The OIC File Server adapter is often overlooked in favour of REST and SOAP connections, but for bulk data flows — especially B2B integrations, FBDI automation, and batch file exchange — it’s the right tool for the job.
When to use the File Server adapter
Use it when:
- You’re exchanging large CSV, XML, or fixed-width files with external partners
- The target system expects files in a specific directory structure (SFTP drop folders)
- You’re staging FBDI files before triggering an import job in Fusion
- Processing speed matters and REST pagination would be too slow
Connecting to an external SFTP server
OIC’s FTP adapter handles external SFTP connections. The File Server adapter specifically refers to OIC’s built-in managed file storage — useful for staging files between integration steps without an external dependency.
A clean pattern for B2B payment flows:
1. Trigger: Scheduled or app event
2. Generate file (CSV/XML) via XSLT mapper
3. Write to OIC File Server (staging)
4. Apply PGP encryption
5. Transfer encrypted file to partner SFTP via FTP adapter
6. Log transfer confirmation + file metadata
Chunked file reading for large files
For reading large inbound files, use OIC’s read-in-chunks capability. Set a chunk size appropriate to your memory limits — typically 500–1000 rows per chunk — and loop through until the file is exhausted. This prevents OOM errors on large payloads that would otherwise load the entire file into memory.
File naming and archiving
Always include a timestamp and run ID in generated file names. After successful processing, move source files to an archive folder rather than deleting them. This gives you an audit trail and makes reprocessing straightforward when something downstream fails.
PGP encryption integration
For banking and financial partners, PGP-encrypted file transfer is a near-universal requirement. OIC handles this natively — store your PGP keys in OIC’s certificate manager and reference them in the FTP adapter configuration. No external tooling needed.