Scheduled Polling

Automatically pull documents on a schedule — so nothing gets missed.

Not every trading partner pushes data in real time. Some require you to collect files from SFTP folders, portals, or APIs at set intervals.

Scheduled Polling lets XEDI check the right locations on a defined schedule, download new files, and process them immediately — keeping your flows reliable even when partners aren’t event-driven.

The problem it solves

When polling is manual or inconsistent, you get delays and gaps:

• teams logging into SFTP/portals to “see if anything’s there”

• missed files because someone forgot to check

• orders arriving late, delaying fulfilment

• invoices and acknowledgements sitting unprocessed overnight

• no visibility on whether a partner feed is healthy

Scheduled Polling makes document collection repeatable and dependable.

What Scheduled Polling does

Poll sources on a defined schedule

Automatically check configured sources such as:

• SFTP/FTPS folders

• APIs and endpoints

• inbound directories and drop zones

• partner-specific collection points

Process new files immediately

As soon as new data is found, it’s ingested into your normal processing flow — validation, mapping, routing and tracking.

Improve reliability for non-real-time partners

Polling bridges the gap where webhooks or push-based delivery aren’t available.

Visibility and traceability

See when polls ran, what was found, what was processed, and what failed — with a clear audit trail.

How it works

1) Configure a polling source
Set connection details and the location to check.

2) Define the schedule
Choose how often to poll and when (e.g. every 5 minutes, hourly, overnight windows).

3) Fetch and ingest documents
New files are collected and processed into the platform.

4) Monitor outcomes
Track poll results and handle exceptions if a source fails or returns unexpected files.

Key benefits

• Fewer delays: collect documents automatically and on time

• Less manual effort: no more logging in to “check folders”

• Reliable partner coverage: works even when partners can’t push data

• Better operational control: visibility of poll health and outcomes

• Scales easily: consistent collection across many partners

Best-fit use cases

• Partners providing files via SFTP rather than push integrations

• Overnight order feeds that must be collected early morning

• Low-frequency partners where real-time integration isn’t required

• Backup/secondary collection flows for resilience

• Teams wanting predictable inbound processing windows

FAQ

How often can polling run?
Polling frequency depends on your configuration and partner constraints. Common schedules range from every few minutes to hourly or daily.

Does polling replace real-time messaging?
No — it complements it. Scheduled Polling is ideal where partners don’t support push delivery or where a scheduled inbound window is preferred.

How do we avoid downloading the same file twice?
Polling workflows can be configured to detect new files and prevent duplicates, depending on the source and naming conventions.

Can we monitor polling failures?
Yes — failures and exceptions can be surfaced so your team knows when a partner source hasn’t been reachable or hasn’t delivered new data.