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Ed-Fi Credential Application User Guide

Ed-Fi Credential Application: Overview

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The Ed-Fi Credential application can be accessed through the WISEhome menu as with other WISE applications, long as you have the appropriate security. In your district/school there are a limited number of people (maybe even only one) who will have access to the Ed-Fi Credential application. The purpose of this application is to manage security related to your vended applications access to the WISEdata Ed-Fi Application Programming Interface (Ed-Fi API). This API sits between the technology you use to collect information for state reporting, like your Student Information System (SIS) and the WISEdata systems.

If you are converting from one vendor to another, please submit a WISEsupport ticket to ensure your vendor subscriptions are properly configured. For more information, visit the SIS Conversion Guidance page.

NOTICE: Ed-Fi has new URLs for the 2023-24 school year. Read the "New URLs" section below to learn how to locate and use these URLS if you are having connectivity issues.

Features and Functions of the Ed-Fi Credential Application

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For those with permissions to the Ed-Fi Credential application (USERS), this powerful tool is used to manage your vendor subscriptions, look up Ed-Fi URLs as well as your LEA ID and School ID (Some vendors require you to enter this information into their application).

  1. Manage Vendor Subscriptions: Using the buttons on the far right, you can add, modify or unsubscribe from a vendor subscription. On rare occasions, you can reset your key and secret for an existing subscription. Keep in mind that will data flow will stop, this breaks any existing link between your vended application the Ed-Fi WISEdata API.
  2. Ed-Fi URLs: These are needed by your vended application to ensure that data is directed to the correct place in the Ed-Fi WISEdata API. Like your Key and Secret, these are entered into your vended application with these credentials. Note that they are year specific.
  3. Active Schools: This section shows you the schools associated with your district/school organization. Here you will find your LEA ID and School IDs

Screenshot of Ed-Fi Credential Application Vendor Subscription screen, displaying location of Keys and Secrets, New URLS and School/LEA IDs.

Click the links below to navigate to different sections of this page:

Credentials Required for Ed-Fi API Connectivity

New 2023-24 Credentials

Features and Functions of the Ed-Fi Credential Application

Adding a Primary Vendor: SIS or a Financial Management System

Key and Secret Scenarios for Adding a Primary SIS or a Financial Management System

Adding Other Specialized Vendors

Canceling a Vendor Subscription

Key and Secret Scenarios for Adding Other Specialized Vendors

Credentials Required for Ed-Fi API Connectivity

Graphic showing Ed-Fi Credential data flow: creating Ed-Fi credentials, enter credentials in your SIS, and verify data flow in WISEdata Portal.

Credentials are specific pieces of data (e.g., your Key and Secret, and a URL) that allow different platforms to ‘talk’ to each other. Think of your Key and Secret like being the key and lock to your front door, and the URL as the directions you’d take to get to the house.

Credentials are created with each unique Vendor subscription. These credentials act like the friend you gave specific permission to drive to your house and hand out there even if you’re not home. If you have multiple Vendor tools (i.e., Discipline, Special Ed, Finance, etc.) each Vendor Tool will have its own Key and Secret.

Following the comparison, you may know that you gave permission to this friend to go to your home whenever, but you want to see if they actually arrived safely. This is similar to verifying data flow from your SIS vendor Tool into DPI’s WISEdata Portal.

  1. Create Credentials for Vendor Subscriptions. The following information needed to ensure your vendor subscriptions work as expected can all be found in the Ed-Fi Credential application, on the ‘Vendor Subscription’ page:

    1. Key and Secret – The Key and Secret are the credentials that allow your SIS to send and receive data through the Ed-Fi API. 

      • MAKE SURE you paste the Key in the Key field and the Secret in the Secret field. 

    2. Ed-Fi URLs (New for 23/24 SY) – The URL updates with each new version of the Ed-Fi Credential application.** see updates below

    3. School ID – This multi-digit code exists for each individual school in school directory, allowing school enrollments to be associated with this school. Your School ID connects your enrollments and all associated data to WISEdata Portal (by way of the Ed-Fi API).  

  2. Enter Credentials into SIS Tool. Contact your vendor to determine if they will enter credentials for you, or if this is a ‘D-I-Y’ service. Your vendor has access to your credentials and can show you where the information is supposed to be entered. Each SIS vendor tool may label data element fields (i.e., Key and Secret) differently than as they appear in Ed-Fi Credential.

