Command Line Interface

The Command Line Interface allows SimpleIndex to be integrated with custom software solutions with minimal programming. This interface allows you to specify all job settings, set index values and process images with a single command.

SimpleIndex also has the ability to run a command line application automatically before or after each batch (pre-process/post-process). These can perform file format conversions on the import and export files, upload files to an FTP server, email files, or launch a custom application integration.

Check the Customization page for an overview of all the ways that SimpleIndex functionality can be extended and integrated with other systems.

Custom Application Integration[edit | edit source]

SimpleIndex makes it easy to add document images to an existing database application. By mapping the index fields in SimpleIndex to fields in your [[database], SimpleIndex creates a direct interface to your application’s data. It can create new records for the images you scan, or update images and index information in existing records. All of this can be done with your existing database, with the resulting images and index information made available immediately in your application.

The Command Line Interface is another component that makes integrating SimpleIndex with custom applications simple. All of the information you need to scan, process, organize and store documents is saved with the SimpleIndex Job File. Using the Command Line Interface, your application can launch SimpleIndex, specify a configuration file, and pass pre-set index field values. SimpleIndex will automatically scan your documents, organize them into folders and filenames, and link them to your database without any user intervention whatsoever.

Since this is all implemented via the command line, it only takes the proper Job File and a single line of code to integrate fully automated scanning in your application. Viewing documents can be done with another line of code that simply opens the current image file in SimpleIndex using SimpleSearch, or in the computer’s default viewer like Windows Picture Viewer or Adobe Acrobat. This design makes SimpleIndex a much easier way to add document processing to a custom application than API based solutions.

You can also use Robotic Process Automation with the SimpleIndex command line to integrate with any application without programming.

Command Line Execution[edit | edit source]

Another powerful feature of SimpleIndex is that jobs can be executed from the command line and completed without user intervention. This allows programmers to implement fully automated document scanning in their applications with just a few lines of code. Non-programmers may also take advantage of this feature by designing program shortcuts with pre-defined index values and modes of operation. Using these methods, the work of the scanner operator can be reduced to a single mouse click.

Command Line Parameters

Please note that any parameter value that may contain spaces should be surrounded by "quotes", including any paths or field values.

Usage 1: SimpleIndex [options]

Options:

/c:"configfile" - specify path to a configuration file to use
/x:"xmlsettings" - partial XML configuration file with modified settings
/m - specifies “manual” mode; disables automation and allows user to interact with prompts
/u:userid - uses the specified user ID for database logon and audit features
/p:password - uses the specified password for database logon
/d:# - enables the processing log with the logging detail level specified by # (0-5)
/#:"value" - where # is a field number (1-99), sets the index data for that field to value
/i:"inputfolder" - override the Input folder setting in the job config
/o:"outputfolder" - override the Output folder setting in the job config
/e - run in SimpleSearch mode
/t - exits the program after batch processing is finished

Usage 2: SimpleIndex configfile [field1value] [field2value] [field3value] …

Using this form allows you to simply double-click a configuration file and have SimpleIndex execute it. Put quotes around any value that has spaces in it.

Opening SimpleIndex Configurations from an Icon[edit | edit source]

The command line interface allows saved SIC config files to be double-clicked, starting SimpleIndex and running the job automatically. If the batch is pre-indexed, the whole process will run unattended.

SimpleIndex job files can be opened from other applications, including the hotkeys on many scanners. By mapping hotkey events to SimpleIndex jobs, users can load documents, press the button for that document type, and have all the files scanned and indexed automatically.

By default, pre-indexed jobs run minimized when launched from an icon or command line. A dialog box is displayed when the batch has completed to let the user know it is finished. Use the “/q” option to suppress this dialog.

If you want to be able to open a config file by double-clicking it but not have it automatically start processing, you can create a shortcut to that config that includes the “/m” switch. This will disable automatic processing and only open SimpleIndex with the specified config.

Integrating with Custom Applications[edit | edit source]

Using the command line interface, all your program has to do is launch SimpleIndex with the appropriate configuration, and images can automatically be linked to the data in your application. There are a few ways to do this:

Use the Insert or Update database modes to update your database directly.
Import the images and index information from the Index Log.
Assume file structure based on the index data. If index field values are used to create a standard file naming convention, files can be opened from other applications by calculating the path on-the-fly.

Unattended Processing[edit | edit source]

Use the command line interface to run jobs as a Scheduled Task or Windows Service.