datalink integration guide1.5 - blackboard...

DataLink Learn (SaaS or 9.1 Oct 2014+) Integration

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Overview ............................................................................................................................................................................. 2

Integration Goals .............................................................................................................................................................. 2

Dependencies .................................................................................................................................................................... 2

Steps to Integrate to Learn using DataLink ............................................................................................................. 2

Download and Install the DataLink Client Tool ..................................................................................................... 2 Technical Requirements .......................................................................................................................................................... 2 Installing DataLink .................................................................................................................................................................... 2 Configuring DataLink ................................................................................................................................................................ 4

Creating a Data Source ........................................................................................................................................................ 5 Authenticating your DataLink Client .................................................................................................................................... 6

Confirming Successful Data Integration ................................................................................................................................... 6 Email Alerts .............................................................................................................................................................................. 7

Enabling the SIS Central Building Block ................................................................................................................... 7

Launching the Blackboard SIS Central Service ...................................................................................................... 8

First Time Setup ............................................................................................................................................................... 8

SIS Central Connection Settings .................................................................................................................................. 9

Add Enrollment Schedule ........................................................................................................................................... 11

SIS Central Landing Page ............................................................................................................................................ 19

Manually Run a Data Extraction Now for ANY Data Set .................................................................................... 19

The Extraction Log and SIS Record Count Snapshot .......................................................................................... 20

Appendix A – Passwords and SSO ............................................................................................................................ 23

Appendix B – Parent/Child Support ....................................................................................................................... 25


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Overview Blackboard SIS Central offers a data integration between the DataLink Client Tool and Blackboard Learn -‐ either the SaaS deployments or Blackboard Learn 9.1 Oct 2014 release or higher.

• Enrollment Jobs – Push user (student/staff), course, and membership enrollment data originating in the customer’s Student Information System (SIS) connected to a DataLink Client Tool into Learn via SIS Central.

Integration Goals • Provides admins access to SIS Central to schedule automated Enrollment jobs from their Student Information

System (SIS) connected to a DataLink Client Tool into Learn via SIS Central. • Minimizes the time required by district IT personnel to setup an Enrollment integration.

Dependencies • Learn K-‐12 License: Learn SaaS or Learn 9.1 Oct 2014 release or higher. • Learn System Admin Access to enable the SIS Central Building Block and to access Blackboard SIS Central Service. • Client has installed the DataLink Client Tool for a supported SIS.

Steps to Integrate to Learn using DataLink • Step 1 – Download and Install the DataLink Client Tool for a supported SIS. • Step 2 – Enable the SIS Central Building Block and Access Blackboard SIS Central. • Step 3 – Verify the Connection Settings. • Step 4 – Schedule the Enrollment Extraction.

Download and Install the DataLink Client Tool The DataLink Client Tool is a Windows program that is designed to assist districts with data extraction and data transfer, automatically syncing the data from the SIS or other database into Blackboard’s parent engagement products.

Technical Requirements 1. DataLink requires .NET 4.5 on a Windows 2008 or greater. 2. XP/Server 2003 are NOT supported. 3. DataLink has minimal requirements for processor speed or RAM.

Installing DataLink 1. Download the DataLink Client Tool Installer and Guide from https://dl.parentlink.net/DataLink3.zip. 2. Save the installer to your machine and run it. 3. You will then be prompted to install .NET 4.5, if it is not already installed on the machine.

a. This installation may automatically restart your machine. You may want to consider checking for .NET 4.5 and installing it on your own, if you do not wish to reboot during the day.

4. Follow the prompts until DataLink is successfully installed.


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5. Click Finish to complete.


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Configuring DataLink 1. Open DataLink from the icon that resides on the Desktop.

2. To create a new configuration, click Add Config on the bottom left corner of the screen. 3. Name the configuration. This can be whatever you choose and will be how you recognize the specific config

from the list in the DataLink home screen.


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Creating a Data Source

1. Click on the Data Source tab and then click the Add button. 2. Choose your database from the drop-‐down menu for Software.

a. File Upload Only should be used when you have already created data export files. b. If your database does not appear on the list, you can choose Custom to utilize your own connection

and queries. 3. Type your Server name or IP address, Database Name, Username, and Password.

a. In the case of a Microsoft SQL instanced database, enter the server name/IP and the instance name in the Server text box.

b. If you set up an ODBC, check Use ODBC and enter the credentials. c. You can also choose to connect to the database via Windows Authentication by checking Use

Windows Authentication. 4. By default, DataLink runs as the local system user. To run DataLink as a different user, check Run as a specific

Windows User and then enter the credentials for that user. 5. Once you have entered all the necessary info, click the Test button to test the data connection. 6. To enable this Data Source for integration with SIS Central, check Enable SIS Central.


