Import from Excel

You can either create a new record or edit an already existing record using the Import from Excel feature. This can be done in two ways:

1. Create a new record using the data from the imported Excel file: Press the Import from Excel button on the Data page menu.
2. Update an existing record with the data from the imported Excel file: Press the Import from Excel button under the Actions column next to that record. Note that this will replace any saved data bby adding a new version of the record (the previous version can still be accessed from Record History) with those from the uploaded file. This also means that saved records can be replaced with null values if no data was entered into those named ranges in the uploaded Excel file. If a control has “Allow Null Values” disabled, a default value will be populated instead (e.g. false for bool or 0 for numbers).

The easiest way to use this feature is by using either the underlying workbook, or a trimmed down version of it as the template.

On the Import data from Excel file menu, the application that the import process will apply to is shown under the Name of the Application field. When using the import button next to a record for updating it, the ID of the database record will be shown in the Record ID field (when adding a new record using this feature, the Record ID field will not be available). The Data File field accepts only a single *.xlsx file. When the file upload is complete, press Import from Excel to continue. If the named ranges in the uploaded workbook match those in the target application’s underlying Excel file, the value of the imported file’s named ranges will be used to generate a new record or update the selected record. For one-to-many tables, the table named range must match the naming of the table named range in the target Excel file. If the table named range in the Excel file does not match the size of the table named range associated with the application, the system will attempt to fit the data into the table format wherever possible, inserting from top-left to bottom-right, until it runs out of space in the sizing of the target named range. For example, if the transaction has the named range as 5×5 and the Excel file’s table is 6×10, the system will attempt to import the first 5 columns and first 5 rows, skipping the header as necessary.

Import From Excel (As New Record) functionality is tied to the Add New Record user role functionality. If the users can both add new records and use the Import data from Excel file features (their user role has both AddNewRecord and ImportDataFromExcel), they will be able to use the button on top of the Data page to create new records using an Excel file (item 2 in the beginning of this article). The Import data from Excel file button next to each record is not affected by the ability to add new records (item 1 in the beginning of this article).