Import Formatting Guide

This guide explains how to format your spreadsheet data so it imports correctly into Asset Panda Pro. Each field type has specific formatting requirements — following these guidelines ensures your data is accurate, consistent, and imported successfully.

Tip: Before importing, confirm that the values in your spreadsheet match the formats described below for each field type. Most import errors are caused by formatting mismatches.

---

Before You Begin

• Supported file types: CSV (.csv) and Excel (.xlsx)

• Header row: Your spreadsheet must include a header row with column names that match the field names in your collection. You can choose which row (1–10) contains your headers during the import process.

• Required fields: Any field marked as required in your collection must be included in your spreadsheet and have a value in every row.

• System fields: System-generated fields (such as Created Date, Modified Date, etc.) cannot be updated through imports.

• Error handling: If some rows have formatting issues, the system will still import the valid rows. You can download an error file afterward to review and fix any rows that failed.

---

Date & Time Fields

Date fields are one of the most common sources of import errors. The key thing to know is: your spreadsheet dates must match the date format configured on that specific field in your collection.

To check your field's date format, go to your collection's field configuration and look at the format setting on the date field.

Supported Date Formats

Format	Example
MM/DD/YYYY	03/15/2024
DD/MM/YYYY	15/03/2024
YYYY/MM/DD	2024/03/15
DD-MM-YYYY	15-03-2024
YYYY-MM-DD	2024-03-15
M/D/YY	3/15/24
Month D, Yr	March 15, 2024

Important: Formats that use dots as separators (DD.MM.YYYY and YYYY.MM.DD) are available in the field configuration settings but may not work correctly during import. If your date field uses a dot format, we recommend temporarily switching it to a slash or dash format before importing.

Date Sub-Types

Depending on how the field is configured, you may need to provide a date, a time, or both:

• Date Only — Enter just the date in the format configured on the field.

  • Example: 03/15/2024

• Date & Time — Enter the date followed by the time in 12-hour format with AM/PM.

  • Example: 03/15/2024 02:30:00 PM

  • Both the date and the time portions are required. You cannot provide just a date or just a time for a Date & Time field.

• Time Only — Enter the time in 12-hour format with AM/PM, or 24-hour format.

  • Examples: 02:30:00 PM or 14:30:00

Common Date Mistakes

• Wrong date format — This is the #1 cause of date import errors. If your field expects MM/DD/YYYY but your spreadsheet has DD/MM/YYYY, the values may be silently swapped (for example, 03/05/2024 could be read as May 3rd instead of March 5th when both numbers are 12 or less).

• Date too short — Dates with fewer than 8 characters are rejected. Use leading zeros (e.g., 01/05/2024 instead of 1/5/2024).

• Missing time on a Date & Time field — If the field is configured as Date & Time, you must include both parts.

Tip: The import uses the timezone from your user profile to process dates. Make sure your profile timezone is set correctly before importing, especially if your spreadsheet contains times.

---

Currency Fields

Currency values should be entered as numbers. You may optionally include a currency symbol at the beginning.

Accepted Formats

Format	Example	Valid?
Plain number	1234.56	Yes
With symbol	$1,234.56 / £100 / €0.99	Yes
Negative value	-$50.25	Yes
Text currency code	USD 100	No
Trailing text	1,234.56 USD	No

Key Rules

• Currency symbols only — Use $, £, €, ¥, ₹, etc. Text codes like "USD" or "GBP" are not supported.

• Commas for thousands — Must be in groups of three (e.g., 1,234,567). Spaces or periods as thousands separators are not supported.

• Period for decimals — Use a period (.) as the decimal separator, not a comma.

---

Phone Number Fields

Phone numbers can be entered in several common formats.

Accepted Formats

Format	Example
Digits only	5551234567
With dashes	555-123-4567
With dots	555.123.4567
With parentheses	[phone]
With plus sign	[phone]

What to Avoid

• Spaces between digit groups — 555 123 4567 may not be accepted. Use dashes or dots instead.

• Full country codes with spaces — [phone] may not validate. Enter with no space: [phone].

Tip: If you are using the native CSV import (not OneSchema), phone numbers are accepted in any format.

---

Pull From Fields (Parent/Child Relationships)

"Pull From" fields link records in your collection to records in another collection or category. This is one of the most common areas where users run into issues during import, so please read this section carefully.

How Pull From Fields Work

When you set up a "Pull From" field in your collection, two types of fields are created:

• Primary field — This is the main lookup field. It's the value the system uses to find the matching record in the related collection.

• Secondary fields — These are additional fields that automatically populate with data from the matched record. You do not need to enter their values manually — they fill in once the primary field finds a match.

Rules for Importing Pull From Fields

1. The primary (parent) field is always required when importing related data. If you include any secondary (child) field columns in your spreadsheet with values, the primary field column must also be present and filled in. The system needs the primary field to know which related record to look up.

