Introduction to Filter Based Outbound Synchronization

Applies To: Forefront Identity Manager 2010

In Microsoft® Forefront® Identity Manager (FIM) 2010 R2, you can configure and fine-tune the object and attribute flow between FIM 2010 R2 and the related connected data sources by configuring synchronization rules. There are two different types of synchronization rules in the architectural model of FIM 2010 R2: inbound synchronization rules and outbound synchronization rules.

This document provides a detailed introduction to filter based outbound synchronization rules deployed in a simple lab environment.

For an overview of FIM 2010 documentation and guidance for using it, see the Documentation Roadmap.

Before You Begin

This document assumes that you have already a working instance of FIM 2010 R2 running on a computer. For more information about installing FIM 2010 R2, see the FIM R2 Installation Guide.

Prerequisite Knowledge

This document assumes that you have a basic understanding of the synchronization process. For more information, see Understanding Data Synchronization with External Systems

For an overview of FIM 2010 documentation and guidance for using it, see the Documentation Roadmap.

Audience

This guide is intended for information technology (IT) professionals who are interested in getting some initial hands-on experience with FIM 2010 R2 outbound synchronization rules in a lab environment.

Scope

The scenario outlined in this document has been simplified to address the requirements of a simple lab environment. The focus is on helping the reader obtain a basic understanding of the technologies. This scenario is not intended for deployment in a production environment.

Time Requirements

The procedures in this document require 90 to 120 minutes for a new user to complete. These time estimates assume that the testing environment is already configured, and they do not include the time required to set up the test environment.

Getting Support

If you have questions regarding the content of this document or if you have general feedback, post a message to the Forefront Identity Manager 2010 Discussion Forum.

Scenario Description

Fabrikam, a fictitious company, is investigating how to easily deploy and maintain digital identities by using FIM 2010 R2. As part of this investigation, Fabrikam wants to explore the new outbound synchronization rule concept in the corporate lab environment based on a simple scenario. The goal of this scenario is to synchronize one user object that is created manually in FIM 2010 R2 Portal to a file-based connected data source using a filter based outbound synchronization rule. The required synchronization rule is applied to users with a specific metaverse attribute value. This scenario is representative for cases where FIM 2010 R2 is authoritative for creating users in external systems.

The following illustration outlines this scenario.

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The following sections describe the scenario design, the scenario preparation, and the scenario steps.

Scenario Design

To implement the simple lab solution in this document, you implement two management agents:

  • Fabrikam FIMMA. This management agent for the FIM Service contributes the source scenario objects.

  • Fabrikam FileMA. This management agent for the Attribute-value pair text file is the target for the sample user in this document.

The following illustration outlines the logical architecture of this scenario.

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For the outbound synchronization rule, the following conceptual elements are required:

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File Outbound Synchronization Rule— The synchronization rule to manage objects in the Fabrikam FileMA connector space. The following attributes are populated by this synchronization rule:

  • Employee ID

  • Employee Type

  • Last Name

  • Last Name

Testing Environment

The scenario that is described in this document has been developed and tested on a stand-alone computer. On this computer, FIM 2010 R2 is already deployed and the computer is configured to be a domain controller for the Active Directory® forest Fabrikam.com. The name of this domain controller is FabrikamDC1. The following illustration outlines the domain configuration.

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To perform the procedures in this document, the domain controller has been configured with the following characteristics:

  • Windows Server 2008 R2 64-bit Enterprise

  • Microsoft .NET Framework 3.5 Service Pack 1 (SP1)

  • Microsoft SQL Server® 2008 R2 64-bit Enterprise

  • Windows SharePoint® Services 3.0 SP1, 64-bit

  • Windows PowerShell™ 2.0

  • FIM 2010 R2

Note

A description of the installation of FIM 2010 R2 and the required software components is out of the scope of this document. For a complete description of the installation process for FIM 2010 R2, see the FIM R2 Installation Guide.

Scenario Roadmap

The scenario roadmap in this document consists of three main building blocks:

  1. Configuring the scenario. In this section, you create all required scenario components, including the required management agents, run profiles, and an outbound synchronization rule.

  2. Initializing the scenario. In this section, you deploy your initial configuration inside FIM 2010 R2.

  3. Testing the scenario. In this section, you deploy one newly created scenario user from the FIM Service database to the data file that is associated with the Fabrikam FileMA.

Configuring the Scenario

The configuration of the scenario in this document consists of the following building blocks:

  1. Creating the management agents

  2. Creating the run profiles

  3. Creating the outbound synchronization rule

  4. Enabling synchronization rule provisioning

The following sections provide detailed instructions for each configuration building block.