  3. Very Data Flow in WISEdata Portal. If at any time you are struggling with connection to WISEdata, please contact your vendor. Your vendor has access to your credentials and can you as to where the information is supposed to be entered. Each SIS vendor tool labels the Key and Secret fields differently.

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New URLS are available for the 2023-24 School Year

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Ed-Fi URLs change with each new version of the software, so for the 2023-24 school year, because we are using an updated version of Ed-Fi this year. You need to update these URLs in your SIS. This may very likely be the reason why your data was showing up in WISEdata Portal for the 2022-23 school year, but NOT for the current 2023-24 school year, regardless of the correctness of your Key and Secret.  

Ed-Fi URLs - 2023-24 and going forward are located on the Vendor Subscription screen of the Ed-Fi Credential application, underneath the section with your Vendor tool Keys and Secrets.

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Adding a Vendor Subscription

Adding a vendor enables them to view and/or enter data that will be submitted on your behalf to the Department of Public Instruction (DPI) for reporting purposes. You will only be able to add a vendor that has been certified as integrated with the Ed-Fi API. For a list of vendors and their certification status, refer to the Vendor List.

NOTE: Some vendors have multiple products. If you are staying with the same vendor but migrating to a different product, subscription changes are required for both the existing product and the new product.

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Adding a Primary Vendor: SIS or a Financial Management System

  1. Log into WISEhome using your WAMS ID or a district or agency email.

  2. In WISEhome, go to the Ed-Fi Credential application.

  3. Determine whether the subscription is for all schools in your district or only select schools.
  4. Under All Schools or Selected Schools Only, click the Add button to add a new vendor subscription.

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5. In the New Subscription window, fill out the following fields:

  • Vendor Name: Select your vendor from the drop-down list. Only certified vendors display.
  • Resource Access: Select the access level you wish to give them from the drop-down menu. For your SIS vendor, choose Write on all student data.  For your financial management system vendor, choose Write on local account, budget and actuals.
  • Schools: This field appears only under the Selected Schools Only section. Enter the schools you want to add the vendor subscription for.
  • No Access After School Year: Leave blank unless you have had multiple vendors over the past three (3) years. If you choose for the SIS vendor's full access to end after a certain year, then enter that year in the No Access After School Year field. For instance, if you will start sending special education data via SEEDS in 2023-24 school year and no longer via your primary SIS after 2022-23, enter 2023 here.
  • Read Only Prior to School Year: Only required when a SIS vendor's full access is set to end after a certain year. If you select a school year, the vendor you add will have read-only access to data prior to that school year.

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6.Once you're done, click Save Changes at the bottom of the window to add the vendor subscription.

7. Once your vendor is added, back on the main page, you will see them listed along with a security credentials (API key and secret). Your security credentials (API key and secret) should be kept private and should not be shared.

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8. The vendor will receive an email notification that you have subscribed to their technology product. Vendors may obtain the security credentials (API key and secret) that were generated through their Ed-Fi Credential application access.

9. The school/district has to enter the security credentials into their SIS or financial management system to send and request data to WISEdata through a REST API.  You may also need the API URLs and LEA ID/School ID to complete your API configuration on your SIS or financial management system. This information is available at the bottom of the Ed-Fi Credential application.

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Key & Secret Scenarios for Adding Primary SIS or Financial Vendor

READ ONLY Vendors

'Read Only' vendors do not require year conditions or changes to SIS, Discipline, Special Education or Finance. They can be added and/or removed at will.

I’m new to all this and need to add a SIS

What to do:

  1.  Add the SIS of your choice.
Prior Configuration New Configuration
  • None

  • SIS A - Write on all student data. No year conditions set.

    • New key/secret for new subscription

  • 1 key/secret

 

I’m new to all this and need to add a SIS as well as a SpEd vendor

What to do:

  1. Add the SIS and SpEd vendor of your choice.
Prior Configuration New Configuration
  • None

  • SIS A - Write on all student data. No year conditions set.

    • New key/secret for new subscription

  • SpEd A - Write on SpEd data. No year conditions set.

    • New key/secret for new subscription

  • 2 keys/secrets
I’m new to all this and need to add a SIS, SpEd, and Discipline vendor

What to do:

  1. Add the SIS and SpEd vendor of your choice.
Prior Configuration New Configuration
  • None

  • SIS A - Write on all student data. No year conditions set.

    • New key/secret for new subscription

  • SpEd A - Write on SpEd data. No year conditions set.

    • New key/secret for new subscription

  • Disc A - Write on discipline data. No year conditions set.

