File Share Job

File Share Job

A File Share Job is an automated task that transfers files between your Edge device and a network file share (SMB), such as a Windows file server, NAS, or compatible storage appliance. File Share Jobs make it easy to ingest, archive, or distribute files in collaboration with enterprise IT systems, lab equipment, or document archives - using robust network file sharing.

File Share Jobs run entirely on your Edge device, leveraging built-in Blob Storage (similar to Azure Storage Accounts). This enables reliable, local file management, even during network disruptions or when cloud access is unavailable.

Key Features

  • Automated File Transfer: Send or retrieve files between Edge and network file shares (using SMB protocol).

  • Edge-Based Operation: Operates locally for resilient file handling, including during cloud/network outages.

  • Flexible Scheduling: Control how often the job runs with CRON expressions or simple intervals.

  • Pattern Matching: Select which files to handle based on patterns (by extension, folder, or naming convention).

  • File Size Filtering: Advanced filter supports restricting transfers by file size for targeted workflows.

  • Cloud Integration: Optionally send files to cloud storage (files-drop container) for centralized ingestion and analytics, or process files locally at the Edge.

  • No Source Deletion Option: By default, File Share Jobs do not delete source files after transfer, ensuring data integrity on the file share. They track transferred files and only process new or changed files on subsequent runs.

Typical Use Cases

  • Automated Data Ingestion: Pull data files from lab instruments, measurement systems, or document archives for centralized storage or processing.

  • Production Report Collection: Gather logs, reports, or batch documents from file shares for archiving or business intelligence.

  • Incremental Transfer: Continuously ingest only new or modified files from file shares, minimizing bandwidth and avoiding duplicates.

  • Edge Processing: Process files locally before cloud upload, ensuring performance and compliance even when offline.

Configuring a File Share Job

Add a New Job

  1. Select the Area node where you want to add the job.

  2. Go to the Jobs tab.

  3. Click + New job, select File Share Job, and provide a name for the job.

Note: File Share Job is only available if there is a configured File Share Data Connector on the Area.

Create a File Share Job

Configure Job Settings

Configuration of File Share Job

  • Job Name: Enter a descriptive name (e.g., MoveLabFileShare).

  • Enabled: Toggle to activate or deactivate the job.

  • Schedule (CRON): Set how frequently the job should run (e.g., every 10 minutes: 0/10 * * * *).

The CRON string consists of 5 fields separated by spaces and controls how often the job runs on the Edge device. Examples: * * * * * – Run every minute */30 * * * * – Run every 30 minutes 0 * * * * – Run every hour 0 0 * * * – Run daily at midnight UTC 0 0 1 * * – Run on the 1st of each month at midnight UTC 0 0 * * 1 – Run at midnight every Monday UTC See cron.help for more details.

File Share Settings

  • File Share Server: Select the configured File Share Data Connector.

  • Operation: Set the type of File share job. You can choose between 3 different types:

    • Upload to File share server: Periodically upload a file or folder from local storage on Edge device to File share server.

    • Download from File share server: Periodically download all contents from a File share server folder to local container/folder on Edge device.

    • Synchronize File share server folder: Setup a synchronization job that will synchronize a File share server folder to Cloud storage using the Edge device as store and forward, or store the files in an internal container on the Edge device.

  • File Share Folder: Enter the source folder to scan (e.g., Import).

  • File Patterns: Define patterns to target files to handle using file system globbing patterns, you can define rules for files that should be targeted for the operation. (e.g., **/* for all files in any subdirectory).

    You can use multiple rules by seperating them with ;; Eg. (filepattern1);;(filepattern2);;(filepattern3) Here are some filepattern examples:

    • *.txt Matches all files with the file extension .txt in the folder.

    • *.* Matches all files regardless of file extension in the current folder.

    • *word* Matches all files that has the name 'word' in the filename.

    • styles/*.css Matches all files with extension '.css' in the directory 'styles/'.

    • scripts/*/* Matches all files in 'scripts/' or one level of subdirectory under 'scripts/'

    • images*/* Matches all files in a folder with name that is or begins with 'images'.

    • **/* Matches all files in any subdirectory.

    • dir/**/* Matches all files in any subdirectory under 'dir/'.

    • GTRS*/**/* Matches all files, that has a starting directory that starts with 'GTRS' and include all files from any subdirectory.

    For more information see Microsoft documentation which include more examples.

  • Extract ZIP Files: (Optional) Automatically extract files with .zip extension in transfer.

