The import filter is a safeguard within the eADM synchronization cycle that prevents large or unintended changes from being applied to user, group, and department data.
Purpose
Source systems, such as HR or payroll systems, occasionally deliver an import file containing more changes than expected. This can happen due to a source system error, or as the result of a genuinely large event, such as a reorganisation or a school-year promotion. Without a safeguard, a faulty or unusually large import could cause a high volume of accounts to be created, modified, or deleted before anyone notices.
The import filter addresses this by checking the scale of incoming changes before they reach any target system, and halting the cycle automatically if the changes exceed a configured limit.
How It Works
During each synchronization cycle, eADM compares the newly imported source data file with the file from the previous cycle to produce a list of required changes: accounts, groups, and departments to create, modify, or delete. This step is part of the wider Synchronization Cycle.
If the import filter is enabled, eADM checks the number of new, changed, and deleted objects against three independently configurable thresholds, expressed as a percentage of the total account count:
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New: the percentage of accounts to be created.
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Changed: the percentage of accounts to be modified.
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Deleted: the percentage of accounts to be deleted.
If any of these thresholds is exceeded, the synchronization cycle halts before changes are exported to Active Directory or any other target system. The synchronization status is marked Stopped, and a notification is sent if error notifications are enabled.
Example error message:
Halted! An error occurred while synchronizing departments, Nr of deleted Departments (332) exceeds safety threshold (current threshold 10)
Temporarily Disabling the Import Filter
For a known event that is expected to exceed the configured thresholds, such as a school-year promotion, the import filter can be temporarily disabled for up to 30 days. It re-enables automatically once that period ends.
Note: If a synchronization has already been stopped by the import filter, the filter must be disabled before the next import file can pass through.
Who Can Change the Thresholds
Users with the Administrator role or higher (Administrator or Partner Administrator) can view and change the New, Changed, and Deleted threshold values directly in the eADM interface, without contacting Identum support. This is done from Automation > Synchronization > Status, in the Import filter panel.
For step-by-step instructions on adjusting the thresholds and on resuming a synchronization that the import filter has stopped, see How to handle an import stopped by the import filter
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