Onboarding

Last updated: October 5, 2026Applies to current supported NIM releases

Configuration · Onboarding

Connect the Onboarding App to user data, identity verification, and the actions that activate a prepared account.

An onboarding profile defines the forms a user completes, the data used to verify their identity, and the actions NIM runs during account activation. The Onboarding App overview explains the user experience; this page documents the profile editor. For a complete worked setup, follow the onboarding tutorial.

The editor has seven tabs: Configuration, Preview, Action variables, Onboarding actions, Error messages, Settings, and Validation.

How the profile fits together

Find user

Question-answer filterReturn the onboarding record and data needed by the profile

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Verify identity

Profile formsCollect an identifier, verify identity, and collect the new password

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Activate account

Action variablesMake filter values available to forms and actionsOnboarding actionsUpdate the intended account when the Execute form is submitted

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Validate

Messages and limitsConfigure errors, blocking, and session timeoutsValidation and testingResolve configuration issues and test the complete journey

Configure the lookup and forms before mapping action inputs, then test the complete profile with a safe account.

Before you create a profile

• Prepare the Onboarding App, eligible-user data, and a lookup filter. The filter must identify the intended onboarding record and include the account identifiers, verification data, and contact fields the flow needs. See Prepare and load onboarding data.
• Identify the target system and functions that will set the password and activate the prepared account.
• Configure mail and, if using SMS verification, SMS delivery. See Onboarding with an OTP code for the delivery setup.

Create a profile

1. In NIM Studio, go to Configuration → Onboarding.
2. Select Add and enter a profile name that matches the Profile value used by the onboarding mapping, such as EmployeeOnboarding.
3. Open the profile to configure its tabs.

Configure the App, lookup, and forms

On Configuration, select the App and data source, then choose how errors are displayed.

Field	Purpose	Example
Onboarding app	Selects the App containing the onboarding forms. Different profiles can use different Apps.	Onboarding
Question-answer filter	Supplies the user data used by verification forms and action variables.	Onboarding_Employee_Lookup
Onboarding app error form	Selects the App form used to display errors.	message
Error description id	Selects the item on that form that displays the error text.	message

Configure profile forms

The Onboarding profile forms grid defines the order of the user journey. Select Add for each required screen, then configure its fields.

Field	What to configure
Form name	Choose an existing form from the selected Onboarding App.
Form function	Select the behavior the form performs, such as registration, verification, or password input.
Form variable	Select the App variable associated with the form's value.
Onboard variable	Select the onboarding variable associated with the answer or filter value.
Answer column	Select the filter column containing the expected answer for a question.
Execute	Choose the point at which NIM runs the configured onboarding actions.
Notification	Generate a notification event at this point in the journey when a corresponding notification is configured.

Place verification before the form that has Execute selected. Place any additional input needed by an action before that form as well. In the example, the password form has Execute and Notification selected.

Choose form functions

The available form names come from the selected App. A form's name and function are separate: for example, the welcome and summary forms shown above both use general to display content.

Function	Purpose
General	Display general text, such as a welcome message or instructions.
Registration	Collect and validate the user's onboarding identifier.
Question Text	Collect a text answer and compare it with the question-answer filter data.
Question Number	Collect a numeric answer for verification.
Question Date	Collect a date answer for verification.
Method Select	Let the user select an available OTP delivery method.
Confirm Secret	Collect and validate the OTP code after method selection.
Input Text	Collect information for use in forms, notifications, or target-system actions.
Input Password	Collect the new password.
Summary	Display completion information, such as the user's account details.
Error	Display an error within the flow.

Use OTP verification for delivery and code-confirmation setup. Use Gather additional user input when a user must supply information that an action will use.

Use form-entry actions

Each form entry has actions to Preview it, Open Form Editor in the App Designer, Copy the Form Entry, or delete the entry with the trash icon. Copy an entry when you need another form with similar settings, then update its variables and position in the flow.

Customize form contents

Select a profile form to edit Form contents. The available items depend on the form function. Select a text-content item to edit it, and insert profile variables where the user needs contextual information.

