Importing data

This topic describes how to use the Import/Export tool to import information from another application/file to DOVICO Timesheet. To learn how to export, click here.

Because the Import/Export tool brings data into the DOVICO Timesheet database, it should only be used by those individuals experienced in database structures.

Prerequisites:

Before importing data into DOVICO Timesheet, a data file must be created and properly formatted (required fields, default values, etc). See Import Table Field Description for details and sample files.
Before importing records, any items referenced in the record must already exist in the database. Example: if you are importing time records then the projects, tasks, employees referenced in the time records must exist in the database.

To import data into DOVICO Timesheet:

Start DOVICO Timesheet.
From DOVICO Timesheet, select Import/Export from the Integration section of the side navigation bar, select the Import/Export tab and click the link labeled "Click on this link to run the Import/Export tool."
Select Run/Open, or save and open the file (TimesheetApplicationLauncher.exe).
From the Import/Export tool, select File, New Template from the menu (or click the New button $images\add.gif$ on the toolbar).
Select Import Template and click OK.

Select the DOVICO Timesheet Table where information will be imported. The following tables are available for importing:

ACTEXP: To import expenses
CLIENT: To import clients
EMPLOYEE: To import employees
PROJECT: To import projects
RATE: To import rates
REGION: To import regions
TASK: To import tasks
TRANS: To import time entries

Click the Browse button to locate the file to be imported. Select the file and click Open. This file should contain the properly formatted data to be imported into DOVICO Timesheet.
Select the format to be used from the drop-down list. If the format type requires additional information, enter the information in the box to the right. For example, if you select the CSV format, you will need to enter the type of character used to separate each value. If you select XML, each record needs a generic name, which the XML parser can recognize. If you cannot remember the format used in the source file, select Actions, Preview Source Data from the menu to display the file content. If the box is grayed out, DOVICO Timesheet will generate default information and no additional information is required.
If the import file has column headings, check the First row is column headings checkbox. Please note that this option may be grayed out for some formats (i.e. XML).
Click the Manage Links button.
If the format type for your source file is Fixed Width, a Column Widths box is displayed. To add a column, click and drag the ruler. To remove a column, right-click the column in the ruler. Click OK when done.

The Manage Column Links box will be displayed, which is used to map source columns to columns in the destination table. For example, if you had a column in the source file called ClientName, you could map it to the NAME column of the CLIENT table. To map columns, click one item in the Source Columns table and one item in the Destination Columns table then click the Link button. This will add a link entry in the Links Table below.

To remove a link, select it from the list and click the Remove Link button.

Once you are satisfied that all links are set correctly, click OK and the links will be displayed in the import template.
(Optional) Select File, Description in the menu to add a description for this import template.
To save the template, click the Save button $images\save.gif$ or select Save or Save as from the File menu.
To import information to DOVICO Timesheet, select Actions, Import from the menu.

Once the template is saved, you can import the information anytime. Simply open the template (select File, Open Template) and import.
Use Import Recovery (from DOVICO Timesheet) to list or undo import operations.

If you are importing data to the TRANS table or to the ACTEXP table, a pop-up box will be displayed asking how to map certain IDs.

Use Unique names: This option performs matches using the object names. In order for this option to work, all names must be unique.
Use Outside field: This option uses the table’s OUTSIDE field to match the IDs of the items being imported.

Tip: For details concerning the database tables (database schema), visit the developers section of our website at http://www.dovico.com/developer.html.