System overview

xTool is an e-invoicing platform for creating, storing, sending, and receiving documents (invoices and credit notes) in standard formats: Peppol BIS, XRechnung, Factur-X, SAP IDoc. You can send and receive via Peppol and send via email. The platform is aimed at companies and integrators: you can work through the web interface or automate processes via the API. For more on formats and channels, see Formats and Transactions.

Production and test system

Two systems are available: production and test.

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flowchart LR
    subgraph test ["Test system"]
        direction TB
        T[xtool-test.invoice-portal.de]
        TP[Test Peppol network]
        T --- TP
    end
    subgraph prod ["Production system"]
        direction TB
        P[xtool.invoice-portal.de]
        PP[Production Peppol network]
        P --- PP
    end
    test ~~~ prod

• Production system — xtool.invoice-portal.de. Connected to the production Peppol network and intended for real use (sending and receiving documents in live mode).
• Test system — xtool-test.invoice-portal.de. Connected to the test Peppol network and intended for testing integrations and scenarios without affecting real data.

Use the test system for development and verification; switch to production when you are ready for real sending and receiving.

What the platform consists of

On one side — the interaction interface: how you work with the platform (web application or REST API). On the other — the xTool platform and its conceptual parts: organisations, documents, transactions, integrations. The interface and conceptual entities are different: the first defines how you access the system, the second describes what it contains.

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flowchart TB
    subgraph L1 ["Interaction interface"]
        direction LR
        WEB[Web application] --- API[REST API]
    end
    X[xTool platform]
    subgraph L3 ["Conceptual parts of the platform"]
        direction LR
        ORG[Organisations] --- DOC[Documents] --- TRX[Transactions] --- INT[Integrations]
    end
    L1 --> X
    X --> L3

• Web application — The main interface for organisations: manage documents (inbound and outbound), organisation settings, users, API keys, integrations, notifications, and usage. See Web overview.
• REST API — For integration and automation: documents (list, get, upload, update, send, delete), format (validate, transform, convert, detect), transactions (list, get), organisations (list), auth (me), Peppol lookup, and PDF merge. See API Reference.
• Organisations — The platform is multi-tenant: each organisation has its own users, documents, API keys, and integrations. See Organisation and users.
• Documents — The core entity: an invoice or credit note with direction (inbound/outbound), format, and status. See Document model and Status lifecycle.
• Transactions — Each send or receive operation is recorded as a transaction (e.g. send.peppol, send.email, receive.peppol). See Transactions.
• Integrations — Connections to Weclapp and SevDesk; one configuration per organisation per system. See Integrations.

How it works: high-level flows

Outbound documents

Upload or create a document → update or convert the document → send via Peppol, Email, etc. → track transaction status.

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flowchart LR
    A[Upload / create<br/>document] --> B[Update /<br/>convert document]
    B --> C[Send via Peppol,<br/>Email, etc.]
    C --> D[Track transaction<br/>status]

Inbound documents (Peppol)

Partner sends a document via Peppol → xTool processes the document → an inbound document with a transaction is created → you receive a notification. For more detail, see Receive by Peppol.

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flowchart LR
    P[Partner sends<br/>document via Peppol] --> X[xTool processes<br/>document]
    X --> D[Document with<br/>transaction is created]
    D --> N[Notification]

Who uses xTool

• End users — Web application: create and send documents, view inbound documents, manage organisation settings.
• Integrators — API: automate document creation, sending, validation, and conversion.
• Administrators — Manage organisations, users, rights, API keys, and integrations.

Where to go next

• Getting started — First steps and use cases.
• API Reference — Authentication, conventions, endpoints.
• Guides — Step-by-step: setup, creating documents, sending and receiving.