keep detailed access logs and change records.
    • Use role-based access control and periodic access reviews.

Common Issues and Troubleshooting

  1. OCR accuracy problems

    • Improve image quality via preprocessing (deskew, despeckle).
    • Update or retrain extraction templates and ML models; increase confidence thresholds or expand validation.

  2. Slow processing

    • Check CPU, memory, disk I/O, and database performance.
    • Scale out worker nodes and tune thread counts.

  3. Failed connector deliveries

    • Verify network connectivity and credentials.
    • Inspect error logs for mapping or permission issues; test with sample payloads.

  4. License or activation errors

    • Confirm license values (cores, modules) and server identifiers.
    • Contact Tigersoft support with logs and license info if mismatch persists.

Maintenance Tasks and Operational Procedures

  1. Regular tasks

    • Monitor queue health and process backlog daily.
    • Reconcile processed counts with target systems; investigate discrepancies.

  2. Monthly/Quarterly tasks

    • Archive old documents and truncate logs to reclaim space.
    • Test backups and perform restore drills.

  3. Change management

    • Use version control for processing workflows and scripts.
    • Test changes in a staging environment before production deployment.

Extending FileSpider: Customization and Automation

  1. Custom scripts and plugins

    • Implement pre/post processors via supported scripting interfaces for unique business rules.
    • Maintain code in a shared repo and apply CI/CD for deployments.

  2. APIs and webhooks

    • Use APIs for programmatic control, monitoring, and integration with RPA or BPM systems.
    • Implement webhooks for near-real-time notifications to downstream systems.

Training and Documentation

  1. Administrator training

    • Ensure admins understand architecture, backup/restore, and troubleshooting procedures.
    • Provide runbooks for common incidents.

  2. End-user training

    • Train validators and operators on common tasks, corrections, and exception handling.
    • Create quick reference guides and video walkthroughs for frequent workflows.

Example Quick-Start Checklist (First 30 Days)

  • Provision servers and storage, install prerequisites.
  • Install FileSpider, configure DB, apply license.
  • Set up AD/SSO integration and create admin accounts.
  • Configure one or two capture sources and run sample imports.
  • Create a simple workflow: classification → OCR → extraction → publish to test ECM.
  • Set up monitoring, logging, and daily alerting for queue/backlog.
  • Schedule regular backups and test restore.

Final Tips

  • Start small: validate workflows with representative document samples before scaling.
  • Measure accuracy and throughput continuously; use data to guide tuning and retraining.
  • Keep security and compliance in focus from day one: encrypt, audit, and restrict access.

If you want, I can convert this into a printable checklist, a slide deck for training, or a tailored runbook based on your environment — tell me your server specs and primary capture sources.

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