What is Teamcenter email polling?

Teamcenter email polling is functionality that checks an email account for unread messages that match criteria specified in a polling rule. For messages that meet the polling criteria, Teamcenter performs a specified type of response. You can use email polling to bring email content from third parties into Teamcenter. You can also extend email polling to perform additional actions on email messages and attachments. Actions performed during an email polling cycle include the following: The business user defines an email polling rule and then starts or schedules email polling. Teamcenter logs in to the user's e-mail account and checks the Inbox folder for unread messages. Teamcenter tests unread messages for matches to criteria (subject and token files) specified in the business user's rules. If an unread message matches the specified criteria, then Teamcenter performs actions according to the response type specified in the rule. The default response type performs the following actions: Downloads the message body and attachments to a specified folder on the Teamcenter server. Moves the message to a specified archive folder in the mail system. Starts a review workflow of the downloaded message in Teamcenter. An administrator or developer can create a subtype of the basic email-polling business object and define additional actions for a response. For example, attachments could be scanned for viruses. From the review workflow task, the business user reviews the message and attachment files and chooses whether to approve or reject the message and attachments. For this decision Teamcenter does this with the file (default action) Approve No further action. Reject Purges the downloaded file. Email polling can be started or scheduled either of these ways: By the business user from within the rich client, if standard Teamcenter dispatcher services have been configured. Multiple rules can be scheduled to run. By an administrator at the command line or in a cron job using the email_polling utility.