Questions to ask before FileMaker AI.
Ask these before anyone connects a model to FileMaker. A useful consultant can answer them for one workflow. iRusty is Russell Haney’s practice in Brunswick, Georgia. The answers below are the standard this site publishes. They are not a client result and they are not a certification.
Start with the record, not the model
FileMaker stays the system of record. The model drafts from fields you named. If the consultant cannot point at those fields, the answer is not grounded.
Separate a draft from a write
A draft in a queue is not a change. A change happens when a person approves it and a limited account writes it. Those are different steps and should be priced and scoped as such.
Ask about the Data API directly
The Data API is a door for an authorized account. The model should not hold the server credentials or call that door on its own. A script or a small service reads, the person reviews, then a write is allowed.
Ask when they will refuse
Rescue comes first when the file is unstable. AI is the wrong tool when nobody can review, when the request is to replace FileMaker, or when the facts are not in the file.
Common questions
What is a good first question?
What is the one FileMaker problem, and which fields will the model be allowed to read? If those cannot be named, there is no integration yet.
Should the model write to FileMaker by itself?
No. A person should accept, edit, or skip the draft. Write-back comes after that decision. A draft-only queue is a valid place to stop.
What if the consultant leads with a chatbot?
Ask where the source fields and the review step are. A chat window with no trail is not FileMaker AI integration as this site describes it.
What should the answers sound like?
Short on purpose. If a proposal cannot answer a row, it is not ready to touch production.
| Ask | What a careful answer includes |
|---|---|
| Which FileMaker problem is this for? | One report, script, layout, import, approval, or intake. Not “add AI.” |
| Which fields may be read? | A named list. Not the whole table, and not fields the workflow does not need. |
| Who reviews the draft? | A person who can accept, edit, or skip it. Not the model. |
| What is allowed to change? | The specific fields a limited account may write after approval, or nothing. |
| Where does the draft live before that? | In a review queue with the source fields, not on the business record. |
| How would a write happen? | A FileMaker script or the Data API, using a limited account, after the person decides. |
| What must I refuse to email? | Passwords, production files, and protected records. |
| When will you say AI is the wrong tool? | Unclear backups, no reviewer, a request to replace FileMaker, or facts that are not in the file. |
More of the same boundary is on the FileMaker AI integration page. If the file itself is the problem, start with FileMaker rescue.
Start with the problem in front of you.
Get a fixed-price $500 Rescue Diagnostic, or book a free 20-minute call.
Call (912) 736-3477 · Email russellhaney@irusty.com
Send the problem, not passwords or production files.
After delivery, keep it healthy with a monthly care plan.