> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.alumio.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Incoming configurations

> Incoming configurations bring data into Alumio from a source system.

An **Incoming configuration** is the first step of a [Route](/documentation/integrations/routes). It is responsible for getting data into Alumio. For each item it returns, Alumio creates a [Task](/documentation/integrations/tasks).

## **What an Incoming Can Do**

An Incoming configuration can pull data from a wide range of sources. The most common ones are:

* [HTTP / API](/references/http-client) connections, for example to fetch a list of orders from an external API.
* [Database](/references/database-connection) connections, to run a query against a SQL database.
* [Filesystem](/references/filesystem) connections, to read files from local storage, FTP, or cloud storage.
* [SOAP](/references/soap-client) connections, for legacy systems that expose SOAP services.

## **Transformers on the Incoming**

You can add [transformers](/references/transformer) to an Incoming configuration. They run on the data as it comes in, before any tasks are created.

Transformers are typically used to:

* Shape the data so it matches the format you want to store on the task.
* Enrich the data with values from other systems or from Alumio storage.
* Cache values that are reused later in the route.

Detailed documentation on individual transformers will be published separately. For an overview of what is available, see the [Transformers reference](/references/transformer) and the [List transformers reference](/references/transformer-step).

## **Filters on the Incoming**

Adding a [filter](/references/filter) to the Incoming transformers prevents tasks from being created for items that do not match the filter. A common example is to skip orders that have already been processed in a previous run.

## **Task Data**

After the Incoming has run and its transformers have finished, Alumio stores the resulting data on the task. This data is called the **entity data**, and it is what the Outgoing configuration receives later in the route. See [Tasks](/documentation/integrations/tasks) for the full task lifecycle.

## **Reusing an Incoming**

The same Incoming configuration can be used in multiple [routes](/documentation/integrations/routes). When it is reused, Alumio fetches the data only once and then duplicates the resulting tasks for each Route. This is useful when the same source data needs to be sent to several different destinations.