ARACIS manages the documents of each evaluation in a single file, created and archived from its evaluation application.
We built the document management system for ARACIS evaluation files on SharePoint Online, with a REST service in Azure through which the ARACIS applications create the files, add documents and archive them when the evaluation ends.
Business need
ARACIS evaluates study programmes and higher education institutions. Each evaluation has a file with the documents of the evaluated institution and of the expert evaluators.
Evaluations are managed in the ARACIS applications. The documents needed a common system, where a file in progress is open only to its evaluators and a closed file is archived and found by institution.
Result
Evaluation files are created and filled from the ARACIS applications, and their documents are kept in SharePoint, open to the evaluators of each file. When the evaluation ends, the file moves to the archive and stays searchable by institution and document type.
Solution delivered
- Information architectureA SharePoint site with the library of files in progress, the evaluation archive and the reference lists, with content types and site columns for each document type.
- Integration serviceA REST service on Azure App Service with seven operations for the ARACIS applications. It syncs the reference data (users, institutions and templates), creates the file, adds documents, returns the documents of a file, updates its status, finalises it and returns archive data.
- Access per fileWhen a file is created, the service grants access to its evaluators. Permissions change with the status of the file, following roles built on the standard SharePoint permission levels.
- Documents added from the application or from SharePointA document added through the API gets a collaboration link, which the application sends to the evaluator. Documents added directly in SharePoint also appear in the file's document list returned to the application.
- Search and my filesSearch has verticals for all documents, files in progress and archived files, with filters. On the home page, a SharePoint Framework component lists the signed-in user's files in progress.
- Security and deliveryThe service signs in to SharePoint with a certificate kept in Azure Key Vault, through a managed identity and a virtual network. The solution is deployed with Azure DevOps pipelines to the development, test and production environments.
How it works
- 01
Creating the file
The ARACIS application requests a new file; the service creates its structure in SharePoint and grants access to the evaluators.
Azure App Service
SharePoint Online
- 02
Filling it
Documents are added through the API or directly in SharePoint, and the application receives their links.
- SharePoint Online
- 03
Evaluation
The home page lists the evaluator's files in progress, and the evaluator searches the documents they have access to.
- SharePoint Online
- 04
Archiving
At finalisation, the service moves the documents to the archive and updates the file's permissions.
- Azure App Service