2. You can import just the primary field by itself. If you only include the primary field column in your spreadsheet and leave out the secondary field columns entirely, the system will look up the matching record and automatically populate all secondary fields. This is the recommended approach for most imports.

3. If you include secondary field columns, their values are used to narrow the search. When both primary and secondary fields are present in the spreadsheet with values, the system searches for a record in the related collection that matches ALL of them. This means:

• Every value you provide must match an existing record exactly.

• If the values don't match any single record, the row will fail.

• If the values match more than one record, the row will also fail.

4. The lookup must find exactly one matching record.

• If no match is found, you'll see an error: "pull from collection value does not match with any record"

• If more than one match is found: "pull from collection value match with more than one record"

5. For category references, the value must match the category name exactly. If the primary field references a category, the value in your spreadsheet must be the exact name of the category. If it doesn't match, you'll see: "Mapped value does not exist"

Recommendations

• Keep it simple — Only include the primary (parent) field column in your spreadsheet. Leave out secondary (child) field columns entirely. The secondary values will auto-populate after import.

• If you must include child columns — Make sure the values exactly match what exists in the related collection. Leave cells blank for any secondary fields you don't want to specify (blank non-required fields are fine).

• Check for exact matches — The lookup is an exact match, not a fuzzy search. Capitalization, spacing, and punctuation all matter.

---

All Field Types — Quick Reference

Field Type	How to Format	Example
Text	Any text value	Laptop Model X
Long Text	Any text value (unlimited length)	Detailed description here...
Numeric	Plain numbers (decimals allowed)	1234.56 or -42
Percent	Number with or without the % symbol	75 or 75%
Currency	Number with optional currency symbol	$1,234.56
Date & Time	See Date & Time section above	03/15/2024 02:30:00 PM
Email	Standard email address	[email protected]
Phone	Digits with optional dashes, dots, or parentheses	555-123-4567
URL	Full web address	https://www.example.com
Address	Single line of text	123 Main St, City, ST 12345
GPS Coordinates	Latitude and longitude separated by a comma	33.4484,-112.0740
Single Select List	Exact text of one of the predefined options	Active
Multiple Select List	Options separated by the pipe character (see below)	Option A|Option B|Option C
IP Address	Standard IPv4 or IPv6 format	192.168.1.1
Auto-Increment	Cannot be updated via import (auto-generated)	—
Link to User	Email address of an existing user	[email protected]

---

Additional Notes

• Multiple Select List — Separate values with the pipe character ( | ), not commas. Example: Laptop|Monitor|Keyboard. Spaces around the pipe are trimmed automatically.

• Single Select List — Must exactly match a predefined option. New options are not created during import.

• Address — Enter as a single line of text. Separate columns for city/state/zip are not supported.

• GPS Coordinates — Enter as latitude,longitude (e.g., 33.4484,-112.0740). Latitude: -90 to 90, Longitude: -180 to 180.

• Link to User — Must be the email of an existing, active user. Matching is not case-sensitive.

• Auto-Increment — Read-only. Cannot be overwritten via import.

---

Updating Existing Records

• Identifier fields (UID columns) — Select fields that uniquely identify each record. If the identifier matches more than one record, the row will fail.

• Update fields — Only the fields you select will be modified. Other fields remain unchanged.

• System fields, email fields (on user records), and auto-increment fields cannot be updated via import.

---

Troubleshooting Common Errors

Error Message	What It Means	How to Fix
"Invalid date format. Please use the format [format] for this column"	The date in your spreadsheet doesn't match the format configured on the field.	Check the field's date format setting and adjust your spreadsheet to match.
"Primary field: [name] is not mapped"	You included a secondary (child) Pull From field but didn't map the primary (parent) field.	Add the primary field column to your spreadsheet, or remove the secondary field columns.
"pull from collection value does not match with any record"	The value you entered for a Pull From field doesn't match any record in the related collection.	Verify the value exists in the related collection. Check for typos, extra spaces, or capitalization differences.
"pull from collection value match with more than one record"	Multiple records in the related collection match your Pull From value.	Add more specific secondary field values to narrow the search, or make the primary field values unique in the related collection.
"Mapped value does not exist"	A category reference value doesn't match any existing category.	Check that the category name is spelled exactly as it appears in the system.
"Multiple records found matching field"	During an update import, the identifier field matched more than one existing record.	Use a more unique identifier field, or clean up duplicate values in your collection.
"No records matching duplicate field(s) found"	During an update import, no existing record was found matching the identifier field value.	Verify the identifier value exists in the collection. It must be an exact match.
"No user found"	A Link to User field value doesn't match any active user's email address.	Check that the email address belongs to an active (non-deleted) user in the module.