Creating the management agents

In this section, you find instructions for creating the two scenario management agents:

  • Fabrikam FileMA

  • Fabrikam FIMMA

The following sections provide detailed instructions for creating these management agents.

Creating the Fabrikam FileMA

The Fabrikam FileMA is a management agent for a delimited text file. To create this management agent, you need a text file that contains the schema information for this management agent.

The following code sample shows the schema for this management agent.

"EmployeeID","EmployeeType","FirstName","LastName"

To create the Fabrikam FileMA

  1. Open Notepad.

  2. From the previous code sample, copy the schema structure and paste it into your new Notepad file.

  3. Save the file as C:\Fabrikam File MA Data.txt.

  4. Open Synchronization Service Manager, and, in the Tools menu, select Management Agents.

  5. To open the Create Management Agent Wizard, in the Actions menu, click Create.

  6. On the Create Management Agent page, provide the following configuration settings, and then click Next:

    • Management agent for: Delimited text file

    • Name: Fabrikam FileMA

  7. On the Select Template Input File page, provide the following configuration settings, and then click Next:

    • Template Input File: C:\Fabrikam File MA Data.txt

    • Code Page: Western Europe (Windows)

  8. On the Delimited Text Format page, provide the following configuration settings, and then click Next:

    • Use first row for header names: selected

    • Delimiter: Comma

    • Text qualifier: “

  9. On the Configure Attributes page, provide the following configuration settings, and then click Next:

    1. To open the Set Anchor dialog box, click Set Anchor.

    2. In the Available attributes list, select Employee ID.

    3. To set Employee ID as the anchor, click Add.

    4. To close the Set Anchor dialog box, click OK.

  10. On the Define Object Types page, click Next.

  11. On the Configure Connector Filter page, click Next.

  12. On the Configure Join and Projection Rules page, click Next.

  13. On the Configure Attributes pages, click Next.

  14. On the Configure Deprovisioning page, click Next.

  15. To create the management agent, on the Configure Extensions page, click Finish.

Creating the FIMMA

The Fabrikam FIMMA is a management agent for the FIM Service. To create this management agent, you use the Create Management Agent Wizard.

Important

To create the FIM management agent, you need a separate user account to run it.

To create a user account for the Fabrikam FIMMA

  1. Open Active Directory Users and Computers.

  2. In the directory tree, select Users.

  3. To open the New Object – User dialog box, in the Action menu, click New, and then point to Users.

  4. In the First name text box, type fimma.

  5. In the User logon name text box, type fimma, and then click Next.

  6. In the Password and the Confirm password text boxes, type a password of your choice.

  7. Clear the User must change password at next logon check box.

  8. Select Password never expires, and then click Next.

  9. To create the user account, click Finish.

Important

If your server running FIM 2010 R2 is also a domain controller, the account that you use must have the right to log on locally. For more information, see Grant a Member the Right to Log On Locally. For more details about the FIM 2010 R2 management agent account, see the FIM R2 Installation Guide.

