Google / iCal Calendar Integration

Foxbright supports iCal Feeds available with Google Calendars and most 3^rd party calendaring systems to be added to the website and use the Foxbright calendar display options. The Foxbright CMS will import and sync events from the 3rd party calendar to the Foxbright system. The calendars will automatically re-sync periodically so that new events and changes to events will be updated.

3rd party calendar systems such as Google, Office 365 or ScheduleStar integrate with the Foxbright CMS seamlessly. Other calendar systems using the iCal format should work if the 3rd party system exports the iCal data correctly. If a calendar has trouble syncing, contact support@foxbright.com with the iCal feed for diagnostics.

Skip to adding an iCal calendar to the Foxbright CMS

Once the iCal calendars have been added to the system, they can be added to website pages.

Retrieving the Google iCal Address / URL

1. Login to Google Calendars.
2. Click the dots to the right of the calendar that is being added to the Foxbright CMS.
3. Choose Settings and Sharing. Note: Only calendar owners or those with permissions can access the sharing options for Google calendars.
   
4. Scroll down to the Integrate Calendars area. Copy the Secret address in iCal format link. The public address link will also work, if the calendar is set to public.
   

Add a New iCal Calendar in Foxbright

1. From the Foxbright CMS Admin Panel, click Calendars in the side menu. The Calendar Event List will be displayed.
2. Click the List Calendars button to navigate to the calendars list page.
3. From the Calendars List, click the Add Calendar button to add a new calendar.
4. Enter the Calendar Name
5. Select External iCal Feed for the Calendar Type. An additional tab will appear titled Sync Options.
   
6. In the Sync Options tab, paste the iCal Feed URL (from the step above, if using Google)
   Note: The Test iCal Sync URL button runs a test to verify the iCal feed. The system will also display an error if the calendar is saved and an issue with the feed is found. Contact Foxbright Support for diagnostics if the feed is producing an error. 
7. Set the Sync Frequency to how often the calendar should be re-synced. Daily or Hourly are the most common selections.
8. The Permissions tab allows giving other users the ability to manage this calendar, however, for iCal calendars this access is limited since events are added in the 3rd party system.
9. Click the Save button. The system will read the events and create a copy of the events in Foxbright.
   Note: Events pulled from an iCal feed can not be edited in the Foxbright CMS - they must be managed in the 3rd party system. If the goal is converting iCal events to internal Foxbright Calendar events so they can be managed in the Foxbright CMS, see generating an iCal import file.

Viewing iCal Events

Verify the iCal events have imported properly by following these steps:

1. Click the gear icon next to the newly created iCal clanedar and choose List Events. The Calendars external events should be displayed.
2. Alternatively, click the Calendar option in the side menu of the admin panel. Filter the events to the specific calendar by selecting the calendar name. Contact Foxbright Support if the events are not in the Calendar Event List. 

Managing and Manual Syncing iCal Calendars

If you need your calendar to be updated immediately, you can manually re-sync your events. 

1. Click the Calendars option from the admin penal side menu.
2. Click the List Calendars button.
3. Click the gear icon next to a calendar. For iCal calendars, the following options are available:
   1. • Edit - Allows changing the calendar title, iCal feed link, or sync frequency.
      • Events - Will navigate to the calendar events list, filtered to events for the selected calendar.
      • Sync External Events - Will re-sync the events for the selected calendar manually. This is helpful if events are added to the 3rd party calendar and will pull updated events into the Foxbright system immediately instead of waiting for the scheduled sync frequency.
      • Export Events - Supports exporting the calendar events in a .CSV or iCal (.ICS) file.

Manually Syncing Multiple Calendars

1. From the Calendars List page, all iCal calendars will have a checkbox next to them.
2. Select the checkbox next to each calendar that should be synced. Clicking the checkbox at the top of the column will select all of the iCal calendars.
3. Click the Go button next the the Sync External Events tab at the bottom of the list. All selected calendars will be re-synced.