• The Excel file must be saved in the MS Excel 97-2003 workbook.
• The first column of each sheet for import must contain the asset type.
• The column header should be "AssetType".
• The column data should be the system name for the asset type.
• The remaining columns should be fields to be imported.
• The column header should be the system name of the field.
• The column data should be the data for that object.
• Sheets are processed in alphabetical order.

Therefore, you can:

• Add columns that are not included in the template, such as custom fields.
• Remove columns that you do not intend to import.
• Import Assets that do not have a sheet on the template, such as members.

The Meta API can be used to discover the system names for both assets and fields.  For more information see: Getting Started with the API

Handling Ambiguous Data

Themes or projects with ambiguous names can be prefaced with their parent theme or project.  For example, if you had a theme called "Administration" defined in Project A and Project B, you can specify "Project A\Administration" in the parent (themes) column for an item.

Common Import Errors

Items are only imported if they all pass validation.  If any item in the file does not pass the validation, then a descriptive error message(s) is returned to the user.  Usually the error message will point you to the row and column that is having a problem. 

A very common error is trying to import invalid data into a dropdown field.  For example, a story status of "Ready for Testing" will cause the import to fail unless that status has been added as list type value for story status.

Another common error is trying to import a file and receiving a message that there is no data to import.  If you have set up your sheets using the requirements above, the excel file may have some formatting that is confusing the import tool.  Copying the data contained within the spreadsheet into a new speadsheet will solve this problem.