Topic

How to upgrade your Secure File Transfer Protocol (SFTP) service to the Amazon Web Services (AWS) hosted SFTP service.

Description

Why Use SFTP in Everbridge Suite?

One way to automate your data uploads of Contact, Asset and User data is through the Everbridge interface. You can configure your system to add a contact upload file in the Everbridge format. You then script or schedule software that supports secure file transfer protocol (SFTP) to upload your file to Everbridge. For more information on using SFTP for uploading data, please see knowledge base articles:

• EBS: SFTP Access Guide & FAQ
• EBS: Uploading Contacts: Everbridge Contact Sync Overview - Choosing Between File Upload (SFTP) and Individual Contact Sync (API)

What Is the AWS SFTP Service?

The AWS SFTP service is a cloud-based SFTP service that securely scales your recurring business-to-business file transfers.

Benefits of Using the AWS SFTP Service for Data Uploads

The AWS SFTP service provides a streamlined, scalable, reliable, secure, and redundant file-transfer capability that can handle bulk management of Contact, Asset, and User data.

How to Configure the AWS SFTP Service

Instructions for configuring your SFTP service to the AWS SFTP service are presented in two formats below depending on your learning style.

• VIDEO ONLY: A complete start-to-finish video walk-through on configuring your SFTP service. This is best for visual learners.
• WRITTEN/VIDEO: Written steps with shorter embedded video clips. Both written steps and short videos are included in this section. This is a better option for those that prefer written to video and for quickly accessible reference material after having watched a video.

VIDEO ONLY:

Watch Upgrading Your SFTP Service for a complete video walk-through of upgrading your SFTP service:

WRITTEN/VIDEO:

1. Getting Started

Watch Getting Started with your SFTP Migration for a video walk-through on getting started with the SFTP migration.

2. Find the New SFTP Host Name to Use

Watch Find the New SFTP Host Name to Use for a video walk-through on finding the new SFTP host name.

• If you have access to the Everbridge Manager Portal, then do the following:

Log in to the Everbridge Suite interface:

• If SFTP is established at the account level, navigate to Settings > Security > Secure FTP.
• If SFTP is established at the organization level, navigate to Settings > Organization >  Contacts/Assets > Upload Options. 

• If you do NOT have access to the Everbridge Manager Portal, then do the following:

Determine which host name to use from the table below:

3. Change the Host Name in Your SFTP Software to Point to the New SFTP Host Name

Watch Change the SFTP Host Name for a video walk-through on changing the SFTP host name.

Your SFTP software needs to be updated with the new SFTP host name. Please reach out to your IT personnel who manage your SFTP data integration. They will need to update your SFTP software with the new SFTP host name.

EXAMPLE:
The below example, if you use WinSCP for your SFTP data integration, then you would add the new host name in the Host name field, as illustrated below. Please note that Everbridge does not endorse any particular third-party tool. The below example just happens to be in WinSCP. The concepts should be the same regardless of what SFTP software you use.

NOTES:

1. If you are a Workday client, then please work with your Workday administrator to update your Everbridge integration configuration.
2.  If you require permit listing by IP addresses to connect to the new SFTP host name, the current list of IP Addresses can be found in knowledge base article EBS: Everbridge Permit Listing Best Practices.

4. Test the New SFTP Connection

Watch Test the New SFTP Connection for a video walk-through on testing your updates.

To test the new SFTP host name, insert the new SFTP host name into your SFTP configuration and test the connection by sending data over SFTP to Everbridge.

If you encounter any issues, you can switch back to the old server and reach out to Everbridge Technical Support for assistance.

Example:

Note: This example uses WinSCP, but the concepts apply to any SFTP software.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. Is my encryption impacted?

No, encryption is not impacted.

2. Do my file formats change?

No, file formats are not impacted.

3. After making the required changes, will I need to accept a new host key?

Yes. We are moving to new hosts, so you will need to accept the new host key. 

4. Are any of my private or public keys impacted?

Private keys are not impacted, and public keys are no longer impacted as of July 15, 2022 (Everbridge has synced existing public keys to the new host name).

5. Why does the SFTP host name still show the old endpoint in the Organization Settings after we transitioned to the AWS SFTP service?

This is strictly cosmetic. Once all customers cut over to the AWS SFTP service, we will discontinue the legacy SFTP service and run a script that will automatically update each customer's endpoint to the new one.

6. Your SFTP Access Guide & FAQ has screenshots that still reference the old endpoints. When will these be updated?

Once all customers cut over to the AWS SFTP service, we will establish a deadline for when all customers must be using the new host name. Once that deadline is met, we will update the images in the PDF found on the Secure FTP page in your Everbridge Organization Settings.

7. I'm able to connect to the new host name, but when I transfer a file into the SFTP folder, I receive a "permissions" issue warning/error. How can I resolve this?

If you are receiving this pop-up error on WinSCP, rest assured that your data is transferring successfully to Everbridge Suite. (You can validate that uploads occurred on the Upload History page in Everbridge Suite.) To remove this warning/error message on the WinSCP program, please follow these instructions: 

1. Open WinSCP.
2. Select Preferences.
3. If applicable, next to Other general options select the Preferences button.
4. If Step 3 is not applicable, select Transfer.
5. Select the Edit button.
6. Under Common Options, uncheck Preserve timestamp.
7. Select OK.
8. Select OK again.

8. I am able to connect to the new host name, but when I transfer a file into the SFTP folder, I receive a "permissions" issue warning/error related to the Transfer Resume Feature. How can I resolve this?

If you are receiving this pop-up error on WinSCP, rest assured that your data is transferring successfully to Everbridge Suite. (You can validate that uploads occurred on the Upload History page in Everbridge Suite.) To remove this warning/error message on the WinSCP program, please follow these instructions: 

1. Open WinSCP.
2. Select Preferences.
3. Select Transfer.
4. Select Endurance.
5. Switch the radio option to Disable.
6. Select OK.
7. Select OK again.

9. When connecting and uploading files to the new environment, I am getting permission errors from the script we have created.

The folders in the new SFTP environment have different permissions than those in the legacy SFTP environment. You can list the folders and upload files, but you will not be able to query the folders themselves or edit/rename/add a timestamp to a file that has been uploaded to the folder.

10. My SFTP data uploads started failing after the legacy SFTP service was discontinued. What do I do?

Contact your IT personnel to ensure that the new endpoint is inserted for the host name in your SFTP configuration. If it is, and you are still running into issues, please contact Everbridge Technical Support and provide any relevant information for troubleshooting purposes.