---
title: How do you Set Up the Foundation Integration (On-Premise)?
description: Connect SmartBarrel to an on-premise Foundation SQL Server, including the firewall rule and IP whitelist your IT team needs to set up first.
---

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# How do you Set Up the Foundation Integration (On-Premise)?

## Learn how to connect SmartBarrel to a Foundation database running on your own server.

Foundation is the source of truth for your workers, jobs, sub jobs, and cost codes. Once the integration is connected, SmartBarrel imports that data from Foundation so your crews can clock in on the right jobs and cost codes without anyone setting them up by hand. Approved time can then be sent back to Foundation for your payroll team to review.

Foundation stores your data in a SQL Server database rather than offering a web service, so SmartBarrel connects to that database directly using a user you create in Foundation.

### Is this the right article for you?

This article is for companies running Foundation **on their own server**, where the Foundation database sits on hardware inside your own network. This setup needs work from your IT team before the connection will succeed, so read the next section before you start.

If your Foundation database is hosted by Foundation Software, follow [How do you Set Up the Foundation Integration (Foundation Hosted)?](https://ask.smartbarrel.io/how-do-you-setup-foundation-hosted?hsLang=en) instead. That setup needs no network changes at all.

Not sure which one you are? The server address is the quickest clue. An address like **192.168.1.50** or **10.0.0.20**, or a name ending in **.local**, means the database is on a server inside your own network, so this is the right article. A public hostname from Foundation Software means you are hosted. If you are still unsure, ask your IT team or your Foundation representative before you start.

### Before you start: what your IT team needs to do

SmartBarrel runs in the cloud, and Foundation has no web service for us to call, so we connect to your SQL Server the same way any other remote tool would. If that server sits inside your network, there has to be a path in. Nothing else in this article will work until that path exists.

Your IT team needs to do two things:

1. **Make the SQL Server reachable from outside your network** at a public hostname or IP address. This is normally a port forwarding rule on your firewall, pointed at the SQL Server.
2. **Whitelist SmartBarrel's IP address, 32.188.245.161**, as the only source allowed to use that rule.

The second step is what keeps this safe. Rather than exposing your database to the internet, the rule is scoped to a single address, so SmartBarrel is the only thing that can reach it.

There is nothing to install on your network. SmartBarrel does not use an agent, a connector service, or any software running on your side.

### Information to send your IT team

You can forward this section as-is.

- **What is needed:** inbound TCP access to the SQL Server instance hosting the Foundation database, from one external address.
- **Source IP to allow:** 32.188.245.161. This is the only address SmartBarrel connects from, so the rule can be restricted to it.
- **Destination port:** the port the SQL Server instance listens on. The standard default is 1433, but use whichever port is actually configured.
- **What we need back:** the public hostname or IP address to use, and the port.
- **Direction:** inbound only. SmartBarrel initiates the connection and your network does not need to reach out to us.
- **Software to install:** none. There is no agent or on-premise connector.
- **Account access:** a dedicated SQL Server login is used, not a Windows domain account. See Step 1 below.

If your public IP address changes from time to time, give SmartBarrel a hostname rather than an IP so the connection keeps working when it changes.

### What you'll need

- A dedicated **SmartBarrel user** in your Foundation database (created in Step 1 below)
- A **public hostname or IP address** for the SQL Server, with SmartBarrel's IP **32.188.245.161** whitelisted on it
- Your Foundation connection details: **Server**, **Port**, **Database**, **User**, and **Password**
- **Write access to pending timecards** for that user, if you want SmartBarrel to send time back to Foundation
- SmartBarrel admin access to the **Integrations** page

### Step 1: Create a SmartBarrel user in Foundation

Create a dedicated SQL Server user for the integration, or ask Foundation Software to create one for you. Using a separate user keeps the connection easy to identify and easy to revoke later.

1. **Recommended username:** SmartBarrel. Keeping this consistent makes support faster.
2. Choose a password for the user.
3. Grant that user **write permissions to the pending timecards table**. This is what allows SmartBarrel to send approved time back to Foundation. If you only want to import data and never export time, this step is optional.

### Step 2: Have your IT team open the path in

Send your IT team the section above. Once they are finished, you should have:

- A **public hostname or IP address** for the SQL Server
- The **port** the firewall rule forwards
- Confirmation that **32.188.245.161** is whitelisted on that rule

Do not continue until you have all three. Without them the connection in Step 4 will fail, and the error message will point you at your password rather than at the real cause.

