Non-Corporate Contacts

Description

Non-corporate contacts are external directory entries, such as material or equipment suppliers that are listed in the MiCollab Client corporate directory. They are not MiCollab system users, and as such, are not assigned with MiCollab application services, and are not listed in the User and Services application directory.  Non-corporate contacts are typically configured only with a name, external phone number, and an e-mail address. This type of contact does not have an associated login ID or password and does not consume licenses on the system.

You can assign entries in the Active Directory database as non-corporate contacts and IDS will automatically update the MiCollab Client Corporate Directory with them during the next synchronization event. During the IDS synchronization, the system applies the default "Contact" role and the associated default "MiCollab Client" template to the non-corporate entries. When users start up their MiCollab clients, the system updates the user's Contacts list. Users can then place calls to the non-corporate contacts using "click to call" functionality from their phone clients.

Users and non-corporate contacts that are obtained from the directory service via IDS are organized into groups in the MiCollab Client Enterprise corporate directory based on the Distinguished Name attribute.  The Organizational Unit (OU) information in the Distinguished Name attribute defines the group names in the MiCollab Client corporate directory.  Non-corporate contacts that are assigned to an Organizational Unit in Active Directory are inserted into a corresponding group in the MiCollab Client corporate directory. Below are examples of Distinguished Names for three non-corporate contacts:

cn=acme heating and cooling, ou=maintenance, dc=maslab, dc=local

cn=vista paper products ltd, ou=suppliers, dc=maslab, dc=local

cn=jy office supplies, ou=suppliers, dc=maslab, dc=local

The following figure shows how the non-corporate contacts would be grouped in a user's MiCollab Client Contact list:

Conditions

Define the Non-Corporate Contacts on Active Directory

You can specify Active Directory entries as MiCollab Client non-corporate contacts using either of the following methods:

Create a Non-Corporate Contact

To create a non-corporate contact on Active Directory:

  1. Log into Active Directory as administrator.

  2. Click Start > Active Directory Users and Computers.

  3. Select the Organizational Unit (OU) for the contacts.

  4. Right-click and select New > Contact.

  1. Complete the Contact fields.  When the databases are synchronized, MiCollab IDS adds the directory entry as a non-corporate contact.

Change an Existing Active Directory Entry to a Non-Corporate Contact

To change an Active Directory user entry to a non-corporate contact.

  1. Log into Active Directory as administrator.

  2. Click Start > ADSI Edit. The ADSI Edit window opens.

  1. Open the Organizational Unit (OU) of the users.

  2. Select the user.

  3. Right-click and select Properties. The user's Properties window is displayed.

  4. On the Attribute Editor tab, set the "employeeType" attribute to "Contact". By default, MiCollab maps the "employeeType" attribute to the "Role" attribute.

  1. When the databases are synchronized, MiCollab IDS changes the entry into a non-corporate contact.

Configure MiCollab IDS to Synchronize User Entries and/or Non-Corporate Contacts

By default MiCollab IDS synchronizes the user entries and non-corporate contacts in the directory service database with the MiCollab Client corporate directory. You can configure MiCollab IDS to synchronize only users, only non-corporate contacts, or both users and non-corporate contacts:

  1. Log into the MiCollab server manager.

  2. Under Configuration, click Integrated Directory Service.

  3. Under Actions, click Edit.

  4. Set the Default query string field:

To import

Set Default Query String field to  . . .

Result

Users and contacts (default)

|(ObjectClass=user)(ObjectClass=contact)

Directory service entries with object Class set to "user" are added to the USP and MiCollab Client directories as user entries; Directory service entries with Object Class set to "contact" are added to the MiCollab Client directory as non-corporate contacts.

Users only

(ObjectClass=user)

Directory service entries with object Class set to "user" are added to the USP and MiCollab Client directories as user entries.

Contacts only

(ObjectClass=contact)

Directory service entries with object Class set to "contact" are added to the MiCollab Client directory as non-corporate contacts.

 

  1. Click Save.

  2. Perform a Full IDS Synchronization. Ensure that  the Re-initialize on next cycle box is checked when you perform the sync. If you perform a the sync with this box unchecked, your existing contacts will not be listed in the MiCollab Client corporate directory.