Using Data Import Templates

Data Import Templates enable you to do a batch import of data into FlexNet Operations. You can add new entities or modify existing ones. This approach may be preferred if there is a lot of data to be added or modified.

Templates for entitlements, accounts and users, and products can be downloaded and populated with data that can be imported into a FlexNet Operations database using the import function (see the task described under Importing Entities). Features of the templates include

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Color coded column headers based on transaction type, account, user, entitlement, line item, product and feature.

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Column headings of required fields for a transaction are in bold.

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Column heading comments containing information about the data expected for the column and any other column dependencies associated with this column.

Any Custom Attribute fields you have configured will be included in the templates. Unique Custom Attributes and License Model Attributes and Policies utilize the following heading name conventions:

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License Model Attribute: LM[<LicenseModelName>|<AttributeName>]

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License Model Policy Attribute: PO[<LicenseModelName>|<AttributeName>|<PolicyAbbreviation]

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Custom Attributes: CA[<Entity>|<AttributeName>] where Entity = USER, PROD, ENT, or LINE

Downloading a Data Import Template

To download a Data Import Template, perform the following steps.

To download a Data Import Template

Click Administer > Import Data Objects.

Click the Data Import Templates tab.

Click the appropriate Download link for one of the following template types:

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Product Packaging Template—Products, features, and other data associated with product packaging.

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Entitlement Management Template—Entitlements, maintenance line items, bulk entitlements, web register keys and other data associated with entitlements.

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Download Packaging Template—Download packages, files and other data associated with download packages.

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Account and User Template—Accounts and users.

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Updates Template—Updates.

Save the .xlt file

Editing and Saving a Data Import Template

To edit and save a Data Import Template, perform the following steps.

Editing and saving a Data Import Template

Open the .xlt file in Excel (or another compatible spreadsheet application).

Fill in the spreadsheet columns as appropriate.

Important:CreateUpdate transactions can blank existing data. If you upload a file containing transactions of these types, FlexNet Operations assumes any columns you include contain the desired value. If a column contains no values, then when FlexNet Operations updates the records, any existing data is lost. If you do not want to provide values in a column, then remove the column from the spreadsheet.

When working with spreadsheets, follow these guidelines:

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Do not change heading names. If they are changed, the transactions are processed but values in the columns whose names have been changed are not assigned to the corresponding fields in the database.

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Only columns with a heading in bold text are required.

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Hover over the heading to see comments on how to populate the field and to determine if there is a dependency requiring other columns to be completed. If there is more text in the comment that can be viewed by hovering over the heading, right click the heading and select Edit Comment to open the comment box and use the arrow keys to scroll up or down.

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For Users, see Time Zone Settings for correct construct of the time zone attribute.

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For Accounts, self-registered accounts cannot be imported into the Producer Portal. Also, the following restrictions apply to default accounts:

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MYORG: Only the account name can be changed. No other updates are permitted and this account cannot be deleted.

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PORTAL_ORG_UNIT: This account cannot be updated or deleted.

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UNKNOWN_ORG_UNIT: This account cannot be updated or deleted.

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Products and Entitlements contain multi-valued attributes such as features and line items. To have multiple features and line items, they cannot be set in a single row but must be added on separate rows repeating any identifier fields for the product or entitlement. Data that is only needed once for the transaction type is taken from the first row and data that can have multiple values is aggregated from the succeeding rows, which is why you cannot change a field using multiple rows of data for the same product or entitlement in the same Data Import Template file.

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If you want to change a field for products or entitlements, upload it in a separate Data Import Template file.

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When importing a large number of Web Register Keys, it is recommended that you limit each job to a maximum of 1000 keys to optimize performance. If necessary, split the task into multiple jobs to stay within the recommended limit.

After all changes are made, save the file as a Unicode .txt file.