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Set Up a PowerSchool AutoComm to Import Schoolrunner Attendance

Whetstone Team
Updated

PowerSchool AutoComms allow you to import attendance from external systems, such as Schoolrunner. AutoComms can import daily attendance and/or meeting attendance (called “class attendance” in Schoolrunner).

But the SR-to-PS attendance “sync” is not a single transaction. It consists of two parts:

  1. Schoolrunner creates an attendance export and posts it to a secure website

  2. PS AutoComms fetch and import this data

 

It’s important that the timing between these two parts is coordinated. If the timing of either is off, it can lead to confusion, unnecessary delays in the transmission of data, or the sense that the sync isn't working.

 

Note: If Schoolrunner gets your data via Clever, you’ll need to provide Schoolrunner with PS IDs for your attendance codes and, if you want to import class attendance, period abbreviations for your periods. Schoolrunner can’t export data that makes sense to PS without this.

 

You’re responsible for making AutoComms pull in data when you want it, and communicating this schedule to Schoolrunner so that our export schedule will match your import schedule. Don’t forget to let us know of changes you make to your schedule!

 

Schoolrunner will post attendance data two minutes before your AutoComm runs. This ensures that data is fully transmitted when your AutoComms fetches it. Note, however, that this allows for a brief “gap” (between our export and your import). Attendance changes made during this gap will show up in PS after the next sync.

 

TABLE OF CONTENTS

  • Step 1: Create a “Remote Connection” in PowerSchool
  • Step 2: Configure Your AutoComms
    • Step 2A: Configure a Daily Attendance AutoComm
    • Step 2B: Configure a Meeting/Class Attendance AutoComm

 

 

Step 1: Create a “Remote Connection” in PowerSchool

  1. Change the school to “District”

  2. Navigate to “Remote Connection Manager”

    1. Setup > System > System > System Settings > Plugin Management Configuration > Remote Connection Manager

  3. Ensure that “Remote Connection Manager” is enabled

  4. Click “Remote Connection Manager”

  5. Click “Create Connection”

  6. Enter the following details:

    1. Name: Schoolrunner

    2. Description: Enter something like “This allows us to sync in SR attendance.”

    3. Protocol: SFTP

    4. Host: sftp.schoolrunner.org

    5. Port: 22

    6. Username: Same as your Schoolrunner domain

    7. Password: Will be provided to you by Schoolrunner

    8. Confirm Password: Reenter the password

  7. Click “Test Connection”

    1. Click “Yes, Accept Host Key”

  8. Check “Allow Download”

  9. Click “Submit”

 

Step 2: Configure Your AutoComms

Now that you’ve completed step 1, you can set up your AutoComms, which depend on the remote connection you just configured.

 

AutoComms can import daily or meeting attendance into PowerSchool, but not via a single AutoComm. You’ll need a separate AutoComm for each type of attendance. Note also that AutoComms can only import attendance for the current school year.

 

AutoComms are school-specific, so If you have more than one school in your network or district, you’ll also have to set up an AutoComm for each school whose attendance should be imported.

 

Step 2A: Configure a Daily Attendance AutoComm

Daily attendance records represent one student’s attendance status for a single day. On any given day, a student can have one daily attendance record for his/her status (tardy, absent, etc.). Or s/he may not have a record at all, indicating s/he was present in school without any attendance-related designation

 

  1. Change your school from “District” to the school you want daily attendance imported for

  2. Navigate to “AutoComm Setup”

    1. Setup > System > AutoComm Setup

  3. Click “New”

  4. Enter the following details:

    1. Name: Schoolrunner Daily Attendance (or something similar; this is up to you)

    2. Table to Import: Attendance – Daily

    3. When to Execute: Choose your time(s)

    4. Days to Execute: Choose your days

    5. Turn Execution Off: [leave unchecked]

    6. Get Input From: Managed Connection – Schoolrunner

    7. Path: /ps/attendance/[exact filename provided by Schoolrunner]

    8. Field Delimiter: Tab

    9. Record Delimiter: LF

    10. Character Set: Mac Roman

    11. Sort Order: 0 

    12. Synchronize Mode: [leave unchecked]

    13. Update existing records with imported data (when applicable): [check]

    14. Mark Students and their scheduled inactive when their exit date <= today: [leave unchecked]

    15. First record of file is “number_of_records=” **: [leave unchecked]

    16. Email Completion Report To: Enter addresses to notify each time the AutoComm completes. Separate multiple addresses with commas.

    17. PowerSchool fields to import into: These reflect the fields we include in the file we export. It’s important that you enter each on its own line in the text box, and include them all in this order.

      • student_number

      • lastfirst

      • att_date

      • attendance_code

      • absence_type_description

      • att_comment

      • schoolid

      • att_mode_code

      • att_interval

      • yearid

      • attendance_codeid

  5. Optional: Click “Duplicate this AutoComm record to all schools on this server”

    1. This will duplicate your AutoComm setup to other schools in your network/district

    2. If you do this, edit the “Path” field in the other AutoComms so they fetch the correct file for their school

  6. Click “Submit”

 

Step 2B: Configure a Meeting/Class Attendance AutoComm

Called "class attendance" in Schoolrunner, meeting attendance records represent a student's status in different classes throughout the day. A student can have asmany meeting attendance records as s/he has classess in a day. A student may not have a meeting attendance record if A) s/he was present for that class or B) attendance wasn't taken for that class.

  1. Change your school from “District” to the school you want daily attendance imported for

  2. Navigate to “AutoComm Setup”

    1. Setup > System > AutoComm Setup

  3. Click “New”

  4. Enter the following details:

    1. Name: Schoolrunner Class Attendance (or something similar; this is up to you)

    2. Table to Import: Attendance – Meeting

    3. When to Execute: Choose your time(s)

    4. Days to Execute: Choose your days

    5. Turn Execution Off: [leave unchecked]

    6. Get Input From: Managed Connection – Schoolrunner

    7. Path: /ps/attendance/[exact filename provided by Schoolrunner]

    8. Field Delimiter: Tab

    9. Record Delimiter: LF

    10. Character Set: Mac Roman

    11. Sort Order: 0 

    12. Synchronize Mode: [leave unchecked]

    13. Update existing records with imported data (when applicable): [check]

    14. Mark Students and their scheduled inactive when their exit date <= today: [leave unchecked]

    15. First record of file is “number_of_records=” **: [leave unchecked]

    16. Email Completion Report To: Enter addresses of people you want to receive a completion report each time the AutoComm runs. Separate multiple addresses with commas.

    17. PowerSchool fields to import into: (enter each on its own line in the text box)

      • student_number

      • att_date

      • course_number

      • section_number

      • schoolid

      • attendance_codeid

      • period abbreviation

  5. Optional: Click “Duplicate this AutoComm record to all schools on this server”

    1. This will duplicate your AutoComm setup to other schools in your network/district

    2. If you take this step, be sure to edit the “Path” field in the other AutoComms so that they fetch the correct file for their school

    3. Ignore this step if you only have one school in your network/district

  6. Click “Submit”

 
 

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