To create the Fabrikam FIMMA

  1. Open Synchronization Service Manager and, on the Tools menu, click Management Agents.

  2. To open the Create Management Agent Wizard, on the Actions menu, click Create.

  3. On the Create Management Agent page, provide the following configuration settings, and then click Next:

    • Management agent for: FIM Service Management Agent

    • Name: Fabrikam FIMMA

  4. On the Connect to Database page, provide the following configuration settings, and then click Next:

    • Server: localhost

    • Database: FIMService

    • FIM Service base address: https://localhost:5725

    • Authentication mode: Windows-integrated authentication

    • User name: fimma

    • Password: <the accounts’ password>

    • Domain: fabrikam

  5. On the Selected Object Types page, verify that the following object types are selected, and then click Next:

    • ExpectedRuleEntry

    • Person

    • SynchronizationRule

  6. On the Selected Attributes page, verify that all listed attributes are selected, and then click Next.

  7. On the Configure Connector Filter page, click Next.

  8. On the Configure Object Type Mappings, add the following mapping, and then click Next:

    1. In the Data Source Object Type list, select Person.

    2. To open the Mapping dialog box, click Add Mapping.

    3. In the Metaverse object type list, select person.

    4. To close the Mapping dialog box, click OK.

  9. On the Configure Attribute Flow page, apply the following attribute flow mappings, and then click Next:

    Data source attribute Metaverse attribute

    DisplayName

    displayName

    EmployeeID

    employeeID

    EmployeeType

    employeeType

    FirstName

    firstName

    LastName

    lastName

    1. Select Person as Data source object type.

    2. Select person as Metaverse object type.

    3. Select Direct as Mapping Type.

    4. Select Import as Flow Direction.

    5. For each row in the previous table, complete the following steps:

      1. Select the Data source attribute for that row in the table.

      2. Select the metaverse attribute for that row in the table.

      3. To apply the flow mapping, click New.

  10. On the Configure Deprovisioning page, click Next.

  11. To create the management agent, on the Configure Extensions page, click Finish.

Creating the Run Profiles

This section lists the steps for configuring the scenario run profiles. For the scenario outlined in this document, you configure run profiles for the Fabrikam FileMA and the Fabrikam FIMMA.

Creating run profiles for the Fabrikam FileMA

The following table lists the run profiles for the Fabrikam FileMA:

Profile Run profile name Step type

Profile 1

Full Import

Full Import (Stage Only)

Profile 2

Export

Export

To configure the run profiles for the Fabrikam FileMA

  1. On the Tools menu, click Management Agents.

  2. In the Name column, select Fabrikam FileMA.

  3. For each row in the previous table, perform the following steps:

    1. To open the Configure Run Profiles for Fabrikam FileMA dialog box, on the Actions menu, click Configure Run Profiles.

    2. To open the Configure Run Profile dialog box, click New Profile.

    3. On the Profile Name page, select the Step Type for that row in the table, and then click Next.

    4. On the Management Agent Configuration page, provide the following configuration settings, and then click Finish:

      1. Partition: default

      2. Input file name: Fabrikam File MA Data.txt

    Important

    Because the data files for the import and the export run profile have not been created yet, you must type the name of the data file in the Input file name text box.

Creating run profiles for the Fabrikam FIMMA

The following table lists the run profiles for the Fabrikam FIMMA:

Profile Run profile name Step type

Profile 1

Full Import

Full Import (Stage Only)

Profile 2

Full Synchronization

Full Synchronization

Profile 3

Delta Import

Delta Import (Stage Only)

Profile 4

Delta Synchronization

Delta Synchronization

Profile 5

Export

Export

To configure the run profiles for the Fabrikam FIMMA

  1. On the Tools menu, click Management Agents.

  2. In the Name column, select Fabrikam FIMMA.

  3. For each row in the previous table, perform the following steps:

    1. To open the Configure Run Profiles for Fabrikam FIMMA dialog box, on the Actions menu, click Configure Run Profiles.

    2. To open the Configure Run Profile dialog box, click New Profile.

    3. On the Profile Name page, select the Step Type for that row in the table, and then click Next.

    4. To create the run profile, on the Management Agent Configuration page, click Finish.

Creating the Outbound Synchronization Rule

In this section, you create the required outbound synchronization rule. The following table summarizes the synchronization rule configuration for the scenario in this document.

Outbound Synchronization Rule

To create the outbound synchronization rule

  1. To open the FIM Portal, start Internet Explorer, and then navigate to https://localhost/identitymanagement/default.aspx.

  2. To open the Synchronization Rules page, in the Administration bar, click Synchronization Rules.

  3. To open the Create Synchronization Rules Wizard, on the toolbar, click New.

  4. On the General tab, provide the following information, and then click Next:

    • Display Name: FileMA Outbound Synchronization Rule

    • Data Flow Direction: Outbound

    • Apply Rule: To all metaverse resources of this type according to Outbound System Scoping Filter

      Apply Rules

  5. On the Scope tab, provide the following information, and then click Next:

    • Metaverse Resource Type: person

    • External System: Fabrikam FileMA

    • External System Resource Type: person

    • Outbound System Scoping Filter

      1. MetaverseObject:person(Attribute): employeeType

      2. Operator: equal

      3. Value: Contractor

    Outbound System Scoping Filter

  6. On the Relationship tab, provide the following information, and then click Next:

    1. Relationship Criteria:

      • MetaverseObject:person(Attribute): employeeID

      • ConnectedSystemObject:person(Attribute): Employee ID

    2. Create Resource in External System: selected

  7. On the Workflow Parameters tab, click Next.

  8. On the Outbound Attribute Flow tab, provide the following information, and then click Next:

    Source Destination

    employee ID

    EmployeeID

    employee Type

    EmployeeType

    first Name

    FirstName

    last Name

    LastName

    1. For each row in the previous table, perform the following steps:

      1. To open the Flow Definition dialog box, click New Attribute Flow.

      2. On the Source tab, select the attribute for that row in the table.

      3. On the Destination tab, select the attribute shown for that row in the table.

      4. To apply the attribute flow configuration, click OK.

      5. In the Outbound Attribute Flow configuration table, select Initial Flow Only for the following flow:
        employeeID =>Employee ID

      6. To move to the summary page, click Finish.

      7. To submit your request, click Submit.

    The following illustration shows the correct configuration of your export attribute flow rules.