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Authenticating your DataLink Client 1. Click the About tab to find your install ID. 2. Provide this number to the Data Integration Specialist and then they will send you a Setup number. 3. Once you have received the Setup number from the Data Integration Specialist, click the Upload tab and type

the Setup number and click Submit.

4. Your District name should now appear in the text box. 5. Select your District name and click Test Upload. You should receive a pop-‐up indicating that a file has been

successfully sent. This is a log file sent to Bb, this is not your actual data file(s). 6. At the bottom left of the screen, the Save button should now become usable (previously this was greyed

out). Note: If you are unable to click Save, then DataLink does not recognize a working data source. Please review the previous steps to ensure nothing was missed. If additional assistance is needed please open a ticket with our Data Integration specialist team by contacting the Learn Tier 1 support team.

Confirming Successful Data Integration Congratulations! Your portion of the DataLink setup has been completed. 1. To complete the SIS Central integration, log into Learn and follow the instructions below to enable the

Blackboard SIS Central Service link under the Data Integration tab and complete the initial set up of scheduling your data extraction.

2. Once the data extractions have been set up, the updates will run automatically at the time you have specified within the SIS Central Service.


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3. To view any issues or errors, you can view the extraction log for the results.

Email Alerts 1. To receive email alerts from the DataLink client regarding issues with connecting to your database, click on

the Alerts tab. 2. At the bottom of the page, you will see an Add button. Click Add and then enter the email address where you

prefer to receive any alerts associated with the DataLink tool. 3. These emails will generate alerts when there are network connectivity issues, invalid credentials, permissions

issues, etc.

Enabling the SIS Central Building Block 1. As a Learn system administrator, access the Building Blocks page in Learn and click on Installed Tools > SIS

Central > Make Available.

2. Next, edit the Settings on the B2.


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3. Select DataLink as the Data Source from the drop-‐down menu and click Submit.

Launching the Blackboard SIS Central Service 1. As a Learn system administrator, access the Data Integration page in Learn. 2. Click on the Blackboard SIS Central Service link, which initiates a secure LTI launch to SIS Central that

authenticates you and redirects you to SIS Central.

First Time Setup Upon accessing SIS Central for the first time from Learn, you will see a welcome screen, which gives you the opportunity to download and install the DataLink Client Tool if you have not already done so before attempting to access SIS Central and schedule your Enrollment job.


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1. If you have not downloaded and installed the DataLink Client Tool before, please do so know and follow the instructions provided above under the Installing DataLink section of the guide.

2. If you have already installed DataLink, please click I’m Ready to Continue which will bring you to the Connection Settings page to Test the Connection.

SIS Central Connection Settings 1. Having clicked I’m Ready to Continue from the Welcome Screen in SIS Central, you will see something similar to

the following: a. DataLink Server: https://dlmaster.parlant.com – This is a static setting that reflects a connection is

present to DataLink from SIS Central b. Client ID: 304135 – This is representative of the Client ID assigned to you by Blackboard Learn c. Site ID: ec4c4dcb-‐c78d-‐4b55-‐a406-‐f339c50a57c3 – This is representative of the Learn Cloud ID

2. Execute a Test Connection, which does the following:

a. Verifies that SIS Central can authenticate with the installed DataLink Client Tool b. Verifies that the Enable SIS Central flag is activated on the installed DataLink Client Tool


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3. If the test is successful, you will see Connection verified as successful. Click Save.

4. If unsuccessful, you will receive one of the following errors: a. Connection verification failed: Blackboard Learn -‐ Could not connect to the DataLink system. Check that

the Client ID is correct and DataLink is setup correctly. b. Connection verification failed: Unable to authenticate with DataLink. Please verify that the Client ID is

correct and that SIS Central has been enabled in the DataLink software.


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5. If you continue to experience an “unsuccessful” test, please open a ticket with our Data Integration specialist team by contacting the Learn Tier 1 support team.

Add Enrollment Schedule Once the connection is verified, you can proceed with setting up the first enrollment schedule for your institution. When setting up the Enrollment schedule, you can choose Schedule Settings, Validation Rules, Data Mapping for Courses, Students, Staff, and Learn Roles, as well as Admin Alerts. Important:

• When courses are first created by the integration, the course is not available to students so teachers can add content and work with their school to determine when to make the course available to students.

• If a teacher or Learn system administrator has made the course available, it will remain available to students on future updates.

1. Choose to rename the Enrollment schedule to something else. (Optional).


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2. Under Schedule Settings – You will see the Data Set Type, options for selecting which Run Days you want the

schedule to run each week, and a Start Time.


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3. Under Validation Rules – You select what behavior you want for deleted or invalid record types, if an enrollment

is deleted from your SIS or if data from your SIS is missing/invalid.

4. Under Data Mapping: Courses – You will see required Source (your SIS) fields on the left that map to Destination

Fields (Learn) on the right. Below the required fields are optional fields that you can choose Ignore from the


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drop-‐down menu. Important: The system of "record" for courses is your SIS. Thus, changes made only in Learn by instructors to courses are at risk of being overwritten by changes made in your SIS.

