---
title: "Data Import Manager Overview"
slug: "data-import-manager-overview-1"
updated: 2026-09-22T20:23:52Z
published: 2026-09-23T12:55:37Z
canonical: "wiki.cobblestonesoftware.com/data-import-manager-overview-1"
---

> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://wiki.cobblestonesoftware.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Data Import Manager Overview

## **COBBLESTONE SOFTWARE**

Contract Insight — User Guide

## **Data Import Manager Overview**

*Data Management: Importing Records from a CSV File*

**Note:** Each procedure in this guide begins at the Contract Insight homepage, so any section can be followed on its own. Importing and updating data affects records across the application and should be performed by a Contract Insight System Administrator.

---

# 1. Overview

Contract Insight can bulk-import records from a structured **CSV file** — a plain-text format of comma-separated values that opens in any standard spreadsheet program, such as Microsoft Excel. Importing is how large volumes of data are brought into the application at once, whether that is loading records during an implementation or applying a batch of updates to records already in the system.

An import is driven by a template. A template names the target table the data belongs to, records which of that table’s fields appear in the CSV, and maps each of those fields to the column heading used in the file. Once a template exists it is reused: the same mapping can be run against a new file whenever the data needs loading again.

Whether a row creates a new record or changes an existing one depends on the template’s mode and on its condition field. A row whose condition value matches an existing record updates that record; a row that matches nothing is inserted as a new record, unless the template is set to update only.

# 2. Accessing the Data Import Screen

The Data Import screen is the central management screen for import templates. To open it:

From the Contract Insight homepage, click **Administration** at the bottom of the left navigation menu. On the Administration page, under **Configuration & Fields**, select **Data Import**.

**The Data Import screen includes the following elements:**

- A Data Import heading with the subtitle “Bulk-import records from a CSV file. Create a template for a target table, map the file’s columns to fields, then upload & process a file. Rows with a condition field update matching records; others are inserted.”
- A New template panel with a Template name box, a — target table — dropdown listing every area in the application, an Update-only checkbox, and a Create & map fields → button
- A Templates section listing every saved template, with a Search box above the grid
- A sortable, filterable grid with Name, Target table, Mode, and Created columns, each with its own filter icon; Created shows the date and the person who created the template
- Per-row Map fields, run, and delete action buttons
- Pagination controls at the bottom of the grid, with a live page and record count and an Items per page selector

# 3. Creating an Import Template

**Steps**:

1. From the Contract Insight homepage, click **Administration** at the bottom of the left navigation menu. On the Administration page, under **Configuration & Fields**, select **Data Import**.
2. In the **New template** panel, enter a **Template name** that identifies what the template loads.
3. Choose the target table from the **— target table —** dropdown. This is the area the records belong to — for example Contract Details, Employee Details, or Vendors/Customers.
4. Tick **Update-only** if the file should only change records that already exist and never create new ones. Leave it clear for an insert / update template.
5. Click **Create & map fields →**. The template is saved and the field-mapping screen opens for it.

**Note:** The mode chosen here is shown in the Mode column on the Templates grid as either Insert / update or Update-only, and is repeated at the top of the mapping and run screens.

# 4. Mapping a Template’s Fields

**Function**: Records which of the target table’s fields appear in the CSV and which column heading holds each one.

**Steps**:

1. From the Contract Insight homepage, click **Administration** at the bottom of the left navigation menu. On the Administration page, under **Configuration & Fields**, select **Data Import**.
2. Click **Map fields** on the row for the template. The mapping screen opens, headed with the template name and the target table.
3. Use the **Find a field** box to locate a field, then tick **Include** for every field that appears in your CSV.
4. In the **CSV column header** box for each included field, enter the exact heading used for it in the file.
5. Tick **Condition** for the field used to find the record to update — typically an ID that identifies an existing record.
6. Tick **Lookup** for a field whose CSV value is a display value that has to be resolved to its underlying id.
7. Click **Save mapping** in the lower right. Use **Only the ones I’ve ticked** to review just the mapped rows, and the counter in the upper right — for example “2 of 743 fields mapped” — to confirm how much of the table is covered.

The mapping grid has one row per field on the target table, showing the field label with its stored column name beneath, and the Include, CSV column header, Condition, and Lookup controls across the row. The **Go to run import →** button in the lower right moves straight on to running the file, and **← Templates** in the upper right returns to the template list.

# 

# 5. Running an Import

**Steps**:

1. From the Contract Insight homepage, click **Administration** at the bottom of the left navigation menu. On the Administration page, under **Configuration & Fields**, select **Data Import**.
2. Click the **run** button on the template’s row, or click **Go to run import →** from the mapping screen.
3. The **Run import** screen opens, headed with the template name and showing the target table and, where it applies, the update-only mode.
4. Click **Download blank CSV** under “Start from the blank spreadsheet” to get a file that already carries the template’s column headers, then fill in one row per record.
5. Expand **What goes in each column** to check the file against the mapping. It lists each Column heading, the field it Holds, and any notes — a condition field is marked with a **Matches existing records** badge.
6. Click **Choose File** and select the completed CSV. Its column headers must match the template mapping.
7. The file is then processed against the template, updating the records its condition values match and inserting the rest according to the template’s mode.

**Note:** If a template has no fields mapped, the run screen shows “This template has no columns mapped yet, so there is nothing to import into.” with a link to set up its columns first. Map the template before attempting the import.

# 6. Insert / Update and Update-Only Templates

Every template runs in one of two modes, set by the **Update-only** checkbox when the template is created and shown in the **Mode** column on the Templates grid:

- **Insert / update** — a row whose condition value matches an existing record updates that record; a row that matches nothing is inserted as a new record. Use this to load new data and refresh existing data in a single file.
- **Update-only** — a row whose condition value matches an existing record updates that record, and a row that matches nothing is not inserted. Use this when a file should only ever change data that is already in the application.

In both modes the condition field is what makes the match, so a template that updates records needs at least one field ticked as **Condition** on the mapping screen.

# 7. Managing Existing Templates

**Function**: Finding, revising, and removing the templates already saved on the Data Import screen.

**Steps**:

1. From the Contract Insight homepage, click **Administration** at the bottom of the left navigation menu. On the Administration page, under **Configuration & Fields**, select **Data Import**.
2. Use the **Search** box above the Templates grid to find a template by name, or the filter icon on the Name, Target table, Mode, or Created column to narrow the list.
3. Click **Map fields** on a row to reopen its mapping and change which fields are included, the CSV column headers, or the condition and lookup marks.
4. Click the **run** button on a row to go straight to its Run import screen.
5. Click the **delete** button on a row to remove the template.

**Note:** Deleting a template removes the saved mapping only. Records that were previously imported through it are unaffected and stay in the application.

# 8. Quick Reference Summary

| **Task** | **How to Complete It** |
| --- | --- |
| **Open the screen** | Homepage → Administration → Configuration & Fields → Data Import. |
| **Create a template** | New template panel: enter a name, pick the target table, tick Update-only if needed, then Create & map fields. |
| **Map the fields** | Map fields on the row: tick Include, enter each CSV column header, mark Condition and Lookup, then Save mapping. |
| **Start from a blank file** | Run import screen → Download blank CSV; it already carries the template’s column headers. |
| **Check the file** | Expand What goes in each column to see each heading, the field it holds, and the condition field. |
| **Run an import** | Run button on the row (or Go to run import), then Choose File and select the completed CSV. |
| **Pick the mode** | Insert / update adds unmatched rows as new records; Update-only changes existing records only. |
| **Manage templates** | Search or filter the grid, Map fields to revise, the run button to import, the delete button to remove. |