Data file rules and troubleshooting

Commerce

Studio

Capture

Data files can be tricky beasts to navigate. This article provides key things to remember when creating your next file.

We've created a sample data file for you to compare against your own or edit and use for yourself.

First things first:

• Do your image file names match the names in your file name column? These are case sensitive.
• Remove any empty columns.
• Remove columns that are not required, e.g. the gallery name is not required when there is a subject name in use.

Data File Rule Basics

IMPORTANT: No symbols allowed such as & $ % @ *

• Email column should have a blank space if no email, do not fill with something like N/A or xxxx
• The data file headers should all use the correct formats, here are examples of appropriate headers - you do not need all these headers if they are not relevant to your data. These are case sensitive and space sensitive.
  • Gallery
  • Password
  • First Name
  • Last Name
  • Subject Tags
  • Email
  • Image File
  • Image Tags
  • Country
  • State
  • Street 1
  • Street 2
  • Suburb
  • Postcode
  • Phone
  • P1 First Name
  • P1 Email
  • P1 Phone
  • P2 First Name
  • P2 Email
  • P2 Phone
• The Image file path must be exactly shown as the folders and images themselves (photo examples below). If images have been synced with an incorrect naming structure then the data file must be renamed to match.

IMPORTANT: The image file path and name should only use letters and numbers. If special characters are needed in the file name please limit these to only: . _ -

• No empty columns can be present in the data file.

Classic Error: Duplicated Subjects and Galleries

When importing an updated CSV file the system matches using three sets of criteria:

1. 1. First name
   2. Last name
   3. Password

If any of this data is missing or does not match exactly, then the system will create duplicate records and aggressively complicate a process that you don't want to any more confusing!

When you are going to add a field (i.e. email address) into a session, it is best to use the original CSV file and update that file by adding an Email column. Make sure the data files are exact matches for existing data when it comes to First name, Last name, and Password. If done correctly, the data should not duplicate within a session.

• Hierarchy rules apply when using multiple email fields. Always use in the following consecutive order: 

1. 1. Email
   2. P1 Email
   3. P2 Email

Bulk Import Templates

• Client import list: bulk import clients
• Import Sessions: bulk session creation

First Stage Duration

• Whole numbers only to express total minutes.
• Leave blank if not applicable, do not use the value 0
• Do not use commas or periods to separate thousands.
  • Examples:
    - One Day: 1440
    - One Week: 10080
    - 30 Day Month: 43200
    - 31 Day Month: 44640
    

First Stage End At

• Leave blank if not applicable or if the first stage is not automatically completed.
• Must be expressed in the following format: yyyy-mm-dd hh:mm:ss
• If specified, the file should must also specify Session Timezone.
  

Session Timezone

Using this wiki link, find the following table under the column TZ database name

Here is a list of timezones commonly used by our customers:

America/Chicago
America/Dawson_Creek
America/Denver
America/Detroit
America/Edmonton
America/Indiana/Indianapolis
America/Los_Angeles
America/Mexico_City
America/New_York
America/Phoenix
America/Toronto
Asia/Bangkok
Asia/Ho_Chi_Minh
Australia/Adelaide
Australia/Brisbane
Australia/Darwin
Australia/Melbourne
Australia/Perth
Australia/Sydney
Europe/Paris
Pacific/Auckland