  • Synchronization Scheme: Choose what happens to files once they are moved- choose between the following 4 options:

    • Only transfer changed files since last job trigger: Every time the job triggers, only added or modified files (since last sync was run according to what is specified in CRON) will be transfferred. No files will be deleted on the File share. The first time the job runs, it will transfer all files currently stored on the file share. In consecutive runs, only added - or modified files will be transffered.

    • Move synced files to another file share folder: Once files has been successfully transferred, the transferred files will be moved to the File share Export folder that can be defined on the File share server. This ensures that all files are only synced once, since when the next synchronization runs, files will no longer be in the File share server folder.

    • Delete files from File share folder when synced: Once files has been successfully transferred, the transferred files will be deleted from the File share server folder. This ensures that all files are only synced once, since when the next synchronization runs, files will no longer be in the File share server folder.

    • Keep files: (Not recommended) Once files has been successfully transferred, the transferred files will remain in the File share server folder. When the next synchronization runs, the files will be transferred again, overwriting all exisisting files in the cloud.

Advanced File Filtering

Optional Advanced File Filtering options

  • File Size Range: Restrict by minimum and/or maximum file size (e.g., only process files between 1 MB and 1 GB).

  • File Age: Restrict to files older/newer than a specific age (e.g., only process files older than 1 minute).

  • File Time Range: Restrict to files created/modified within a specified UTC time window.

Not all advanced file filtering options are available in every scenario - the available filters depend on the specific

operation type selected for the File Share Job.

Destination

  • Destination for Files: Choose the final destination, e.g., Send files to cloudor Send to blob storage container on device. The first option witll send files to a central ingestion storage account in the cloud. The latter option can be used if you want to further process the files before sending them to cloud.

  • Destination Folder: (Optional) Specify a target folder or use directory tokens for dynamic paths. Eg. folder1 or folder1/folder2 to create a deeper directory structure. You can also use tokens to build up the path using the tokens below:

    $(deviceid)

    Replace a part of a filepath with the Device Id of the Edge device using the token $(deviceid).

    rootfolder/$(deviceid)/otherfolder rootfolder/EdgeDevice-1/otherfolder

    $(yyyy)

    Replace a part of a filepath with the current Year UTC (Eg. 2021) using the token $(yyyy).

    rootfolder/$(yyyy)/otherfolder rootfolder/2021/otherfolder

    $(MM)

    Replace a part of a filepath with the current Month UTC (Eg. 01-12) using the token $(MM).

    rootfolder/$(MM)/otherfolder rootfolder/07/otherfolder

    $(dd)

    Replace a part of a filepath with the current Day of month UTC (Eg. 01-31) using the token $(dd).

    rootfolder/$(dd)/otherfolder rootfolder/07/otherfolder

    $(HH)

    Replace a part of a filepath with the current UTC hour (Eg. 00-24) using the token $(HH).

    rootfolder/$(HH)/otherfolder rootfolder/13/otherfolder

    $(mm)

    Replace a part of a filepath with the current UTC minute (Eg. 00-59) using the token $(mm).

    rootfolder/$(mm)/otherfolder rootfolder/57/otherfolder

    $(ss)

    Replace a part of a filepath with the current UTC Second (Eg. 00-59) using the token $(ss).

    rootfolder/$(ss)/otherfolder rootfolder/35/otherfolder

    $(FFF)

    Replace a part of a filepath with the current UTC MilliSecond (Eg. 000-999) using the token $(FFF).

    rootfolder/$(FFF)/otherfolder rootfolder/358/otherfolder

    $(unixts)

    Replace a part of a filepath with the current Unix Timestamp UTC (Number of milliseconds that has elapsed since 1970-01-01) using the token $(unixts).

    rootfolder/$(unixts)/otherfolder rootfolder/1629098246320/otherfolder

Example File Share Job Configuration

Setting
Example Value

Job Name

MoveLabFileShare

Enabled

Yes

CRON Schedule

0/10 * * * *

File Share Server

FileShareServer

File Share Folder

Import

File Patterns

**/*.stat

File Size Range

1 MB - 100 MB

Destination for Files

Send files to cloud

Destination Folder

$(deviceid)/MoveLabFileShare

Best Practices

  • Use descriptive names for jobs and folders to simplify monitoring and troubleshooting.

  • Test file patterns and destination settings with sample files before deploying in production.

  • Schedule jobs to match operational needs, avoiding excessive network or storage load.

  • Ensure permissions and access rights are set up correctly on both the file share and Edge device.

  • Use tokens in destination paths to organize data by device, job, or context.

  • Monitor File Share Jobs in the File Transfer Module Jobs Tab (Asset Hierarchy must be deployed first).

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