Attribute data can been edited in bulk using CSV or Excel (XLSX) data files.
Uploading attribute data
Once you have a properly configured CSV or XLSX formatted file:
- Use the Tools button; select Upload attribute data.
- Select or drag the CSV or XLSX file into the upload window.
- Once your file has been selected, click Save to begin the upload.
- Once the file has finished processing, you will receive a notification.
- Refresh your browser to see the new data.
This feature can only update attributes that already exist in the application. It cannot be used to create new attributes.
Attribute formatting using CSV and XLSX
Attributes must be formatted specifically according to their custom or system type. Use the examples below to format your file, as any formatting errors will either produce unexpected results or cause updates to fail.
Custom attributes
Text
Text-type attributes are simple one-line text fields. These values may be any alpha-numerical or non-roman character, but line breaks are not supported.
In the example below:
- assetId corresponds to the asset ID of each asset being updated.
- Dog name is the name of the text attribute being updated; the subsequent row values correspond to the name of the dog for each asset.
CSV editing
If you are editing a CSV file directly, assetId and Dog name would be bookended by double quotation marks with a comma between the two fields. Each subsequent asset ID/attribute value row should maintain this same format and order, e.g.
Text area
Text area attributes are larger text fields used to display longer text values. These values may be any alpha-numerical or non-roman character. Line breaks are supported when creating your file with Google Sheets or Excel.
In the example below:
- assetId corresponds to the asset ID of each asset being updated.
- Description is the name of the text area attribute being updated; the subsequent row values correspond to the description applied to each asset.
CSV editing
If you are editing a CSV file directly, assetId and Description would be bookended by double quotation marks, with a comma between the two fields. Each subsequent asset ID/attribute value row should maintain this same format and order, e.g.
Number
Number type attributes are restricted to numerical inputs. Any other input type will cause the update for that field to fail.
In the example below:
- assetId corresponds to the asset ID of each asset being updated.
- Weight is the name of the number attribute being updated.
Before using numbered values with decimals, make sure the attribute you are updating is configured to support decimal values or the value will not update. When in doubt, contact your site's administrator.
CSV editing
When updating a CSV file directly, assetId and Weight would be bookended by double quotation marks, with a comma between the two fields. Each subsequent asset ID/attribute value row should maintain this same format and order, e.g.
Pulldown
Attributes created as pulldowns have predefined values, only one of which can be applied to an attribute at a time. Note that all values are case-sensitive and must match the NetX value option exactly.
In the example below:
- assetId corresponds to the asset ID of each asset being updated.
- Dog age is the name of the pulldown attribute being updated; the subsequent row values correspond exactly to a pulldown value option for that attribute.
If a pulldown attribute has more than one value applied to the same field, the update for that field will fail.
CSV editing
When updating a CSV file directly, assetId and Dog age would be bookended by double quotation marks, with a comma between the two fields. Each subsequent asset ID/attribute value row should maintain this same format and order, e.g.
If a pulldown value contains a double quote or comma, that value must be bracketed by an additional pair of double quotation marks, e.g. "Quoth the raven, "Nevermore"".
Tag
Tag attributes have predefined value options that allow for multiple value selections. Each value must be separated by a comma, with no spaces in between content on either side.
- assetId corresponds to the asset ID of each asset being updated.
- Dog breeds is the name of the tag attribute being updated; the subsequent row values correspond exactly to the tag value options for that attribute.
- Each breed value is separated by a comma inside its field with no spaces on either side.
CSV editing
When updating a CSV file directly, assetId and Dog breeds would be bookended by double quotation marks, with a comma between the two fields. Each subsequent asset ID/attribute value row should maintain this same format and order with commas between values for the attribute Dog breeds, e.g.
If a tag value contains a double quote or comma, that value must be bracketed by an additional pair of double quotation marks, e.g. "Quoth the raven, "Nevermore"".
Date
Attributes created as date types will strictly accept date values, though there are a variety of accepted formats that can be used. Only one date value may be applied to an attribute at a time.
In the example below:
- assetId corresponds to the asset ID of each asset being updated.
- Adoption date is the name of the date attribute being updated; the subsequent row values correspond to the date the dog was adopted.
- The date is formatted as yyyy-mm-dd; though others are supported, yyyy-mm-dd is highly recommended and is the format displayed in NetX.
CSV editing
When updating a CSV file directly, assetId and Adoption date would be bookended by double quotation marks with a comma between the two fields. Each subsequent asset ID/attribute value row should maintain this same format and order with commas between values for the attribute Adoption date, e.g.
