Introduction

The purpose of this article is to answer common questions about the Subcontracting module (LSPs) in XTM Cloud. and to help resolve issues you might experience with it.

Questions and answers

How can the LSP apply their own setting for the contractor’s project?

All the work subcontracted to the LSPs will use the settings set by the project’s owner (contractor). The LSP cannot apply their own project settings.

Is there a way for the LSP to add a workflow step from the contractor’s project and assign it back to the contractor, or another LSP?

It is possible to assign a workflow step to another LSP. The LSP that assigns the step just needs to have another LSP. To enable the step to be sent back to the contractor, that contractor needs to have the We receive tasks from this LSP option selected in the settings for this particular LSP [Users → LSPs → (select an LSP) → LSP Editor → Connection → LSP type]:

Bear in mind that, when the workflow step is assigned back to the contractor, XTM Cloud automatically creates a second project on the contractor’s instance, with a similar project name and unique project ID. The workflow step assigned to the contractor shall be performed in this project.

Can the LSP have access to the terminology resources of the contractor’s client (contractor’s contractor)?

Currently, this is not possible. Only an LSP that has a direct connection to a particular contractor can have access to that contractor’s terminology resources. Even then, they can only do so if that is specified in the LSP’s access rights, in the Terminology sections, on the contractor side [Users → LSPs → (select an LSP) → LSP Editor → Access rights].

Sample LSP chain connection: Main contractor → LSP1 → LSP2.

• The contractor can have access to LSP1’s terminology resources, and vice versa, but not to LSP2’s terminology resources.

• LSP2 can have access to LSP1’s terminology resources, and vice versa, but not to the main contractor’s terminology resources.

Currently, due to security considerations, there are no plans to modify the existing behavior. Altering this setup could potentially compromise security. It is important to note that the contractor might not be aware that their translation content is handled via a third-party agency (LSP2) and they might not consent to any configuration changes that might impact their terminology resources.

Additionally, it is crucial to recognize that the contractor is exclusively linked to one LSP and their access permissions might vary depending on the policies of that specific LSP. The LSP might or might not grant access to certain functionalities.

Can the licenses for LSP1 and LSP2 be added together? For example, if there was a project for which it is estimated that 30 concurrent users would be necessary.

Yes, this is possible. The LSPs can use their licenses to work on the contractor’s project. The workflow for such a project would be quite complex if all Linguists were to work on the project at once, but it is achievable.

Why are Linguists sometimes asked to choose between Internal and Group 2 tasks, and what is the difference?

The panel in question displays the licenses that can be used. The Internal license contains tasks coming from internal projects, to which a particular Linguist is assigned, whereas Group license contains tasks coming from subcontracted projects (the ones to which an LSP has been assigned), for the LSP, to which a particular Linguist is also assigned.

How can we filter the subcontracted projects that have been started and assigned, and the ones that have not been started?

To do this,, you can use the Advanced search tab in the XTM Cloud UI (select Projects → Project list → Advanced search).

• In the Customers dropdown, select the relevant customer for which subcontracted projects are created.

• In the Workflow status dropdown, select relevant workflow statuses,

  • Select the Match all jobs option. However, bear in mind that if the project has more than one target language/job, this filter setting will also filter the projects with all other statuses (including jobs which have not been started).

• In the Linguists employed dropdown, select your LSP(s).

• Finally, in the Workflow steps assigned to chosen linguists dropdown, select the workflow steps to which the selected LSPs have been assigned.

The Terminology and other tabs have disappeared. What should I do?

This problem is related to licensing. It might be the case that the contractor’s license has expired or that the number of users are trying to log in than there are licenses for. Bear in mind that if the contractor allows you to use, for example, 5 of their licenses, this means that only 5 users are allowed to log in at the same time. The 6th and other users will not be able to view the tabs.

To resolve the issue, you should wait a short while for someone to log out and then clean the browser cookies and cache (for details, see Clearing your web browser's cache, cookies, and history). If the problem arises because the contractor’s license has expired, contact the contractor directly.

Why is the LSP invitation not working?

If the contractor’s connection with the LSP is not working, one of the reasons might be that a new LSP has been added incorrectly. It is important to ensure that all fields necessary for establishing a connection between them have been filled correctly. For instructions, see Setting up a connection with XTM contractor in the official XTM Cloud manual.

If the contractor has added a new LSP, but the LSP is still inactive, it is likely that this LSP has not completed the process on their end. They have not created any LSP users and have not exchanged connection details with the contractor. These details are contained in the LSP connection settings [select Users → LSPs → (select an LSP) → LSP Editor → Connection → Your connection information to send to the LSP]. Use the Send e-mail button to send your connection details to that LSP.

Once both sides have specified all the information correctly, and clicked the Save button, a green message should be displayed, confirming that a two-way connection has been established.

If the connection details are missing or incorrect, and a user clicks the Save button, a yellow message should be displayed, informing them:

Why is the LSP unable to see the project?

If the project is not visible to the assigned LSP, the following issues need to be checked:

1. The LSP, on their side, must ensure that the We receive tasks from this LSP option is enabled in their settings [Users → LSPs → (select an LSP) → LSP Editor → Connection → LSP type]:

2. The LSP must have access to the Contractor’s XTM customer for whom the project has been created [Users → LSPs → (select an LSP) → LSP Editor → Access rights → Customers].

3. The LSP must be set up with the correct language combination, for which the project has been created [Users → LSPs → (select an LSP) → LSP Editor → Languages].

If the LSP still cannot access the project, check if the contractor has at least one user with the Linguist role and a language combination that matches the project, and can be assigned to this project.

