Export to CSV

Overview

App data can be exported to a .csv file. The file will have the App Fields as column headers and then each row represents one Record in the App. It will also export the Record ID as the first column and a reference to the appropriate Parent hierarchy in the second column if the Record is a child Record.

• CSV Export File Structure
• Running An Export To CSV
• Accessing Your CSV Export
• Troubleshooting & Tips

CSV Export File Structure

• [ID]: The unique identifier assigned to the Record by Softools in the form of a GUID.
• [Hierarchy]: Identifies the parent Record to which a child Record is linked. It is blank when the Record is not linked to a parent.
• Column Headers: The identifiers of the Fields in the App.
• Rows: Each row represents one Record in the App.

Understanding the [Hierarchy] Value

The [Hierarchy] value uses the following format:

ParentAppID|ParentRecordID

For example:

Project|6aaaa3352443411f50aa4567

In this example, Project is the Parent App ID and 6aaaa3352443411f50aa4567 is the Softools Record ID of the parent Record.

The [Hierarchy] column can be used when importing Records directly into a child App to preserve, change or remove parent relationships. See Importing Records via .CSV for details of how the value is processed during an import.

Fields may be exported across multiple columns depending on the Field Type. For example, a Selection Field will have its stored value in the SelectionField column. A second column named SelectionField_Text contains the friendly value displayed to Users in the Selection Options.

Running An Export To CSV

Step 1: Navigate to a Table Report and then select the records that you would like to Export. Clicking on the box next to the first Column Header will switch the Report into Record Multi-Select Mode. You can then either click all the records that you would like to include in the Export. If the export needs all the Records in the current filter then clicking on the box next to the first Column Header again will select all records.

Step 2: Once you have selected the Records that you would like to export, select the Export feature from the Record feature menu. 

Step 3: This will open an export module where you can choose the type of export that you would like. Select 'File (csv)' as the Export Type and then Confirm to run the Export. There are dialogue options available to make the CSV export more refined.

First optionally define a Filename an ensure that the Export Type is CSV. 

• Filename: Adding a friendly Filename here will save you time if you would need to rename it later.
• Export Type: Here we need to ensure that File (CSV) is selected. This will be set by default

Next the Show CSV Export Options toggle will allow you to give the correct regional context for the CSV.

• Country: Selecting the correct language for the import is important for a few reasons. Different languages use different character sets. Whilst most languages use the UTF-8 character set, others such as some European countries use ISO-8859-1. Selecting country will also make sure that characters such as accented characters are correctly encoded for the Export.
• Field Separator Character: By default, the Field separator character will be based on the country selected however you can override this to the desired delimiter. If the wrong delimiter is selected then the file could be read as all data appearing to be in one column as opposed to being separated into Field headed columns of data. This will mean the data cannot be imported correctly into the App. The most common two separators are comma which is standard in most English speaking countries whereas a semicolon is common in European countries where commas are used as decimal points. Tab and Pipe separated files are often used when there are many commas or semicolons within the data file.

Then we can refine the amount of data to Export based on whether we want to see all Fields or a subset of them.

• Report Fields Only: If this option is selected then the Field columns in the .csv file will match the Fields in the Table Report that you exported the data from. If the option is not selected then all Fields will be exported alphabetically.

• Exclude Read Only Fields: Commonly Exports are run to edit data. With this option enabled it will refine the Fields in the CSV to only include data that you can edit via an import into the App. Fields with Expressions, Backing Fields, Read Only Fields and Lookup Fields, will not be included in the export.

Accessing Your CSV Export

Exports will appear in the notification bell. Click on the notifications icon and select the download option to access your CSV file.

If you have desktop notifications enabled then you will receive notifications on the progress of your export. Once the notification shows as "Completed" there will be a download option within the notification with a button to 'Click to Download' - Dependant on browser, notifications are usually shown as toasties in the corner of the window.

Note: Exported CSV Files will be stored and available for download of further copies for 1 year. After this time period the exported CSV is purged. If you require the Export to be available beyond 1 year, please make sure you have saved a copy in a more permanent database.

Troubleshooting & Tips

Exports are recorded in Export Summaries in the Settings area. You can access your exports from here with the option to download past exports.

When selecting all Records to Export, it will take your current filter into consideration and only export all records that match the current filter criteria.

CSVs can be affected by your device system settings for handling CSV files. If your CSV exports all data into the first column of the file or if there are unexpected results then consult our CSV Troubleshooting Document.

Be prepared that the software you open your CSV in may affect the values such as removing leading zeros from numbers or it may be limited in its ability to handle special characters. Keep an eye out for this and choose your CSV loader appropriately to avoid issues, particularly if reimporting the data into your App.