Accepted formats
NetX accepts the following date formats in addition to the recommended yyyy-mm-dd format. Note that any format which includes timestamps will be accepted, but not stored in the database or visible in the application. The value will not update if the cell's date formatting is invalid.
yyyyMMdd dd-MM-yyyy yyyy-MM-dd MM/dd/yyyy yyyy/MM/dd dd MMM yyyy dd MMMM yyyy yyyyMMddHHmm yyyyMMdd HHmm dd-MM-yyyy HH:mm yyyy-MM-dd HH:mm MM/dd/yyyy HH:mm yyyy/MM/dd HH:mm dd MMM yyyy HH:mm dd MMMM yyyy HH:mm yyyyMMddHHmmss yyyyMMdd HHmmss dd-MM-yyyy HH:mm:ss yyyy-MM-dd HH:mm:ss MM/dd/yyyy HH:mm:ss yyyy/MM/dd HH:mm:ss dd MMM yyyy HH:mm:ss dd MMMM yyyy HH:mm:ss
System attributes
file
The original filename can be updated, but the extension must stay the same. Use the assetId attribute as the key when changing a filename. You need to be at least a manager to modify this attribute.
- assetId column contains the asset IDs of each asset being updated.
- file column contains the new filenames for each asset referenced in the assetId column. A file extension must be included or the update will fail.
CSV editing
If you are editing a CSV file directly, assetId and file would be bookended by double quotation marks, with a comma between the two fields. Each subsequent asset ID/file row should maintain this same format and order, e.g.
name
The display name of the asset. The name attribute does not include a file extension, and is distinct from the actual filename of your asset (the file attribute, see above). You must be at least a manager to modify this attribute.
- assetId column contains the asset IDs of each asset being updated.
- name column contains the new asset names for each asset referenced in the assetId column.
CSV editing
If you are editing a CSV file directly, assetId and name would be bookended by double quotation marks, with a comma between the two fields. Each subsequent asset ID/name row should maintain this same format and order, e.g.
hidden
The hidden attribute governs whether the asset appears in search results for any user who is not an administrator. The assets will still be visible in the following contexts:
- The relationships tab when linked
- Collections
- Direct URL access
- Share links
- Reviews
The hidden attribute has two values: 0 and 1. If the value is 1, the asset will be hidden; if the value is 0, the asset will be shown in the gallery and search results for all permitted users. You must be at least a producer to modify this attribute.
- assetId corresponds to the asset ID of each asset being updated.
- hidden has a value of 1 for assets 787, 791, and 794, meaning that they are hidden from non-administrator searches and galleries even if they have explicit permission to the asset.
- Asset 846 has a hidden value of 0 and is fully visible in all searches and gallery contexts.
CSV editing
If you are editing a CSV file directly, assetId and hidden would be bookended by double quotation marks, with a comma between the two fields. Each subsequent asset ID/hidden row should maintain this same format and order, e.g.
visible
The visible attribute determines whether or not users can see an asset in any context. Administrators may view and perform actions on these assets as usual.
The visible attribute has two values: 0 and 1. If the value for an asset is 1, it will be visible to any permitted users as usual. If the value is 0 the asset will be invisible to all users below the administrator level, even if they are permitted to the assets' folders. You must be at least an Administrator to modify this attribute, and the property below must have a value of true.
| Property | Description |
|---|---|
share.metadata.visibilityEnabled |
If this property's value is true, an administrator can change an asset's visibility status. Value options: true / false Requires restart? No |
- assetId corresponds to the asset ID of each asset being updated.
- visible has a value of 0 for assets 787, 791, and 794, meaning that they are completely hidden from non-administrator users, regardless of any permissions they may have applied to them.
- Asset 846 has a value of 1 and is visible to any user with permission to the asset.
CSV editing
If you are editing a CSV file directly, assetId and visible would be bookended by double quotation marks, with a comma between the two fields. Each subsequent asset ID/hidden row should maintain this same format and order, e.g.
pathAdd
Manager-level users and above can organize assets with the header key pathAdd. Updated assets are added to the folder named at the end of the file path, in addition to any existing folder locations.
- assetId corresponds to the asset ID of each asset being updated.
- pathAdd identifies the folder path. Each folder should be the full path to the desired folder from the top level of the application, delimited with a / (forward slash).
-
Duplicate filenames will prevent assets from being added to the destination folder.
CSV editing
If you are editing a CSV file directly, assetId and pathAdd would be bookended by double quotation marks, with a comma between the two fields. Each subsequent asset ID/pathAdd row should maintain this same format and order, e.g.
pathMove
Manager-level users and above can organize assets using an Excel file with the header pathMove. Unlike pathAdd, this action removes assets from any pre-existing folders and moves them to the destination folder specified.