    • New key/secret for new subscription

  • 2 keys/secrets
Switching SIS vendors for the new school year; old SIS will manage the old data

What to do:

  1. End SIS A in the last year of reporting use.

  2. Start SIS vendor B of your choice for the new school year.

    1. New key/secret

Prior Configuration New Configuration

  • SIS A - Write on all student data. No year conditions set. 

    • Existing key/secret

  • SIS A - Write on all student data. No access after last school year of use.

    • Existing key/secret

  • SIS B - Write on all student data. Read Only prior to the new school year of use.

    • New key/secret for new subscription

  • 2 keys/secrets
Switching SIS vendors for new school year, and the old SIS is going away

What to do:

  1. Add SIS vendor B of your choice.

    1. New key/secret

  2. Unsubscribe from SIS A.

Prior Configuration New Configuration

  • SIS A - Write on all student data. No year conditions set.

    • Existing key/secret

  • 1 key/secret

  • SIS B - Write on all student data. No year conditions set.

    • New key/secret for new subscription

  • 1 key/secret

 

FINANCE Vendors

Financial data has no overlap with student data. It is managed completely separately.

Adding a new Finance vendor

What to do:

  1. Add Financial vendor A of your choice.

Prior Configuration New Configuration
  • None

  • Financial vendor A - Write on locals. No year conditions set.

    • New key/secret for new subscription

  • 1 key/secret
Switching Finance vendors for the new school year, and the old vendor will manage the old data

What to do:

  1. End Financial vendor A subscription in the previous school year.

  2. Start Financial Financial vendor B for the new school year.

Prior Configuration New Configuration
  • Financial vendor A - Write on locals. No year conditions set.
    • 1 key/secret

  • Financial vendor A - Write on locals. No access after the previous school year.

    • Existing key/secret

  • Financial vendor B - Write on locals. Read Only prior to the new school year.

    • New key/secret for new subscription

  • 2 keys/secrets
Switching Finance vendors in the new school year and the old vendor is going away

What to do:

  1. Add Financial vendor B of your choice.

  2. Unsubscribe from Financial vendor A.

Prior Configuration New Configuration
  • Financial vendor A - Write on locals. No year conditions set.
    • 1 key/secret

  • Financial vendor B - Write on locals. No year conditions set.

    • New key/secret for new subscription

     

  • 1 key/secret

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Adding Other Specialized Vendors

Special education vendors and discipline vendors both overlap with usual SIS data submission. Changes in vendors involving the addition of a SpEd and/or a discipline vendor typically also require changing the SIS access so that an LEA only has “Read” access to SpEd and Discipline data within the SIS. This restriction eliminates the possibility of entering duplicate data.

Please follow the steps below carefully when setting up specialized vendors. In the event where both the SIS vendor and the specialized are added without year conditions, the district’s special education or discipline data could accidentally be updated or deleted.

  1. Modify current SIS subscription, before adding your specialized vendor.
    • Resource Access should be Write on all student data - except SpEd.
    • Read Only Prior To School Year should be year prior to start of the new vendor.
    • Click “save”, no change to Key and Secret.
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  2. Add current year SIS subscription.
    • Select a SIS Vendor.
    • Resource Access should be No access after School Year. Select previous school year.
    • Click “save”, a new Key and Secret is generated.
  3. Add new specialized subscription.
    • Select a vendor
    • Resource Access should be:
      • Special Education: choose Write only on student special education/program data
      • Discipline: choose Write only on student discipline data
    • Click “save” to generate Key and Secret.
  4. Clicking Save Changes generates the security credentials (API key and secret) required to allow the specialized vendor to transmit data to WISEdata. Your security credentials (API key and secret) should be kept private and should not be shared.

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  5. The vendor will receive an email notification that you have subscribed to their technology product. Vendors may obtain the security credentials (API key and secret) that were generated through their Ed-Fi Credential application access.
  6. The school/district has to enter the security credentials into their special education information system, or a behavior & discipline system to send and request data to WISEdata through a REST API. You may also need the API URLs and LEA ID/School ID to complete your API configuration on your special education information system, or a behavior & discipline system. This information is available at the bottom of the Ed-Fi Credential application.

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Key and Secret Scenarios for Adding Other Specialty Vendors

SPECIALTY STUDENT Vendors

Special education vendors and discipline vendors both overlap with usual SIS data submission. Changes in vendors involving the addition of a SpEd and/or a discipline vendor typically also require changing the SIS access so that an LEA only has “Read’ access to SpEd and Discipline data within the SIS. This restriction eliminates the possibility of entering duplicate data.