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  9. On the Summary tab, click Submit.

Enabling Synchronization Rule Provisioning

To enable the configured synchronization rules during a synchronization run, you must enable synchronization rule processing in the Synchronization Service Manager.

To enable Synchronization Rule Provisioning

  1. Open Synchronization Service Manager.

  2. To open the Options dialog box, on the Tools menu, click Options.

  3. Select Enable Synchronization Rule Provisioning.

  4. To close the Options dialog box, click OK.

Initializing the Scenario

The initialization of your scenario consists of the following steps:

  1. Importing data from the FIM Service database

  2. Initializing the FIM Synchronization service

  3. Exporting to the FIM Service database

  4. Confirming the FIM Service database

Importing data from the FIM Service database

The objective of the full import is to bring the already existing objects, including the newly created synchronization rule, into the connector space of the Fabrikam FIMMA. After a successful full import on the Fabrikam FIMMA, the synchronization statistics report three added objects. The following illustration shows the synchronization statistics for a full import run.

Metaverse Search

To import data from the FIM Service database

  1. On the Tools menu, click Management Agents.

  2. In the Name column, select Fabrikam FIMMA.

  3. To open the Run Management Agent dialog box, in the Actions menu, click Run.

  4. In the Run profiles list, select Full Import, and then click OK.

By using a connector space search, you can examine the properties of the new objects. Next to the synchronization rule, you also find two additional Person objects to be imported. The objects are representations of the Built-in Synchronization Account and the account you have used to install FIM 2010 R2.

The following illustration shows the result of a connector space search on the Fabrikam FIMMA.

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To run a connector space search on the Fabrikam FIMMA

  1. To open the Search Connector Space dialog box, in the Actions menu, click Search Connector Space.

  2. To retrieve a list of the available connector space objects, click Search.

Initializing the FIM Synchronization Service

A full synchronization run is always required when a synchronization rule is updated. You apply updates to these synchronization rules during the configuration of the Fabrikam FIMMA management agent. By design, each FIM Service management agent has a preconfigured projection rule. During the initial full synchronization run, the three staged connector space objects are projected into the metaverse. The preconfigured export attribute flow rule stages the metaverse object ID for an export in the Fabrikam FIMMA connector space. The following illustration shows the synchronization statistics for a full synchronization run.

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By using the metaverse search, you can examine the properties of the newly projected objects.

To initialize the FIM Synchronization Service

  1. To open the Run Management Agent dialog box, on the Actions menu, click Run.

  2. In the Run profiles list, select Full Synchronization, and then click OK.

By using a metaverse search, you can examine the properties of the newly projected objects.

  1. On the Tools menu, click Metaverse Search.

  2. If necessary, adjust the column settings by selecting the Column Settings link.

  3. To search the metaverse, click Search.

  4. To open the Metaverse Object Properties dialog box, in the Search Results list, select FileMA Outbound Synchronization Rule, and then, on the Actions menu, click Properties.

Exporting data to the FIM Service database

As a result of the FIM Service database initialization, updates have been staged to the connector space of the FIM management agent. These pending exports must be pushed out to the FIM Service database. The following illustration shows the synchronization statistics of a successful export run:

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To export data to the FIM Service database

  1. To open the Run Management Agent dialog box, on the Actions menu, click Run.

  2. In the Run profiles list, select Export, and then click OK.

Confirming the FIM Service database

To complete the initialization sequence, you run a delta import on your Fabrikam FIMMA. The delta import is required to confirm the exported data in the connector space. The following illustration shows the synchronization statistics of a successful confirming import run.

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To confirm the FIM Service database

  1. To open the Run Management Agent dialog box, on the Actions menu, click Run.

  2. In the Run profiles list, select Delta Import, and then click OK.

Note

At this point, your scenario is fully initialized.

Testing the Scenario

The goal of the scenario in this document is to create one sample user in the data source file that is associated with the Fabrikam FileMA. The complete deployment cycle of a sample user consists of the following building blocks:

  1. Creating the scenario user

  2. Deploying the scenario user

The following sections provide instructions for each building block.

