How do I get all contacts syncing when using Handheld Contact API?

This article will be for customers who have started using Handheld Contact API and are experiencing contact syncing issues. Handheld Contact API uses the Act! Web API technology in order to collect information to sync with the mobile device. In order to sync with contacts, Handheld Contact API uses Groups. These are the same Groups that exist in Act!.

Note: Handheld Contact API can only sync with one (1) Group from Act!. We recommend configuring this Group before you proceed with the initial Handheld Contact setup.

Here are the steps needed to create this Group for Handheld Contact API:

1. Open Act!. In the menu bar at the top, click on Lookup then choose 'Groups' then select 'All Groups'.
2. In the menu bar click on 'Groups' and choose 'New Group'.
3. Enter a Name for the Group. Suggestion would be to include 'Handheld Contact' or 'HHC' into the text to make it obvious what its for.
4. Within the Groups view, there will be a tab for 'Contacts'.
5. Below the Contacts tab, there will be a button for 'Add/Remove Contacts...'. Click on this to add contacts to this Group.
6. In the pop up window, under Dynamic members, click on the 'Edit Criteria' button.
7. The following drop-down options should be selected to sync ALL contacts:
   1. Type: Contact, Field Name: Create Date; Operator: Contains Data; Value: None.
   2. Press 'Add to list' button.
   3. Press 'Preview' button to see total contact count.
   4. If the contact count matches all Act! contacts, press OK to save.
   5. Press OK again to save the dynamic members.
8. Once you add the contacts to the Group, choose Save.
9. Note: If the total number of Contacts in this Group is about 100,000; there will be performance issues on the device side.

After the Group is created with all the contacts, you can update Handheld Contact to sync with this same Group.

iOS (iPhone/iPad):

1. Open Handheld Contact API.
2. From the Dashboard view, open the Menu (bottom right) and press 'Settings'.
3. Choose 'Act! Setting'. On the pop up warning, choose 'Continue'.
4. Tap on 'Select group'.
5. Press 'Refresh' button in top right to view the new Group added to Act!.
6. Use the Search tool to find the new Group you created above. Check the box to the left. Note: Making this change will cause a new download all data procedure.
7. Press 'Back' option in top left corner.
8. Press 'Settings' option in top left corner.
9. Press 'Dashboard' option in top left corner.
10. Open Menu and choose 'Synchronization'.
11. Press 'SYNC NOW' button. Choose 'Download All' on pop up message.

Android:

1. Open Handheld Contact API.
2. From the Dashboard view, open the Menu (top left) and press 'Settings'.
3. Choose 'General'.
4. Tap on 'Select group'.
5. Press 'Refresh' button in lower left corner to view the new Group added to Act!.
6. Use Search tool at the top to find the new Group you created above. Tap the Group and press 'Save' button. Note: Making this change will cause a new download all procedure.
7. On the pop up that appears about saving changes, press 'Yes'.
8. Return to the Dashboard view and open Menu, choose 'Sync status' and press sync icon in top banner.

Note: If you create a new Group to use with Handheld Contact API on a remote database, you must sync that database first for these changes to be present in the Master database. Handheld Contact API accesses the Groups on the Master database found from the main server. If you need help with managing Groups, please reference the video link below, reference http://help.act.com, or consult with your Act! Certified Partner.

For more information on managing Groups in Act!, please see the following links below:

How to create and manage Groups in Act!
Feature Tour: Groups (Video)