- assetId corresponds to the asset ID of each asset being updated.
- pathMove identifies the folder path. Each folder should be the full path to the desired folder from the top level of the application, delimited with a / (forward slash).
- Duplicate filenames will prevent assets from being moved to the destination folder.
CSV editing
If you are editing a CSV file directly, assetId and pathMove would be bookended by double quotation marks, with a comma between the two fields. Each subsequent asset ID/pathMove row should maintain this same format and order, e.g.
Clearing existing values
Attribute data upload can be used to clear existing values, resulting in an empty or blank field.
- assetId corresponds to the asset ID of each asset being updated.
- Description is the name of the attribute being emptied of values.
CSV editing
If you are editing a CSV file directly, assetId and Description should be escaped with double quotes, with a comma between the two fields. Each subsequent assetId/Description row should maintain this same format and order, e.g.
Advanced settings
Adding values to tag attributes
You can allow users to add new values to existing tag attributes on an attribute-by-attribute basis by administrators when creating custom tag attributes; simply select Allow users to create values while configuring the tag. This means if a value is not a preexisting value the update will not fail, but this may result in misspellings or near-matches to existing value options.
Google Sheets is a quick and easy way to edit attribute data before updating assets in NetX without having to manually configure a CSV file in a text editor or use Microsoft's Excel software.
Google Sheets formatting
Before configuring your data file, you must know two things about the attributes you are updating:
- The exact name of each attribute you wish to update values for. This name is case sensitive.
- The attribute's type. The type of attribute determines the formatting and type of values accepted by NetX for that attribute while configuring your data file.
Tip: simplify your file creation by exporting the attributes for the desired assets, then importing that file to Google Sheets. If the attribute Asset ID is exported at the top of your attribute list, it will be used as the first column and thus the key value when you re-upload the edited file.
To properly format a Sheet before uploading it into NetX:
- The first column header attribute must be assetId or file. This is how the uploaded attribute data is matched to the correct assets. Using assetId is highly recommended as any variation from the exact file value in NetX will cause the update to that asset to fail. Additionally, if there are multiple assets with identical file attribute values you may encounter unexpected results.
- Each subsequent column header must correspond to the exact name of the attribute being updated including spelling, casing, or any special characters.
- Under the header columns, each row should contain the values being applied to that row's asset, corresponding to the column header's attribute. These values must be formatted according to their respective attribute type.
- Tag attribute types accept multiple values, which must be separated by commas.
- Both CSV and XLSX file types are supported by NetX, meaning you can download your tab as either file format. If your Sheet contains multiple tabs, you must download your desired attribute value tab individually prior to upload.
Google Sheets Troubleshooting
If you are experiencing issues uploading your data file or with the subsequent attribute value changes, check that you:
- Spelled all header attributes correctly including casing and any special characters or spaces.
- Matched all pulldown and tag values options exactly including casing, characters, and spaces. This restriction may not apply to certain tag attributes which allow for dynamically adding attribute values; when in doubt, check with your site's administrator.
- Attributes that accept multiple values are properly delimited by commas.
- Values corresponding to number type attributes are strictly numerical. Note there may be constraints on decimal values for a particular attribute; when in doubt, check with your site's administrator.
NetX accepts CSV formatted files when updating attribute data.
CSV formatting
Before configuring your data file, you must know two things about the attributes you are updating:
- The exact name of each attribute you wish to update values for. This name is case-sensitive.
- The attribute's type. The type of attribute determines the formatting and type of values accepted by NetX for that attribute while configuring your data file.
Tip: Simplify your file creation by exporting the attributes for the desired assets as a CSV file, then editing the subsequent file locally. If the attribute Asset ID is exported at the top of your attribute list, it will be used as the first column and thus the key value when you re-upload the edited file.
To properly format a CSV file:
- The first column header attribute must be assetId or file. This is how the uploaded attribute data is matched to the correct assets. Using assetId is highly recommended as any variation from the exact file value in NetX will cause the update to that asset to fail. Additionally, if there are multiple assets with identical file attribute values you may encounter unexpected results.
- Each subsequent column header must correspond to the exact name of the attribute being updated including spelling, casing, or any special characters. These attribute names should be bookended with double quotation marks.
- Each row value thereafter should contain the values being applied to that row's asset, corresponding to the column header's attribute. These values must be formatted according to their respective attribute type.
- Tag attribute types accept multiple values, which must be separated by commas. These values must be bookended with double quotes on either end of the value list.