Creating the scenario user

In this section, you create the test user for this scenario. The scenario user has the attribute settings in the following table.

Attribute Value

First Name

Britta

Last Name

Simon

Display Name

Britta Simon

Domain

fabrikam

Employee ID

007

Employee type

Contractor

To create the scenario user

  1. To open the FIM Portal, open Internet Explorer, and then navigate to https://localhost/identitymanagement/default.aspx.

  2. To open the Users page, on the navigation bar, click Users.

  3. To open the Create User Wizard, on the All Users menu, click New.

  4. On the General tab, provide the following information, and then click Next:

    • First Name: Britta

    • Last Name: Simon

    • Display Name: Britta Simon

    • Domain: FABRIKAM

  5. On the Work Info tab, provide the following information, and then click Finish:

    • Employee Type: Contractor

    • Employee ID: 7

  6. On the Summary tab, click Submit.

Deploying the scenario user

To deploy Britta Simon to the file-based connected data source, perform the following steps:

  1. Import the object into the connector space of the Fabrikam FIMMA.

  2. Synchronize the object inside the FIM Synchronization Service.

  3. Export the object to the data file of the Fabrikam FileMA.

  4. Confirm the object from the data file of the Fabrikam FileMA.

As soon as all four steps are completed successfully, Britta Simon can be considered to be deployed to the target data source

Importing the scenario user into the FIMMA connector space

To import the scenario user into the FIMMA connector space, you run a delta import run profile. The import statistics for this run reports two added objects:

  • One person object for Britta Simon

The following illustration shows the synchronization statistics of a successful delta import run.

Synchronization Statistics

To import the scenario user into the FIMMA connector space

  1. To open the Run Management Agent dialog box, on the Actions menu, click Run.

  2. In the Run profiles list, select Delta Import, and then click OK.

Important

In accordance with best practices for newly staged connector space test objects, verify the actual attribute values in the connector space. To verify the attribute values, perform the following steps:

  1. To open the Object Details dialog box, in Synchronization Statistics, click the Adds link.

  2. To open the Connector Space Object Details dialog box, in the Distinguished Name list, select the object of interest, and then click Properties.

Synchronizing the scenario user

During the synchronization run, Britta Simon is projected into the metaverse. If a provisioning-related problem occurs during a synchronization run, you should perform a metaverse search for an affected object and verify that the attributes of the object have the expected values.

The following illustration shows the metaverse object information for Britta Simon after a successful synchronization run.

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In addition to the new user being projected into the metaverse, Britta Simon is also provisioned to the target connector space during the delta synchronization run. The following illustration shows the synchronization statistics of a successful delta synchronization run.

Synchronization Statistics

To synchronize the scenario user

  1. To open the Run Management Agent dialog box, on the Actions menu, click Run.

  2. In the Run profiles list, select Delta Synchronization, and then click OK.

Important

In accordance with best practices for newly projected metaverse objects, verify the actual attribute values in the metaverse. To verify the attribute values, you perform the following steps:

  1. On the Tools menu, click Metaverse Search.

  2. If necessary, adjust the Column Settings by selecting the Column Settings link.

  3. To search the metaverse, click Search.

  4. To open the Metaverse Object Properties dialog box, in the Search Results list, select the object of interest, and then on the Actions menu, click Properties.

Important

In accordance with best practices for newly provisioned connector space test objects, verify the actual attribute values in the target connector space. To verify the attribute values, perform the following steps:

  1. On the Tools menu, click Management Agents.

  2. In the Management Agents list, select the affected management agent.

  3. To open the Search Connector Space dialog box, on the Actions menu, click Search Connector Space.

  4. If necessary, adjust the Column Settings by selecting the Column Settings link.

  5. To search the connector space, click the Search button.

  6. To open the Connector Space Object Properties dialog box, in the Search Results list, select the object of interest, and then select Properties.

Exporting the scenario user

Because there is a pending Add staged in the connector space, you can run an export run profile to export the pending object to your data file. The following illustration shows the export statistics after a successful export run.

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To export the scenario user to the data file

  1. To open the Run Management Agent dialog box, on the Actions menu, click Run.

  2. In the Run profiles list, select Export, and then click OK.

Confirming the scenario user

As a result of a successful export, Britta Simon has been added to the Fabrikam FileMA data file. The following illustration shows this.

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To complete the deployment cycle for the scenario user, you run a confirming import on the Fabrikam FileMA. The synchronization statistics for this run reports one Add. The following illustration shows an example of this.

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At this point, the outbound synchronization scenario is completed.