Creating Communication Rules

External communication provides a way for non-SBM users to submit items via e-mail and to communicate with SBM users on items that they have submitted.

You can create communication rules that are executed automatically in response to an external communication e-mail reply. For example, in a help desk scenario, you can create a rule that transitions the item back to the With Technician state when a reply from a non-SBM user is received.

To create a new external communication rule:

Enter a Name for the communication rule.
Select the Initial State. This determines which transitions are available. Note that each rule requires a unique initial state. Ensure that the state is assigned an owner and the item can be transitioned to another state.
Select a Transition to Execute when the reply is received.
Tip: Click Show Workflow to view a diagram that shows each state and all available transitions.
Click Save to save your changes.
Click the Mappings button to open the Transition Mappings page and map any required field values in the transition. Select Required Only to see only required fields in the transition; select Read Only to limit the list to read-only fields.
Select the Show e-mail fields check box to map e-mail fields to SBM fields. For example, you can map the Body field in the e-mail reply to your Description field in SBM. As you map fields, you can use a combination of values by selecting the check box to use e-mail fields or clearing the check box to use SBM field values.

Once you have defined your rule, test it by sending an e-mail from an external address (not in SBM) to an SBM mailbox that is configured to allow anonymous e-mail submit. Once the item is successfully created, send an e-mail from the SBM item to your external e-mail address, and then reply to that e-mail. SBM should process the reply and execute the transition as defined in the communication rule that you established.