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Bulk Base Data Uploads

Administrators are able to upload base data (such as faculty, secondary units, and course information) in bulk in order to add a large amount of information with ease. Bulk uploads can also be used to manage and modify existing data. This article will cover how to manually add and manage data using the various bulk upload types. Bulk data can also be uploaded automatically via SFTP. Please reach out to your Interfolio contact for more details on setting up autoloads in Faculty Activity Reporting (FAR, Faculty180).

Notifications are configured at the time of setup in collaboration with the Technical Services team. If you have access to your institution’s SFTP, you can edit recipient notifications directly by navigating to autoloads > notifications.txt in the SFTP, then downloading the file and editing the recipients (separated by a line break between each). You will finalize this process by re-uploading the file. If you do not have access to the SFTP, you can email your request to help@interfolio.com.

 

Imports will be executed at 3:30 AM EDT/EST daily. If no data is found, or if an Error Message appears, then the import will not occur. 

 

Unit files should NOT, under any circumstances, be loaded through the User Interface (UI). They should be set up manually through the UI.

 

Upload New File

Required steps before uploading data to production:

  1. Test the upload when uploading a particular data set for the first time or the first time after a change to the file format. It is recommended to test the upload in a test or development database before uploading to Production.
  2. Verify the file format and review the column structure for the applicable upload type in the Setup menu. A template is also available in the UI to be downloaded to ensure that the file is formatted correctly.
    • Accepted file formats: CSV (comma-delimited), TSV (tab-delimited)
    • Accepted character set/encoding: UTF-8.
    • Header Row: Clearly describes column content, as seen on the Base Data Models sheets.
  3. Configure the appropriate form/classification. This may include the Upload form or Faculty Classifications
 

1. Navigate to Upload Data under Administration

Navigation: Administration > Administration > Upload Data

  1. Click Administration under the Administration section of the navigation menu.
    Navigation bar with Administration highlighted
  2. Click Upload Data under the Bulk Data section.
    Bulk Data section with Upload Data underlined

    The Upload Data page will display a list of the 50 most recent previous data loads including the time generated, load type, semester, unit, number added, existing courses, and errors. The listed results can be narrowed down by using the filters at the top of the page.

     
 
 

2. Upload and Validate new file

Navigation: New Upload > Fill in information > Upload

  1. Scroll to the bottom of the page and click New Upload.
  2. Select the Upload Type.
    Type dropdown selected under Select Upload Type

    The remaining upload options will change based on the upload type that is specified.

     
  3. Complete the remaining fields for the upload. Note the required fields.

    Setting whether or not to "Update Existing Records"

    When creating a new upload with the new configuration, select the options in the upload form to indicate whether or not to ignore or update existing records. When adding new data points, select Yes when presented with the option to Update Existing Records.
    -  Yes means that based on the new configuration, the system will match required fields to existing the record and will load values to new data points that have been added and will update the data uploaded previously if those fields are still in the file.
    -  No means that when the system encounters required fields, the program will determine if that record exists in the system, and if it does, the system will skip that record in the upload file and move to the next one. The system will not process any part of the record.

    Note that in this context, Update means to update existing columns, plus add some new columns.

     

    Note that the faculty file does not update Faculty Classifications (employment status, faculty rank, tenure status, etc) after faculty are initially loaded regardless of this setting. The Faculty file will only do the initial insert of a faculty classification when a faculty is added. After that, updates must come through a Faculty Classification load.

     

    Check out the Upload Fields section at the bottom of the page for more information on fields and their upload types.

     
     
     

     -  Click Choose File to select the file to be uploaded. 

Check the File Has Header Row box if applicable so that the data in the first row of the file is not included in the upload.

 

     -  Click the Validate button to validate the file format.

The Validation process checks for file type (must be in a .CSV or .TSV format) and number of columns. If the file format is incorrect, there are more/fewer columns than available on the upload form, or there is missing required data in any row, the file will not be uploaded and the error reason will be listed. Please note that this process is limited to the above criteria and does not validate the data itself for accuracy.

 

     -  Click Upload once the file has been validated successfully.

If the previous configuration had a field marked to show (for example: "billing address" in the first load) and that field is removed for the second load, the system will NOT overwrite. The system will maintain the previously loaded field even though it is not in the current file.

  • To delete one of the field values that was loaded previously: ensure that the field is in the configuration for the new upload, and leave the field blank.
 
