Software and connections

Authorising a piece of software, seeing action by action what the connection genuinely permits, and cutting it whenever you want.

What you will have at the end

A connection authorised with your own account at your provider, and a screen stating, action by action, what that connection permits: read, create, modify, cancel. All four lines are shown even when three are refused — that is the point.

You will also know which of the two systems has authority. When your software is the system of record, the receptionist adapts to it; when the workspace is, it decides and your software follows.

Allow ten minutes, provided you have at hand the account allowed to authorise a connection at your provider.

Before you start

  • The exact name of the software and its edition: two editions of one product do not permit the same actions
  • An account allowed to authorise a connection at that provider
  • A decision on which of the two systems has authority over appointments
  • If your software has no page with us, the «your software» page explains what to do

No password for your software reaches us: authorisation happens at the provider, and the token is encrypted on our side.

The steps

  1. Step 1

    Open the Connections screen and pick the software

    The entry states the provider, the edition and the account's region. Those three change what is permitted: they are not an administrative detail.

  2. Step 2

    Authorise with your account

    You are sent to the provider, you sign in there, and you come back. Your account grants the access, and you can withdraw it from their side as well as ours.

  3. Step 3

    Read the four lines

    Read, create, modify, cancel: each line says whether the action is qualified or still to be qualified. An action still to be qualified will not be attempted — the receptionist collects a request instead.

  4. Step 4

    Choose the system of record

    For appointments, only one of the two systems decides. That choice avoids the situation where each overwrites the other in turn.

  5. Step 5

    Check the health state

    The screen shows the last test evidence actually executed, not a promise. If the connection drops, this is where you learn it before your customers do.

Why four lines rather than one switch

«Connected» means nothing to an owner. What matters is what the connection can do: read availability, create an appointment, change it, cancel it. Two products of the same name, in two different editions, do not permit the same actions — and the difference shows up during a call.

So the four lines are displayed separately, including the refused ones. An action that is not qualified is not attempted: the receptionist takes a request, the customer knows a confirmation is coming, and you are not left repairing a promise the system could not keep.

Master system, tokens and revocation

For appointments, one of the two systems decides. That choice is not a matter of taste: without it, a change made here and a change made there overwrite each other in turn, and the last write wins by accident of timing.

Authorisation happens at your provider, with your account. We do not receive your password; the access token is encrypted on our side and can be withdrawn from either end — from the Connections screen, or from your account at the provider. Each withdrawal leaves a timestamped trace in your audit trail.

The edge cases

Your software has no page here

Describe what you want linked rather than the product name: reading availability, creating a customer record, filing a request. That is what the «my software» page is for, and many needs are covered by the tools already in the workspace.

Someone else administers your account

Authorisation needs an account allowed to grant application access at the provider. Have that person do it: an authorisation attempted from an ordinary account fails, and the error comes from the provider, not from us.

The connection drops overnight

The screen shows the last test proof actually run, with its time. In the meantime the receptionist falls back on taking a request rather than announcing a confirmation she cannot verify.

You switch software

Revoke the old connection before authorising the new one, and set the master system again. Appointments already created stay where they are: revoking cuts access, it erases nothing at your former provider.

Two sites, two accounts

Each site carries its own connection. A single account wired to both mixes availability up and offers times from one site to customers of the other.

If something does not work

Authorisation fails at the provider

The account used probably lacks the right to grant application access. Try again with an administrator account for your organisation at that provider.

The connection reads, but creates nothing

That is a normal, displayed state: some actions are not qualified at that provider. The receptionist then collects a request, and you confirm inside your software.

Two appointments contradict each other between the systems

The system of record is unset, or it was changed midway. Fix it, then correct once by hand: the rest holds on its own afterwards.

You want to cut the access

Revoke from the Connections screen, or from your account at the provider. Both work, and the withdrawal leaves a timestamped trace in your record.

Frequently asked questions

What owners ask about connections.

Do I have to connect software to start?

No. The receptionist answers, qualifies and summarises with no connection at all. Software gets linked when it brings something specific: real availability, an existing customer record, a follow-up already in place.

Do you see my password?

No. Authorisation happens at your provider, on their sign-in screen. We hold an encrypted access token, which you can withdraw from their side as well as from ours.

What does an action «to be qualified» mean?

That it has not been verified for this edition of the software and will therefore not be attempted. The receptionist takes a request instead, and the screen says so rather than letting you assume everything goes through.

That is why the four lines stay on screen even when three of them are refused.

How do I know the connection still works?

The screen shows the last test proof run, with its time, rather than a decorative green dot. A dropped connection is visible there before your customers notice it.

Can I cut access without warning?

Yes, from either side, and it takes effect immediately. The withdrawal leaves a timestamped trace in your audit trail, so you can see what was done before the cut.

Who decides when the two disagree?

The master system you set. When it is not set, fix that first, then correct the record once by hand: after that it holds on its own.