Importing Data

In the Database Browser, you can import data from Excel or comma-separated value (CSV) files. You can append the data to your form database, or update existing records with matching data. You can also save the profile for future use.

On This Page

• CSV Files
• Excel Files
• Import Mode
• Importing Data

CSV Files

If you are importing a comma-separated value file, please take the following into consideration:

• The first row of the file is the header row, and must containing column names.

• Each row after the first row must contain data values which correspond to the column headings in the header row.

• The character which separates the column headings and all data values must be identical. Often, it is a comma, but it can be a semicolon, for example.

• Any data values that must be text strings (literals) must have a text qualifier character before and after the string. The double quote (") or single quote (') are used most commonly.

Excel Files

If you are importing an Excel file, please take the following into consideration:

• Most Excel files contain multiple worksheets. You can only import data from a single worksheet.

• During the import process, you'll need to enter the name of the worksheet.

Import Mode

When you setup the import, you'll need to choose the import mode:

• Insert New Rows - All rows from the import file will append to the database; that is, each import row will become a new record in the database.

• Update Existing Data & Insert New Rows - If matches are found with records that already exist in the database, the import process will update those records. For rows that find no match in the database, the process will append new rows to the database.

• Update Existing Data Only - In this mode, only updates to existing database records will take place. The import process will disregard any rows in the import file that find no match in the database.

Importing Data

Follow these steps to import data:

1. Click the Import Data menu item in the top toolbar of the Database Browser.

2. In the first step of the wizard, click the Next button.

3. Now you need to choose a comma-separated value (CSV) or Excel (.xls or .xlsx) file. Click the Browse button to locate the file on your local disk, then click Next.

4. If you chose a file having a CSV format, then next step of the wizard will prompt you to enter a Delimiter, which is the character that separates each value, and a Text Qualifier, which is the character that will denote text strings. (NOTE: When importing a CSV file, the file must contain the column names in the first row. This is a standard format for CSV files.)

5. If you've chosen an Excel file, then you'll need to enter the specific Worksheet Name from which you want to import data.

6. Click Next to move on to the Import Settings step of the wizard. Here you will choose the Import Mode, which we explain in detail in the Import Mode section above.

7. If you don't want any duplications as a result of the import, then check the Do not Insert Duplicate Rows box.

8. Click Next to see a preview of the data as it will be when it imports to the database.

9. If you want to go back and make adjustments, then click the Make Changes button. Otherwise, click Confirm to start the import.