Organizations want to go paperless but with limited IT resources, implementing complex document scanning and document classification rules into an existing SharePoint installation can be challenging. One solution is to simply integrate an “off the shelf’ document management software solution as a web part of SharePoint.
Packaged Document Management Software (PDMS) can greatly enhance the document management capabilities of a Microsoft SharePoint installation in virtually any enterprise. Through Microsoft Active Directory Synchronization it is possible to operate document management software as a feature rich document control solution within the SharePoint environment. Users get the best of both worlds; the rich portal and platform offerings of SharePoint and the focused document and user control features of packaged software.
The objective of the PDMS/SharePoint integration is to embed the main sections of the PDMS web client into Microsoft Office SharePoint Services (MOSS) and Windows SharePoint Services (WSS).The objectives of the integration are:
- To provide integrated security by synchronizing the MOSS instance and the PDMS instance with the same Active Directory instance so that there is a single sign-on process for users.
- To make it easy for users to transfer documents to and from the SharePoint document libraries and the PDMS libraries.To provide a way for users to query (search) the PDMS libraries from within the SharePoint view.
In SharePoint the PDMS will present itself as web parts:
As a web part providing a complete set of PDMS web client level functionality. The navigation (tree) pane, folder pane and metadata pane will be provided. Access to all actions and views shall be based on the PDMS security context of the user. The view (property settings) shall be the same as the users web client settings. Users will be allowed to:
- Browse the packaged PDMS library treeOpen and view the contents of folders/views.
- Open and use the metadata capture featuresPerform any of the actions provided in the PDMS Toolbar
- Perform all aspects of document management software’s extensive Metadata and full text search capabilities. The search results, generated from the PDMS search engine, will be stand-alone and not blend with that of the SharePoint search result set.
Integration to the Microsoft Office desktop applications (such as Microsoft Word, Excel etc.), provides a common and familiar user experience for interacting with all relevant Microsoft Office applications. The web part presents the PDMS library tree, document grid and metadata panel and allows an easy and intuitive file exchange mechanism between both environments. The user experience is enhanced by providing specific menu options for SharePoint level document contextual menus. Using these two mechanisms the following PDMS / SharePoint interoperability are provided:
- Copy documents from the PDMS to SharePointCheck-out documents from the PDMS to SharePoint
- Copy documents from SharePoint to the PDMSCheck-in documents from SharePoint to the PDMS
When copying documents from the PDMS to SharePoint, the document will inherit the SharePoint destination folder’s default document type and metadata values.
Comparing SharePoint and PDMS Functionality
For the purpose of a document management implementation, the products are difficult to compare – they are different in cost, implementation effort, philosophy and purpose.
SharePoint is a platform for enterprise “portal”, collaboration and workspace features.It can also be a development environment for .NET enhancements and specific user configurations.
PDMS is a purpose built “Off The Shelf” offering for document scanning, structuring documents, workflow and records management including archiving and disposition policies.
PDMS and SharePoint work well together as they both use the same Microsoft foundation. By integrating with SharePoint, customers can have the best of both worlds; great collaboration and at the same time, easy to use, feature rich document management.
Comparing Costs of a Document Management Solution
Although SharePoint is not expensive to purchase it can be very expensive to implement. In nearly all cases extensive internal and external IT support is needed. SharePoint does not ship with the third party components needed to make it work as a rich document management solution. A company considering SharePoint as a document management solution would have to add in the cost of:
- Tightly integrated document viewers to allow users to work with CAD without having native software installed.
- Tightly integrated scanning software that will work with different scanners to convert paper into electronic form.
- Out of the box user rights configurations for fast set up.
- “Best Practices”guidelines and help for document and record management and retention.
Many companies would consider SharePoint far too expensive to implement for a document management solution. SharePoint software requires a large amount of IT resources to configure, to train and support users, and to deploy (almost always outside consultants are hired if DM features are required).
PDMS licensing starts as low as $3,750.00 for 5 users including a document scanning module with optional modules that can be purchased only if needed. Installation is only a matter of hours and as a packaged product comes with extensive documentation and video training materials. Dedicated support technicians are always available to help through various support programs.
How Can SharePoint and Packaged Document Management Software Work Together?
PDMS can be a great companion product to SharePoint in the enterprise. A packaged software product that is based on Microsoft technologies should be chosen allowing both products to operate in the .NET environment. When users are synchronized with Active Directory it is possible to operate the PDMS as a solution within SharePoint. With SharePoint integration users can easily move documents from SharePoint into the PDMS creating a structured library with consistent metadata capture. A federated search capability allows users to search for documents in both SharePoint and document management software.
To learn about how packaged “off the Shelf” software can work with a SharePoint installation contact sales@filehold.com
Related Article:
http://documentmanagement101.wordpress.com/2011/10/14/cost-of-document-management-software/
