About

The following resource is designed to help agencies set up APX’s SmartMAP application  to  receive call information from dispatch. If you need help with anything in the following documentation, please contact us.

How does APX SmartMAP receive dispatch information?

Every APX SmartMAP instance is setup to receive call information from a dispatch center. Most modern dispatch centers use a computer-aided dispatch (CAD) system. The majority of CAD systems are able to deliver call information to external parties via one of two methods:

1. Email (SMTP)
2. Phone Number

APX SmartMAP is able to receive information from your dispatch via either method. The most common method is email (SMTP).

What is a notification email address?

As mentioned above, the most common way for dispatch centers to deliver call data to APX is via email. Each agency account within APX is assigned a notification email address. Notification email addresses are formatted in the following manner::

anywherefire@notify.cityscape-suite.com (this is an example, and not functional)

To get your notification email address, please contact APX. 

Setup

The following section outlines how dispatch messages can be setup to be sent to APX.

Formatting of Messages

There are a few standard formats that, if used, will help our servers do the best possible job of understanding and mapping your alerts. The simpler message format is called StandardA, and the more complicated version is called Cadpage.

StandardA 

The format of a StandardA message is 

NATURE;ADDRESS;CITY;DETAILS

Cadpage

The standard format that is capable of greater complexity is the Cadpage format. Cadpage uses standard NAME:VALUE pairs:

CALL: CAR CRASH

PLACE: Wendys

ADDR: 123 HUCKLEBERRY LN

CITY: BREMERTON

ID: Some identifier for this alarm (123456) 

PRI: Internal priority level (HIGH, A, 123, etc)

DATE: CAD date (10/17/2012)

TIME: CAD time (13:45:06)

MAP: Map page or number: 123-456, Page 5, etc

UNIT: UNIT1, UNIT2, etc

INFO: Notes, data, other information

Each alarm using Cadpage format should at least have a CALL and an ADDR and CITY. All other fields are optional.

Sending Dispatch Information to APX using an Email Address

The following section describes the different methods by which dispatch information can be sent to APX. 

Sending Dispatch Information to APX using SMTP

The most common method to send dispatch information to APX would be using SMTP, setting up the notification email address as a recipient within the CAD interface. Below is an example of the steps for adding an SMTP Service within a Common CAD interface. The steps for your CAD may be different. 

Adding SMTP Service

1. Select 'Paging and Dialing Setup'
2. In the Paging and Dialing Setup screen, select 'Service Provider Setup'
3. In the list of Service Providers, find one that is set up for SMTP (Select service provider in the top left box and in the bottom right, see if the SMTP tab is filled out).  Make a note of such providers
4. Return to the Vehicle Manager
5. In the Paging tab, select the vehicle category drill down for the department
6. Add a new vehicle or add an additional paging vendor to a selected vehicle - select the Service Provider identified in step 3 above, add in the APX Notification Email Address.
7. Let us know when this is done and we will keep an eye out for messages.  

Sending Dispatch Information to APX by Gmail Account Forwarding

This method can be used if your CAD setup only allows for one email to be setup as a recipient. 

Setting your forwarding address

1. Open up your Gmail account.
2. Click on the gear icon in the upper right hand corner. In the drop-down menu, select the Settings option.
3. Once the Settings page has been pulled up, select the tab that says Forwarding and POP/IMAP.
4. Select Add a forwarding address. In the window that opens, please type in the notification email address provided by APX.
5. When you have added this address, it will send a confirmation code to your APX notification email address: APX will provide this confirmation code to you, and you will need to enter this confirmation code into the Gmail settings Forwarding and POP/IMAP tab and select Verify.

You have added your forwarding address, but now need to create a filter to direct your dispatch calls to that address.

Setting the filters

1. Go to the Filters and Blocked Addresses tab in the Gmail account settings page.
2. Select Create a new filter from the bottom of the page.
3. Here you define the search criteria for your new filter. If you are forwarding a dispatch related email that is coming from a static email address, just enter that email address into the From field.
4. After entering the desired search fields, select the link in the bottom right hand corner of the screen, Create filter with this search >>.
5. This is where you specify what you want Gmail to do with the filtered messages. To forward this message, select the box for Forward it to: and then choose your APX notification email address.
6. Once you have all the options you would like selected (forwarding, labeling, deleting, etc), click Create filter.
7. This will take you back to the Filters and Blocked Addresses tab where you can view and edit these filters anytime you wish.

When a call comes in from the email address you specified, it will be forwarded on to your APX notification email address. 

Sending Dispatch Information to APX using PageGate

There are several ways to configure Pagegate to send dispatch information to APX. The easiest method is to create a new recipient and add this recipient to the desired group in Pagegate that is currently receiving messages over SMTP.

Creating a New Carrier

1. To create a new carrier for APX, open the Pagegate Admin and expand the Carrier branch. Select the option to add a carrier.
2. Name the new carrier, typically something like APX or APX SmartMAP.
3. Fill in the server information
   • Host: notify.cityscapesuite.com
   • Protocol
   • Port: 25

Example of Pagegate Setup

Creating a New Recipient

1. Scroll down in the Recipient branch in the Pagegate Admin console
2. Expand the branch
3. Create a new recipient.
4. Name the recipient after your department or follow whatever naming protocols you use. Normally, it is suggested to use something like insert-department-name here_APX or something similar.
5. Select the carrier you just created in the first step.
6. Input the unique account information. Input the complete alert email address as provided by APX. 

Getting Calls to the Recipient

Now that you have your carrier and recipient set up, you can add the recipient to whichever call groups you need inside the Pagegate interface. You should be able to add the new recipient to your station, mutual aid stations, or whatever else you need, based on your dispatch's organizational set up.

Sending Dispatch Information to APX using CFS Codes

With many CADs, setting up an APX Notification Email Address as a recipient within specific CFS Codes or Nature Codes is also an option. 

Using this method, the notification email address should be added within each required CFS Code. One or more notifying events may be able to be selected as well.