5. Under Data Mapping: Students – You will see required Source (your SIS) fields on the left that map to

Destination Fields (Learn) on the right. Below the required fields are optional fields that you can choose Ignore from the drop-‐down menu. Note: Please See Appendix A for information on the Password field.


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6. Under Data Mapping: Staff – You will see required Source (your SIS) fields on the left that map to Destination

Fields (Learn) on the right. Below the required fields are optional fields that you can choose Ignore from the drop-‐down menu. Note: Please See Appendix A for information on the Password field.


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7. Under Data Mapping: Roles – You will select from the drop-‐down menu the Learn Institution Role for Students and Staff. In most cases, institutions will select the default values of Students and Staff from the corresponding drop-‐down menus. As part of your Learn System Admin setup, you can manage access to tabs and modules and the social features independently for the different institutional roles. You can also manage the Learn roles list itself. This list is found and managed under the Admin Console of Learn > Users > Institution Roles.


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8. Under Data Mapping: Roles – You will select from the drop-‐down menu the Learn Course Role for Staff. These

are the available teaching roles that Learn ships by default. In most cases, institutions will select the default value of Instructor from the drop-‐down menu. As part of your Learn System Admin setup, you can define these roles in Learn. This list is found and managed under the Admin Console of Learn > Users > Course/Organizational Roles. There may be an institution that has setup a custom course role that is less that the permissions setup for instructors teaching the course.

9. Under Admin Alert – You have the option to receive email alerts to an email address to notify you each time an Enrollment job completes or only when an Enrollment Job fails. Enter your email address in the text field provided. Note: You can update your default email address at anytime via the Admin tool from the SIS central home screen.


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10. Click Save. You will receive a notice Congratulations, Your First Data Extraction is Scheduled. At this point, you can click Continue Setup or Back to Learn.


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SIS Central Landing Page This is an overview of all the features available on the Landing Page once the connection is in place with your SIS.

1. Link that takes you back to the Learn Admin Console. 2. Link that takes you to SIS Central Help Page. 3. Access to Connection Settings and History (audit trail) of any changes made to the connection settings. 4. Access to update Default Alert Email Address (optional) 5. This lists the Total SIS Records stored in SIS Central. 6. This lists the Data Set Type (Enrollment) for the scheduled job. 7. This lists the Run Status (Ready) and Date/Time of the next scheduled run. 8. This shows the status of the job as Enabled On/Off, allowing you to turn the scheduled job Off without having to

delete and create a new data extraction. 9. Access to override the schedule and manually run the job at anytime. 10. Access to edit and make changes to the current data set. 11. Access to delete the selected data set permanently from SIS Central.

Manually Run a Data Extraction Now for ANY Data Set 1. Click the Play icon.


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2. You will redirect to the following screen. Click Run Now.

Upon clicking Run Now it will take you back to the Landing Page and after a few seconds you will see the Run Status switch to Running.

The Extraction Log and SIS Record Count Snapshot As a job processes, it is pulling in ALL the records from your SIS via DataLink for Staff, Student, Course, and Role Data, mapping the contents to a common data format and pushing it to Learn. For more detailed information about the job, click the Extraction Log tab.

1. This identifies that the job was manually initiated vs. scheduled. 2. Click Running to view detailed information for the job.


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3. After you click Running, you will see Detailed Information that provides a sub-‐task breakdown of the data parts for Students, Staff, Courses, and Memberships.


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4. By clicking the Total SIS Records, you will see a summarized snapshot of the SIS record counts as the job processes.

Note: Depending on the size of the school it takes an average of 20 minutes for each job to complete.


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Appendix A – Passwords and SSO When setting up users for Learn, a default password is required unless your institution is already using an external single sign-‐on (SSO)/Authentication provider for password management between your SIS and Learn. These instructions are for clients who already have SSO setup with Learn.

1. Select None from the drop-‐down menu for the Password.

2. Note the alert message and click Yes to continue.


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3. Repeat the same steps for staff, by selecting None from the drop-‐down menu for the Password.

4. Note the alert message and click Yes to continue.


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Appendix B – Parent/Child Support Once enrollments are created in Learn the first time using SIS Central, customers have the ability to setup Parent-‐Child course relationships, also known as Merged Courses. Important: SIS Central does not have visibility of the Parent-‐Child courses. Therefore, you must use a course that is not associated with the SIS Central integration as the Parent course as this is the only supported method. While this can be completed manually, the recommended best practice is to work with a Blackboard Solutions Engineer to generate a file including the courses managed by SIS Central. In doing so, a Blackboard Solutions Engineer will provide assistance to utilize the SIS Integration Framework process to create the association between the parent and child classes.

datalink integration guide1.5 - blackboard...

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