Procore–SharePoint Connector for Two-Way Document Synchronization

Summary

Construction companies often use two systems to work with documents — Procore for construction management and SharePoint for document management — where users of one system can't see or work with the other's files. To help its customers integrate the two quickly and with minimal effort, a software company engaged INNERLUXES to build a Procore–SharePoint connector. Once installed, it enables two-way synchronization of documents previously managed separately in each system.

About the Client

The Client provides software consulting and development services tailored to companies in industries such as manufacturing, construction, and real estate. The Client works with commercial software that helps manage, optimize, and digitally support its target companies' business processes, with a particular focus on Microsoft technologies.

The Challenge

Construction firms commonly work with documents across two systems: Procore, a construction management system, and SharePoint, a dedicated document management system. Typically, users with access to Procore can't see or work with documents stored in SharePoint, and vice versa — so companies have to integrate the two systems to optimize document management. To help its customers set up that integration quickly and with the least possible effort, the Client decided to create a Procore–SharePoint connector enabling two-way document synchronization. Lacking SharePoint developers in-house, the Client teamed up with INNERLUXES to realize the idea.

The Solution

For the project, INNERLUXES assigned two SharePoint developers (lead and senior levels), one senior DevOps engineer, and one senior QA engineer. The team started by analyzing the input and output capabilities of the Procore and SharePoint API functions, created a data-connection application, and set up the necessary triggers (e.g., document creation) and actions (e.g., automated creation of a duplicate document in the second system). Challenges the team successfully overcame included:

• Supporting API throttling. The team identified and configured the maximum number of API calls Procore and SharePoint can initiate in a given amount of time.
• Establishing two-way file synchronization in near real time. Each action performed with a document in one system (creation, editing, deletion) is mirrored in the second system.
• Setting up rules for resolving document version collisions so users can edit one document simultaneously in both systems.
• Implementing multi-tenant OAuth to enable correct and secure authentication of end users.

INNERLUXES also created a knowledge base and comprehensive documentation so end clients get full information on how to install, use, manage, and deactivate the connector.

The Results

• End clients previously had to hire developers and perform custom integration of Procore and SharePoint to improve their document management.
• Now they use an easy-to-install, convenient connector that enables two-way synchronization of document changes.

Technologies and Tools

Procore, SharePoint, .NET Core, SharePoint client-side object model, REST API, Microsoft Azure.