How can I permit an LSP to download non-analyzable files in my project?

1. Set and assign a workflow for non-analyzable files in the global settings. To do so, select Configuration → Settings → Workflow → Workflow options.

2. Select the Workflow for non-analyzable files option (administrative privileges required!).

3. Do not forget to save the changes afterwards.

4. Once this option has been enabled, you can select Set workflow for non-analyzable files, in the Workflow section, in existing XTM projects:

5. You can also select the Workflow for non-analysable files option during project creation:

6. Once you assign non-analysable files to the LSP, they can download source ZIP files containing non-analysable files. Also, if your LSP would like to download a target file containing non-analysable files, advise them to select the Non-analysable option, in the “All files" download should include selection, on their side (Configuration → Settings → Files → File generation).

Why is it not possible to start the project on the LSP side when the LSP has been assigned to the first step in the project’s workflow?

If a yellow border is displayed in the project’s workflow on the LSP (contractor) side, when the LSP has been assigned to the first workflow step, this indicates that the project has simply not been started on the contractor’s side.

The solution to this issue is to contact the LSP and ask them to start the project by selecting the Start button on their side. Otherwise, the project will only be accessible in Read-only mode.

Why is my project stuck on the Automatic assignment of LSP subcontractors to workflow steps is in progress message once I have saved the assignment?

If the project is stuck at the stage of assigning the LSP from another server, the most common cause of this error is that the LSP's server is not available (for example, if the server is undergoing scheduled maintenance).

If an attempt to assign the LSP to a particular workflow step, from an unavailable server, fails, you can select Project Editor → Workflow to display a message containing details, and the workflow for this project will be blocked.

If it is not possible to assign the LSP to a step, an email informing about the failure to do so is sent to the PM (Project Manager) who performed the action, or to the project’s PM/ PW (Project Watcher) if the action was done automatically.

Only one email is sent per project! For instance, if there are two workflow steps, and the LSP is assigned for both, only one email will be sent.

1. First email

This is the mail that is sent when the attempt to assign the LSP to a project's workflow step is unsuccessful. The email informs the recipient that XTM Cloud will try to reassign this workflow step to the LSP until it succeeds. The email also contains a link to the Workflow section for the particular project, in XTM Cloud. (Select Project Editor → Workflow to display the Workflow section.)

2. Second email

   This email is sent when all of the attempts made to assign the LSP, by XTM Cloud, fail. The email informs a PM/PW that the reassignment action has failed. It also contains a link to the Project Editor → Workflow section for the particular project in XTM Cloud. (Select Project Editor → Workflow to display the Workflow section.)

XTM Cloud will attempt to reassign this LSP after a certain time, so if the issue was caused by maintenance work on the LSP's server, the LSP will be assigned to the project automatically after server maintenance is completed and the server is up and running.

If the number of auto-reassignment attempts (approximately 9 hours) is exceeded, the workflow will be unlocked but an error message will be displayed, as shown below:

This message informs the recipient that LSP assignment has failed. This might be due to the server being permanently offline or the LSP account no longer existing.

The error message in question might stem from some technical issues on the XTM Cloud side (e.g. blocked database transactions), in which should not hesitate to contact the XTM International Support team, to address the issue.

My project has disappeared. Can you tell me why?

One of the reasons that you cannot see the project might be that the contractor has reassigned or deleted it. It might be also possible for the contractor to change the name of the project. In any case, do not hesitate to contact the contractor for more information.

ICE matches are locked. Can you help?

The subcontractor inherits the setting of the Allow editing of ICE segments option directly from the contractor.

Therefore, if the contractor has it enabled, it will also be enabled on the LSP side. Analogically, if it is disabled, it will also be disabled on the LSP side.

However, after the project is created in XTM Cloud, the change of this setting is not passed automatically on to the LSP side. If the contractor enables it after the project is created, the LSP also needs to enable it on their side to be able to unlock the ICE-matched segments.

Some of the Subcontractor’s linguists cannot log into the XTM platform. What might be the reason for this?

In the case of subcontracted-only accounts, the root cause of this issue might be that the Contractor has reserved most of his licenses for internal use, which leaves less available licenses for LSPs. In other words, Licenses shared amongst LSPs might have simply run out, causing problems on your side.

To prevent this for happening in the future, your Contractor would have to access Configuration → Settings → System → Licenses → Licenses, and change the value of the licenses allocated to internal users to a smaller number than there is currently.

Why am I getting redirected to the Users tab instead of the Projects tab that is not visible upon logging into the XTM platform?

When you are utilizing a free subcontractor account, sometimes you might get redirected to the Users tab instead of the Projects tab that is not visible upon logging into the XTM platform.

The root cause of that issue is that no license is available for you at the moment, since you are borrowing licenses from the Contractor that assigns tasks to you, in which case the Projects tab is not displayed at all in the XTM Cloud UI. There can be two situations in which there is no license available for you:

• No actual task is assigned to you at the moment.

• The user limit has been exceeded on the Contractor's side, leaving no license available for you. In this case, you need to contact your Contractor and ask them to increase the number of licenses allocated to you specifically (Configuration → Settings → System → Licenses).

However, if you are a single-user account and claim that you do have projects assigned to you, the issue might stem from the fact that you are logged into the XTM platform elsewhere – probably on some other device or even another tab in your Internet browser! As a result, any subsequent login attempts will not grant you access to the license.

As a troubleshooting measure, kindly ensure that you log out from all your devices and browsers. Remember, your Contractor provides a license for a single user, meaning that multiple active sessions are not permitted simultaneously.