- If the attribute is not the last column of your data file, a comma must follow the second quotation mark before the next column's attribute value throughout the entire row, regardless of whether or not the space between commas only contains empty double quotation marks.
- CSV files should not have any spaces between double quotation marks or the comma separators between attributes or values.
CSV tips and tricks
- If one of your values is a pulldown or tag attribute type and a value contains double quotation marks, an additional pair of quotation marks is required surrounding that attribute value. If a double quote is needed at the of the series of values, a third double quote is necessary, e.g. "Quoth the raven, "Nevermore""".
- Pulldown, and tag attribute types with values that contain commas must also bookend those values with double quotes in addition to surrounding all values for that attribute with double quotes, e.g. "Quoth the raven, "Nevermore"".
- Line breaks for text area attributes are not supported when using a self-generated CSV file. To add attribute values with line breaks, use an Excel file or download a CSV file directly from an app such as Google Sheets.
CSV troubleshooting
If you are experiencing issues uploading your data file or seeing unexpected attribute value results after uploading your file, here are a few things to check:
- Spelled all header attributes correctly including casing and any special characters or spaces.
- Matched all pulldown and tag values options exactly including casing, characters, and spaces. This restriction may not apply to certain tag attributes which allow for dynamically adding attribute values; when in doubt, check with your site's administrator.
- Values corresponding to number type attributes are strictly numerical. Note there may be constraints on decimal values for a particular attribute; when in doubt, check with your site's administrator.
- Any empty attribute fields must still be accounted for with a set of empty double quotation marks in between two commas delimiting the empty field from the attribute fields on its left and right, e.g. "attribute A","","attribute B". If you are experiencing issues updating your attribute data with a CSV file, check that all row and column fields match exactly as a perfect grid.
- All fields are properly bracketed with double quotation marks and delimited by commas with no spaces between quotation marks or commas.
- If you have issues uploading a CSV file into NetX, check that the CSV file is saved with the current encoding (UTF-8). This is especially important for non-English characters. MS Excel is known to save CSV files in different encoding standards, depending on the OS of the machine where it is installed. For this reason, we recommend you use Excel to create .xlsx files for upload into NetX, or create a CSV using other programs that will ensure the file is set to the correct encoding. Open Office and Google Sheets are good alternatives.
NetX accepts Excel (XLSX extension) formatted files when updating attribute data.
Excel formatting
Before configuring your data file, you must know two things about the attributes you are updating:
- The exact name of each attribute you wish to update values for. This name is case-sensitive.
- The attribute's type. The type of attribute determines the formatting and type of values accepted by NetX for that attribute while configuring your data file.
Tip: Simplify your file creation by exporting the attributes for the desired assets as an XLSX file, then editing the subsequent file locally. If the attribute Asset ID is exported at the top of your attribute list, it will be used as the first column and thus the key value when you re-upload the edited file.
To properly format an Excel file before uploading it into NetX:
- The first column header attribute must be assetId or file. This is how the uploaded attribute data is matched to the correct assets. Using assetId is highly recommended as any variation from the exact file value in NetX will cause the update to that asset to fail. Additionally, if there are multiple assets with identical file attribute values you may encounter unexpected results.
- Each subsequent column header must correspond to the exact name of the attribute being updated including spelling, casing, or any special characters.
- Under the header columns, each row should contain the values being applied to that row's asset, corresponding to the column header's attribute. These values must be formatted according to their respective attribute type.
- Any empty rows or columns should be removed before the file is uploaded to NetX.
- The Excel file is limited to a single sheet (or tab). If an Excel file contains multiple sheets, only the first sheet will be imported.
Excel tips and tricks
- Sometimes in Excel, empty cells in the middle of a row can cause the other values in that row to shift left. Updating attributes with blank values is therefore not recommended if using Excel. If you would like to clear any values already applied to an asset, use a CSV file with empty row values or use an app such as Google Sheets.
- For the most reliable results, Excel spreadsheets should be formatted as plain text.
Excel troubleshooting
If you are experiencing issues trying to upload your data file or seeing attribute value changes after upload, here are a few things to check:
- Spelled all header attributes correctly including casing and any special characters or spaces.
- Matched all pulldown and tag values options exactly including casing, characters, and spaces. This restriction may not apply to certain tag attributes which allow for dynamically adding attribute values; when in doubt, check with your site's administrator.
- Values corresponding to number type attributes are strictly numerical. Note there may be constraints on decimal values for a particular attribute; when in doubt, check with your site's administrator.
- Applications such as Apple's Numbers may cause unexpected results while uploading attribute data. If you are experiencing issues while attempting to update assets, you may need to use an alternate software or a CSV file.