 
 

Manage Previous Uploads

Once a file has been uploaded, administrators with the necessary permissions, can review the new entries, existing, and errors as well as make any necessary changes. This is particularly helpful if a small number of entries should be updated. If a large number of entries need to be modified, then the recommended course of action is a new bulk upload set to update existing records.

 

1. Navigate to Upload Data under Administration

Navigation: Administration > Administration > Upload Data

  1. Click Administration under the Administration section of the navigation menu.
    Navigation bar with Administration highlighted
  2. Click Upload Data under the Bulk Data section.
    Bulk Data section with Upload Data underlined

    The Upload Data page will display a list of the 50 most recent previous data loads including the time generated, load type, semester, unit, number added, existing, and errors. The listed results can be narrowed down by using the filters at the top of the page.

     
 

2. Review Logs and Dispositions

Navigation: Edit > Choose hyperlinked number

  1. Locate the applicable entry and click the Edit (pencil) icon.
    -  To help narrow down the list of records displayed, use the filter options (unit, upload type, and/or semester).
    -  The list can also be sorted by clicking on the relevant column header.
  2. Click on the hyperlinked number under the Added, Duplicates, or Errors column to review the records for that disposition.

Disposition Types and Available Actions

Disposition Type Description Available Actions
Added New records which were uploaded successfully.

Download File
Returns a CSV file of all new entries in the original upload.

View
Views the details of a specific records.
Duplicates

Duplicate (existing) records which already existed in the system.

Please note that existing records which were updated during the upload will still appear under Duplicates and not under Added.

 

Download File
Returns a CSV file of all existing (duplicate) entries in the original upload.

Edit
Allows the administrator to make changes to the details of a specific record.

Resubmit
Submits any changes made by the administrator using the Edit function. This allows the administrator to make changes without uploading a new file.
Errors Records which were not able to be added to the system. The cause of the error will be listed in the Reason column, and more details about these error reasons can be found below.

Download File
Returns a .CSV file of all entries resulting in an error from the original upload.

Edit
Allows the administrator to make changes to the details of a specific record.

Resubmit
Submits any changes made by the administrator using the Edit function. This allows the administrator to make changes and resolve errors without uploading a new file.

Delete
Removes the record of the entry and error from the logs. Deleted entries can not be restored or modified in the future, and a new upload will be required if the entry is needed.
 
 

Check out the FAR Error Message Glossary for more information on the error dispositions.

 
 
 

Leading Zeros

Information on files supported, naming conventions, and upload fields for Leading Zeros in Faculty Files and Course/Course Prefix Section Numbers can be found below.

 

Check out this article on how to Add Back Leading Zeros in an Excel/CSV file for more information.

 

Files Supported and Naming Conventions

  • Faculty180_<upload_type>_<yyyy>-<mm>-<dd>_<sequence>.csv
    •  Faculty180_CoursesTaught_2015-08-11_01.csv
      • This indicates a Courses Taught file to be uploaded and was the first upload file of this type received on 2015-08-11
      • If a second Courses Taught was to be sent on the same day, the sequence would change: : Faculty180_coursestaught_2015-08-11_02.csv
  • Available upload types will include the following:
Supported Import <upload_type> Example Filename
Faculty faculty faculty180_faculty_2019-08-11_01.csv
Faculty Classifications facultyclassifications faculty180_facultyclassifications_2019-08-11_01.csv
Current Positions current positions faculty180_currentpositions_2019-08-11_01.csv
Current Prefixes prefix faculty180_prefix_2019-08-11_01.csv
Courses courses faculty180_courses_2019-08-11_01.csv
Courses Taught courses taught faculty180_coursestaught_2019-08-11_01.csv
 
 

Upload Fields

Please see below for further information on fields and settings available when performing a given upload.

 
Field Upload Types Definition
Semester All The academic term for which the data is being uploaded. While there is generally only one Semester field to be completed, some upload types will also have the option to include multiple terms based on the file content.
Unit All The unit that the data is being loaded for. Similar to the Semester field, only one unit can be selected for this field, but some upload types will allow for multiple units to be included based on the file content.
Update Existing Records

Courses Taught

Faculty 

Courses

Course Prefixes

Committees

Units

Scholarly Outlet Metrics

Scholarly Outlets

Support Accounts

When the box is checked to update existing records, the system will match each line in the file to any entries which already exists in the system. It will then update any discrepant information in the existing entry instead of creating a new entry.