Content item	Purpose
Title	Form title.
Sub Title	Form subtitle.
Info	General information or supporting text, usually near the bottom of the form.
Input.label	Label above an input, such as registration, question, or code confirmation.
Input.Placeholder	Placeholder text inside the input.
loginName	Username displayed by the summary form.

Preview the forms

Select a form entry's play button to open Preview and inspect that screen. Check the title, instructions, labels, placeholders, and completion text. Filter-backed values appear as variable names in Preview rather than actual user data.

Use Preview to check presentation, then test the actual onboarding flow with a safe record to verify lookup data and actions.

Map action variables

The Action variables tab lists columns returned by the Question-answer filter. Map the columns needed by forms and onboarding actions to onboarding variables.

1. Open Action variables and find the required filter column.
2. Select its play button to generate an onboarding variable name.
3. Customize the name when needed and use it consistently in form content and action mappings.
4. Save the profile.

For example, map the Active Directory account identifier to voObjectGUID so an action can update the intended account. Variables such as voDisplayName and voSAMAccountName can make action descriptions and notifications readable. See Configure Action Variables and Onboarding Actions for a worked mapping.

Configure onboarding actions

The Onboarding actions tab defines the actions NIM runs when the user submits the form with Execute selected. Actions run in their configured order.

1. Select Add in Onboarding profile actions, then select the new action.
2. Enter a Description for logging. Use Append to insert related variables, for example {voDisplayName} ({voSAMAccountName}) has completed onboarding.
3. Select the target System and Function.
4. Configure the function's Input values and any Output variables needed later in the flow.

Map action inputs

The example uses the AD system's UserUpdate function:

Input	Value source	Example variable	Purpose
objectGUID	Variable	voObjectGUID	Identify the account returned by the profile lookup.
accountPassword	Variable	voPassword	Supply the new password entered in the App.

Configure any additional inputs needed to activate the account. The action tutorial also shows enabling an Active Directory account.

Map action outputs and notifications

Use Output to assign returned system attributes to variables for later forms or actions. The available properties depend on the selected system function.

An action can generate its own notification event independently of the form's Notification setting. Configure the corresponding notification template and event action for each event you use; see Configure onboarding notifications.

Set messages and security limits

Error messages

Use Error messages to customize the text shown when onboarding cannot continue or has completed. Keep the wording clear enough to tell the user what to do next.

Message	Meaning
errorInternal	An internal processing error occurred.
errorIntervalNotStartedYet / errorIntervalEnded	The user is outside the allowed onboarding interval.
errorBlocked	Onboarding is temporarily blocked after too many errors.
errorCodeConfirmRetry / errorCodeConfirmNoRetry	The confirmation code is incorrect, with or without another attempt available.
errorRegistrationRetry / errorRegistrationNoRetry	Registration failed, with or without another attempt available.
errorAnswerRetry / errorAnswerNoRetry	A verification answer is incorrect, with or without another attempt available.
errorCompleted	The flow has completed.
errorTimeOut	The onboarding session expired.
errorStatusOnboarding / errorStatusCompleted	Onboarding completed in another session or was already completed previously.

Settings

Use Settings to control verification-code delivery, failed attempts, blocking, and inactivity. The values shown are examples; set the limits according to your organization's requirements.

Setting	What it controls	Screenshot value
Confirmation code length	Number of characters in the code sent by email or SMS.	4
Confirmation code maximum send count	Maximum number of times a confirmation code can be sent.	2
Maximum errors per sessions	Failed attempts allowed before the onboarding session is blocked.	3
Blocking interval base duration	Starting block duration, in minutes.	10
Blocking interval multiplier	Factor used to increase successive blocking intervals.	2
Form time-out in minutes	Inactivity period before the onboarding session expires.	5

Validate and test

Open Validation to identify missing or incorrect profile configuration. Resolve the listed issues and save the profile. See Configuration Validation for help tracing dependencies.

Use a dedicated test account to walk through registration, verification, password entry, action execution, notifications, and completion. Include incorrect answers or codes, repeated attempts, and session timeout in the test. Confirm that the intended target account is updated and that the summary displays the correct account information.

Use Onboarding troubleshooting if a step fails. The Onboarding App overview explains the user-facing journey.