Sift is a platform that allows companies to manage and organize their user population through the use of Directories, Primary and Complementary Sources, and Mappings. There are several options for syncing data with Sift, including Azure Active Directory, LDAP, CSV and SFTP, and GSuite. In addition, companies can create custom Attributes to store unique data on employee profiles. Once all of these elements are set up, companies can also implement Single Sign On (SSO) to streamline the login process for their users. This article will guide you through the steps of setting up and configuring your Sift instance to best meet the needs of your organization.
1. Identify your Admins
When the Sift team initially creates your Sift instance, we can add Admins for you if you let us know who you would like them to be. As you continue setting up Sift, you may want to invite some additional users to administer your instance. Learn more about assigning Owners and Administrators in this article.
2. Set up your Directory (or Directories).
In Sift, a Directory is used to represent a segment of your user population. Most companies will have one Directory that contains all your users. However, it is possible to have multiple Directories if needed. Here is more information on Directories.
3. Each Directory will have to have a Primary Source.
The Primary Source is responsible for the provisioning of users (addition and deletion), but can also have additional sources for supplemental pieces of data on those same users. You may also need to add a Complementary Source. For example, if you were to store John's office location in a different system than his name and email address, you would add a Complementary Source to bring in that information.
4. Data Sync Methods
Your Primary and Complementary Sources can be synced using the following 3 methods:
Azure Active Directory: Microsoft's cloud-based identity and access management service. Check out this article to learn more about the one-way transfer of data from your AAD to Sift.
LDAP: This method will let you sync with on-premises systems such as Active Directory or other LDAP compatible sources. Check out this article for more information.
CSV & SFTP: This is perhaps the simplest way to import your data to Sift. Just upload a CSV file with rows and columns! To automate this process in a secure way, use our easy-to-set-up SFTP integration. Check out this article to learn more about this method.
Gsuite: This allows you to set up an automated integration to frequently synchronize Sift profiles directly from GSuite. Sift GSuite Sync is a one-way operation. No information from Sift is imported into your user directory. Check out this article to learn more about this method.
If you would like to, you can also use a combination of these methods by using Complementary Sources or having multiple Directories.
If you have a different way you would like to do your data sync, please feel free to reach out - we are always willing to work with you!
5. Attributes
Next, we need to be sure that all the data you want to have on your employee’s profiles has a place to live on the profiles. If you aren’t adding anything of your own at this point, you can ignore this step for now. However, if you do want to add anything to Sift that is unique or doesn’t come out of the box, you can do so by creating your own custom Attributes. This article explains how to create new Attributes.
6. Mappings
Regardless of which sync method you choose or how many Attributes you add, you will be required to set up Mappings. Mappings are translations from a property on a person in your data source, to an attribute on a person in Sift. For example, in a CSV a column header might read “email_user” but on Sift you would want this to appear as “Email”. This article will take you step-by-step to set up your Mappings.
7. Single Sign On
Does your company utilize single sign on (SSO) for its employees? We support single sign on through any provider that supports SAML, such as Google, Azure, or PING. This article will walk you through the process of setting up SSO.
8. Whitelisting
Does your company network block resources from any external URLs? You need to make sure our domains are whitelisted so we don’t get caught in your firewall. Reach our to us for an up-to-date list.