Adding a SpEd vendor for new school year onwards

What to do:

  1. End previous SIS A subscription with SpEd in the previous school year.

  2. Add modified SIS A subscription without SpEd for the new school year.

  3. Add SpEd vendor A of your choice for the new school year.

Prior Configuration New Configuration

  • SIS A - Write on all student data. No year conditions set.

  • 1 key/secret

  • SIS A with SpEd access - Write on student data. No access after the previous school year.

    • Existing key/secret

  • SIS A without SpEd access - Write on all student data - except SpEd. Read Only prior to the new school year.

    • New key/secret for modified subscription

  • SpEd SIS A - Write on SpEd data. Read Only prior to the new school year.

    • New key/secret for new subscription

  • 3 keys/secrets
Adding a SpEd vendor for all years

What to do:

  1. Change access (modify subscription) for SIS A.

    1. New key/secret for SIS A for new/modified subscription

  2. Add SpEd vendor A of your choice.

    1. New key/secret

Prior Configuration New Configuration

  • SIS A - Write on all student data. No year conditions set.

  • 1 key/secret

  • SIS A - Write on all student data - except SpEd. No year conditions set.

    • New key/secret to reflect modified subscription

  • SpEd - Write on SpEd. No year conditions set.

    • New key/secret 

  • 2 keys/secrets
Switching SpEd vendors for new school year onward

What to do:

  1. End SpEd vendor A subscription in the previous school year.

  2. Add SpEd vendor B subscription for the new school year.

Prior Configuration New Configuration

  • SIS A - Write on all student data - except SpEd. No year conditions set.

    • Existing key/secret

  • SpEd vendor A - Write on SpEd data. No year conditions set.

    • Existing key/secret

  • 2 keys/secrets

  • SIS A - Write on all data - except SpEd. No year conditions set.

    • New key/secret to reflect modified subscription

  • SpEd vendor A - Write on SpEd data. No access after the previous school year.

    • Existing key/secret

  • New SpEd vendor B - Write on SpEd data. Read Only prior to the new school year.

    • New key/secret for new subscription

  • 3 keys/secrets
Switching SpEd vendor for all years

What to do:

  1. Add SpEd B vendor of your choice.

  2. Unsubscribe from SpEd A vendor.

Prior Configuration New Configuration

  • Unsubscribe from SpEd A vendor.

    • Existing key/secret

  • SpEd vendor A - Write on SpEd. No year conditions set.

    • Existing key/secret

  • 2 keys/secrets

  • SIS A - Write on all student data - except SpEd. No year conditions set.

    • Existing key/secret

  • SpEd vendor B - Write on SpEd. No year conditions set.

    • New key/secret for new subscription

  • 2 keys/secrets
Removing a SpEd vendor for the new school year onward

What to do:

  1. End SpEd vendor A subscription in the previous school year.

  2. End SIS A current subscription in the previous school year.

  3. Add SIS A new/modified subscription for all data for the new school year.

Prior Configuration New Configuration

  • SIS A - Write on all student data - except SpEd. No year conditions set.

    • Existing key/secret

  • SpEd Vendor A - Write on SpEd. No year conditions set.

    • Existing key/secret

  • 2 keys/secrets

  • SIS A - Write on all student data - except SpEd. No access after the previous school year.

    • Existing key/secret

  • SIS A - Modified subscription - Write on all student data. Read Only prior to the new school year.

    • New key/secret for modified subscription

  • SpEd Vendor A - Write on SpEd. No access after the previous school year.

    • Existing key/secret

  • 3 keys/secrets
Removing a SpEd vendor for all years

What to do:

  1. Change access for SIS A.

  2. Unsubscribe from SpEd vendor A.

Prior Configuration New Configuration

  • SIS A - Write on all student data - except SpEd. No year conditions set.

    • Existing key/secret

  • SpEd vendor A - Write on SpEd. No year conditions set.

    • Existing key/secret

  • 2 keys/secrets

  • SIS A - modified subscription - Write on all student data. No year conditions set.

    • New key/secret for modified subscription

  • 1 key/secret
Adding a discipline vendor for the new school year onward

What to do:

  1. End current subscription with SIS A in the previous school year.

  2. Add new/modified subscription - without discipline - with SIS A for the new school year.

  3. Add Discipline vendor of your choice for the new school year.

Prior Configuration New Configuration

  • SIS A - Write on all student data. No year conditions set.