  • The fields that the system matches against are different for each file type. Please reach out to help@interfolio.com or your Interfolio contact for more details on the fields that must match in order for an entry to be updated.
Display Terms in First Two Columns Courses Taught If the Courses Taught file contains entries for multiple terms, then this box should be checked so that the system uploads the Courses Taught to the terms specified in the file and not the Semester field selection. If this option is selected, the file will need to be formatted with two additional fields as the first two columns; Semester and Calendar Year.
Remove Existing Courses Taught For Selected Term Courses Taught

There are three options available to manage existing Courses Taught:

  • Yes, remove courses being taught not in upload: Removes any Courses Taught records that are not included in the upload for the selected term. Courses Taught records from other terms will not be impacted.
  • Yes, remove courses being taught for users in the upload: Removes all Courses Taught records in the specified term for faculty who are present in the file. Faculty who are not included in the file will not be impacted.
  • No, just add new courses: No existing Courses Taught records will be removed, and new entries will be added.
Check To Inactivate Faculty Not In Upload (for tenants without UID) Faculty
  1. In order to help keep the list of faculty up to date, faculty accounts can be deactivated in bulk by checking the Check to Inactivate Faculty Not in Upload box.
  2. Once this box is checked, a dialogue box will open allowing the administrator to refine which faculty accounts should be deactivated. The options available to choose from are employment status, term(s), and whether or not login should also be disabled for the applicable users.
  3. Once the upload is complete, any faculty member who was not included on the faculty file and met the selected criteria will have their employment status updated to Inactive.

    When UID is enabled, users that are already active in FAR will remain active when not included in the Faculty file. To set an existing user's Employment Status to Inactive, use the Faculty Classification file. To 'Disallow Login' for an existing user, set "Allow Login" to 0, n, no, or false in the Faculty file.

     
Disable Login Status for the faculty members not selected above (for tenants without UID) Faculty

Checking “Check to inactivate faculty not in upload” displays the following dialog box:

Inactivate Faculty Not in Upload dialog box

You can elect to inactivate full-time faculty, part-time faculty, or staff (or any combination thereof).

  • You may elect to inactivate the above for the designated term only, or for the designated and all subsequent terms.
  • You can elect to disable login status for any of these selected users.

    Once “disable login status” is selected, these users will no longer be able to log into FAR.

     
Respect Locked Preferred Names Faculty If the Preferred Name faculty classification has been locked and Yes is selected for this field, then the faculty file will not alter the name for the applicable faculty members.
Do Not Send Login Details Faculty This box is checked by default and will prevent an email going out to faculty in the uploaded file with login instructions. The content of this email is not modifiable and does not apply to institutions utilizing Platform Single Sign On (SSO), so it is recommended to keep this box checked to ensure that school administration is able to send customized and accurate notification to faculty.
Display Terms in First Four Columns  Faculty Classifications The first four columns are required by Interfolio's data model. When this option is selected, the file will need to be formatted with four additional fields as the first four columns; Start Semester, Start Calendar Year, End Semester, and End Calendar Year.
Remove Existing Position Titles Current Positions

There are three options available to manage existing Position Titles:

  • Yes, remove all existing position titles: Removes all current positions from the institution. Unlike Courses Taught, this will apply to all position titles regardless of the Semester selected.
  • Yes, remove all existing positions for users in upload: Removes all current positions for faculty in the file being uploaded, again regardless of selected Semester.
  • No, update existing position titles: Updates all existing position titles with information from the data load.
Remove Existing Secondary Assignments Secondary Unit Assignments

There are four options available to manage existing Secondary Unit Assignments:

  • Yes, remove all existing secondary unit assignments: Removes all current Secondary Unit Assignments from the institution regardless of the Semester selected.
  • Yes, remove existing secondary unit assignments for users in upload: Removes all current Secondary Unit Assignments for faculty in the file being uploaded, again regardless of selected Semester.
  • Yes, remove existing secondary assignments for users not in upload: Removes all current Secondary Unit Assignments for faculty not in the file being uploaded, again regardless of selected Semester.
  • No, just add new assignments: No existing Secondary Assignment records will be removed, and new entries will be added.
 
 

Next Steps

How to Add/Modify Data After Configuring Sections and Uploading Data.

 
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