Updating your iSAMS Integration to OAuth 2.0 (Existing Customers)

Audience: This article applies to existing SchoolsBuddy customers currently using iSAMS integration. 

iSAMS is upgrading all Batch APIs to OAuth 2.0—a modern industry standard that offers enhanced data security, improved connection reliability, and better access control for your school’s data.

To ensure your data sync continues without interruption during upcoming iSAMS brownout periods, please complete the steps below before October 14, 2026.

Part 1: Generate your OAuth 2.0 Client Secret in iSAMS

1. Log in to iSAMS as an Administrator and open the Control Panel.
2. Select API Services Manager.
3. Select Manage Batch API Keys.
4. Locate your existing Batch API Key for SchoolsBuddy, and click the gold key icon on the right-hand side.
   
5. In the pop-up window asking if you want to create a new secret for this API key, click Yes.
6. The Client ID and Client Secret will appear. 
   ⚠️ Important: Do not close this window or browser tab until you have completed Part 2!

Part 2: Add your credentials to SchoolsBuddy

Log in to SchoolsBuddy as a Super Admin.

1. Navigate to Settings 
2. Getting Started > Data Integration
3. Verify that the Import Enabled toggle is set to ON (Green).

4. Confirm that your school's iSAMS Hosting URL is accurate.

5. Scroll to the API Keys section (all active data entities should already be enabled).

6. Verify your Client ID (this field should already be pre-filled).

7. Paste the Client Secret you generated in Part 1 (Step 6) into the corresponding field.
   

8. Parent import filters: These filters were configured to your school's preferences during initial onboarding. Leave these settings as-is unless your school's import requirements have changed.

9. Staff Import Filters: Your school's email domain has already been added here. Do not make changes to this section unless updating your staff domain.
10. End-of-Year Processing: You do not need to make any changes here now. When it is time for your annual academic rollover, please refer to our [iSAMS End-of-Year Processing Guide].
11. Scroll to the bottom of the page and click Save Changes.

Your iSAMS integration is now updated and ready for the upcoming OAuth 2.0 migration!

🚀 New Feature: Manual Trigger iSAMS Import

You can now manually trigger an on-demand data import from iSAMS directly within SchoolsBuddy! If you’ve made urgent changes in iSAMS and need them reflected in SchoolsBuddy immediately:

1. Go to Settings > Getting Started > Data Integration.

2. Click the Run Import button at the bottom of the page.

⏱️ Important Notes on Manual Imports:

• Rate Limit: The Run Import button can only be triggered once every 5 minutes.

• Processing Time: Depending on your school’s size and dataset, an import can take 10 to 20 minutes to complete.

• iSAMS Feed Refresh Delay: For updates to appear in SchoolsBuddy, changes must first propagate to the iSAMS API feeds. Updating data directly in your iSAMS instance does not mean it updates instantly in the feeds for SchoolsBuddy to capture. Please allow time for iSAMS to refresh its feeds before triggering an import.

• Pro Tip: You can shorten the iSAMS feeds update frequency by shortening the API Key Cache Expiry. (Default: 24 hours).