    • Existing key/secret

  • 1 key/secret

  • SIS A - Write on all student data. No access after the previous school year.

    • Existing key/secret

  • SIS A - Modified subscription - Write on all data - except Discipline. Read Only prior to the new school year.

    • New key/secret for modified subscription

  • Discipline vendor A - Write on discipline data. Read Only prior to the new school year.

    • New key/secret for new subscription

  • 3 keys/secrets
Adding a discipline vendor for all years

What to do:

  1. Change access for SIS A.

  2. Add Discipline vendor A of your choice.

Prior Configuration New Configuration

  • SIS A - Write on all student data. No year conditions set.

  • 1 key/secret

  • SIS A - Write on all student data - except discipline.

    • New key/secret for modified subscription

  • Discipline vendor A - Write on discipline data. No year conditions set.

    • New key/secret for new subscription

  • 2 keys/secrets
Removing a discipline vendor for the new school year onward

What to do:

  1. End Discipline Vendor 1 in the previous school year.

  2. End current SIS A subscription in the previous school year.

  3. Add new/modified SIS A subscription for all data for the new school year.

Prior Configuration New Configuration

  • SIS A - Write on all student data - except Discipline. No year conditions set.

    • Existing key/secret

  • Discipline vendor A - Write on discipline data. No year conditions set.

    • Existing key/secret

  • 2 keys/secrets

  • SIS A - Write on all student data - except discipline. No access after the previous school year.

    • Existing key/secret

  • SIS A - Write on all data. Read Only prior to the previous school year.

    • New key/secret for modified subscription

  • Discipline vendor A - Write on all discipline data. No access after the previous school year.

    • Existing key/secret

  • 3 keys/secrets
Removing a discipline vendor for all years

What to do:

  1. Change existing subscription for SIS A.

  2. Unsubscribe from Discipline vendor A.

Prior Configuration New Configuration

  • SIS A - Write on all student data - except Discipline. No year conditions set.

    • Existing key/secret

  • Discipline vendor A - Write on discipline data. No year conditions set.

    • Existing key/secret

  • 2 keys/secrets

  • SIS A - Modified subscription - Write on all student data. No year conditions set.

    • New key/secret for modified subscription

  • 1 key/secret
Adding a discipline vendor for the new school year when I had a new SpEd vendor that started in the previous school year

What to do:

  1. End current SIS A subscription in previous school year.

  2. Add new/modified subscription without SpEd, without discipline for SIS A for the new school year.

  3. Add Discipline vendor A of your choice for the new school year.

Prior Configuration New Configuration

  • SIS A - Write on all student data. No access once previous school year has ended/new school year & new subscription has begun.

    • Existing key/secret

  • SIS A - Write on all student data - except SpEd. Read Only prior to the previous school year.

    • Existing key/secret

  • SpEd vendor A - Write on SpEd. Read Only prior to the previous school year.

    • Existing key/secret

  • 3 keys/secrets

  • SIS A - Write on all student data. No access once previous school year has ended/new school year & new subscription has begun. "No access after [YEAR - 1]". In other words, if the subscription begins with 2024, YEAR - 1 would be 2023, thus "No access after 2023".

    • Null key/secret

  • SIS A - Write on all student data - except SpEd. Read Only prior to the previous school year. No access after the previous school year.

    • Null key/secret

  • SIS A - Write on all student data - except SpEd and Discipline. Read Only prior to the new school year.

    • New key/secret for modified subscription

  • SpEd vendor A - Write on SpEd data. Read Only prior to the previous school year.

    • New key/secret for modified subscription

  • Discipline vendor A - Write on Discipline data. Read Only prior to the new school year.

    • New key/secret for new subscription

  • 3 keys/secret

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Canceling a Vendor Subscription

The Ed-Fi Credential application allows schools and district administrators to cancel their vendor subscription anytime.  Please note that if you unsubscribe a vendor, the vendor will no longer have access to send data to WISE applications.

To cancel your active vendor subscription (5 steps):

1. Log into WISEhome using your WAMS ID or a district or agency email

2. In WISEhome, go to the Ed-Fi Credential application.

log in

3. Under the Vendor Subscription tab, locate the row for the vendor you wish to cancel (you may have more than one vendor/product), then click the Unsubscribe button on the far right column.

cancel

4. A new message appears confirming the cancellation, along with a reminder that you are removing the vendor authorization for your education agency.

5. Click Confirm

confirm

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