### Step 3: Gather your connection details

You will need all five:

- **Server**: the *public* hostname or IP address from Step 2. An internal address such as 192.168.1.50 or a name ending in .local will not work here.
- **Port**: the port from Step 2. Usually 1433.
- **Database**: the name of your Foundation database.
- **User**: the SQL Server user from Step 1.
- **Password**: the password for that user.

### Step 4: Connect SmartBarrel to Foundation

1. In SmartBarrel, click **Integrations** in the left-hand sidebar.
2. Find the **Foundation** card and click **Connect**.
3. Enter your **Server**, **Port**, **Database**, **User**, and **Password**.
4. Click **Connect**.

SmartBarrel runs a quick test against your database when you click Connect. If something is not right, you can correct it in the same window and try again without starting over.

### ![](https://ask.smartbarrel.io/hs-fs/hubfs/image-png-May-15-2026-12-12-17-1974-AM.png?width=670&height=608&name=image-png-May-15-2026-12-12-17-1974-AM.png)

### What you can sync

Once you are connected, you can import:

- **Workers** (see: Can you Sync Workers with Foundation?)
- **Jobs as projects** (see: How do you Sync Projects with Foundation?)
- **Sub jobs** (see: How do you Map Sub-jobs with Foundation?)
- **Cost codes** (see: How do you Sync Cost Codes with Foundation?)

Approved time can also be sent from SmartBarrel back into Foundation's pending timecards, where your payroll team reviews and posts it. Nothing is posted in Foundation automatically.

### Troubleshooting

Most on-premise problems are network problems, not password problems. SmartBarrel cannot tell the difference between a wrong password and a server it cannot reach, so both show the same message. If the credentials are definitely correct, check the network first.

| Problem | Cause | Fix |
| --- | --- | --- |
| "Foundation Auth failed, check credentials" but the user and password are correct | SmartBarrel could not reach your database at all. This is the most common on-premise problem. | Before changing the password, ask your IT team to confirm the firewall rule is in place and that **32.188.245.161** is whitelisted on it. |
| The connection times out | The Server is an internal address, such as 192.168.x.x, 10.x.x.x, or a name ending in .local, or the firewall rule does not exist yet | Use the public hostname or IP address from Step 2, not the address you use inside the office. |
| The connection is refused | The port is wrong, or the firewall rule forwards a different port | Confirm the port your SQL Server listens on, usually 1433, and that the rule forwards that same port. |
| It works from inside the office but not from SmartBarrel | The server is reachable internally but not externally | The firewall rule is missing or incomplete. Ask your IT team to confirm the rule is active and that SmartBarrel's IP is allowed. |
| It worked and then stopped | Your public IP address changed, the firewall rule was removed, or the SQL Server password was changed | Check the firewall rule first. If your public IP changes from time to time, ask your IT team to give SmartBarrel a hostname instead. |
| The connection works but timecards will not export | The SmartBarrel user does not have write access to pending timecards | Grant that permission for your SmartBarrel user, or ask Foundation Software to. |
| Nothing appears after connecting | No projects have been imported yet | Import the projects you want to track. Sub jobs come in under their parent project. |
| A job is missing from the list | The job is closed in Foundation | Only active jobs are available to map. A job already linked to a SmartBarrel project is not affected when it closes later. |

### FAQ

**What IP address do we whitelist?**

32.188.245.161. That is the only address SmartBarrel connects from, so your IT team can restrict the rule to it.

**Why can't SmartBarrel connect over our VPN?**

The connection needs a reachable public address for your SQL Server, and a VPN does not provide one. If a VPN is genuinely the only option available to you, contact SmartBarrel support so we can look at it with you.

**Do we have to install anything on our server or network?**

No. There is no agent and no on-premise connector. The only change is the firewall rule.

**How narrow can we make the firewall rule?**

Very narrow. It can be limited to one source address (32.188.245.161), one destination (your SQL Server), and one port. The database user it reaches is a dedicated one you create, so you control exactly what it can see.

**What can SmartBarrel do with the user we create?**

SmartBarrel reads your employees, jobs, sub jobs, and cost codes. If you turn on timecard export, it also writes approved time into Foundation's pending timecards for your team to review and post. It does not post anything in Foundation on its own.

**Our public IP address changes. Will that break the connection?**

It will, if you gave us an IP address. Ask your IT team to provide a hostname instead, so the connection follows the change.

**We have more than one Foundation company. Can we sync all of them?**

Each SmartBarrel connection uses one Foundation company. If you need several, contact SmartBarrel support and we will walk through the options with you.

**What happens if we change the SQL Server password?**

The connection will start failing. Reconnect from the Foundation card on the Integrations page and enter the new password.

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