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Understanding connectors helps you choose the right setup for your business requirements.

Connectors serve as the foundation of your payment processing infrastructure by defining available capabilities for payments. They determine which payment methods, operations, and authentication options you can use for transactions.

Connector flow

From browsing available options to routing live transactions, activating a connector involves a sequence of decisions and configurations that depend on one another:

1. Review available options, browse the connector list, and capabilities.
2. Check features to ensure connectors meet your payment needs.
3. Set up the connector account and assign your first MID.
4. Configure payment routing rules.

Setting up a connector account involves steps that vary by provider. Onboarding guides cover what is required to complete configuration before going live.

1. Go to Orchestration > Connectors.
2. Find the connector ID and select it.
   The connector details page opens.
3. Navigate to the top right corner to download the connector guide.

Once a connector account is ready, you find it in the connector account list (go to Orchestration > Connector Accounts). Each connector account shows its operational status:

• Active available for routing configuration and payment processing.
• Inactive unavailable for routing configuration, but can still be used for processing.
• Archived no longer supported, and hidden from the connector account list.

Connector components

Routing configurations comprise connectors and connector accounts, both of which are essential for the payment processing infrastructure.

Connector

Each connector includes:

• AUTH
• SETTLE
• PARTIAL_SETTLE
• VOID
• REFUND
• PARTIAL_REFUND
• CHARGE

• Card
  Traditional card payments using a PAN.
• Card-on-File (CoF)
  Stored card (PAN) or digital wallet (DPAN) data.
• PSP token
  A token issued by the payment service provider (PSP) that represents the underlying stored card or digital wallet data.
• Network token
  A network (scheme) issued card identifier that replaces the sensitive PAN.
• Apple Pay
  Apple digital wallet.
• Google Pay
  Google digital wallet.
• Click to Pay
  Multi-network digital card checkout.

• 3DS
  Clarifies whether 3D Secure (3DS) is supported for payment authentication.

• Cardinal MPI
  A service for handling 3D Secure transactions.
• Solidgate MPI
  Solidgate's version of the 3D Secure protocol.
• External MPI Data
  Uses third-party authentication services for 3D Secure.
• Built-in MPI
  A built-in 3D Secure implementation.

• 3RI
  Requestor Initiated Authentication, where merchants initiate authentication without cardholder involvement.
• Data only
  Transmits only authentication data without completing the full transaction, enforcing 3DS challenge flow.

• Card verification (Auth0)
  Performs zero-amount transactions to verify card details
• Address verification service (AVS)
  Verifies the cardholder's billing address for fraud prevention purposes
• Dynamic descriptor
  Customizes the transaction description on the cardholder’s statement

• Initial payment with network token, Recurring payment with network token
  Clarify which payments can use network tokens.

• Card-on-File with PAN, Card-on-File with DPAN
  Clarify which card data type can be used for CoF processing.

• Acquirer reference number (ARN)
  A unique identifier for transactions, used by acquirers for tracking
• Mastercard merchant advice codes (MACs)
  Codes used to communicate updates or issues related to Mastercard transactions
• Scheme transaction ID (trace ID)
  A unique identifier used by card schemes for tracking transactions
• Auth code
  An authorization code issued by the bank to approve a transaction

• Require settlement currency mapping
  Indicates whether the settlement currency requires mapping
• Non-standard max settle period
  Maximum time allowed for transaction settlement, differing from the standard settlement period

Connector account

Each connector account includes:

Payment authentication and features are the same as for the connector.

Default recurring strategy

Defines how recurring payments behave on a connector account when no custom Solidgate Tokens configuration is set. By default, the strategy:

• Picks the first available payment method in this order: PSP token, then Card-on-File.
• Decides whether the customer-initiated transaction (CIT) requires 3DS.

You can override the default strategy:

• Build a cascade from the available payment methods: network token, PSP token, and Card-on-File. A network token cannot be the only method in a cascade.
• If a payment fails with the first method, the system picks the next one and retries.
• Force 3DS logic still applies. Soft decline fallback also applies, so the next attempt is sent to 3DS.

• Dynamic descriptors
  Transaction descriptions that appear on the cardholder's statement
• Enabled card brands
  Card networks supported by the connector
• Processing currencies
  Currencies in which payments can be processed
• Required fields
  Mandatory fields for payment processing in certain regions
  They must be included in the API request and may expand over time. For example, zip_code is required for payments in the United States.