External Reference ID's

External Reference IDs enable you to utilize existing reference labels from your current database or system for all entities in Discovery (vendors, locations, clients, etc.). Most Bulk Import templates can include an external reference ID. Moreover, external reference ID's can be substituted for required _id fields in Discovery's Bulk Import templates allowing for faster importation of data.

Here's how it works.

  1. Download the bulk import Template File zip file provided in Discovery under Settings > Bulk Imports.
  2. Extract the bulk import Template File zip file and open your desired template file (CSV) in Excel to see if that entity supports External Reference IDs (most do).
  3. Fill in all required data fields.
  4. Include an External Reference ID for each record in the external_reference_id column and save as a CSV file (do not change the name of the Bulk Import template file.
  5. In Discovery, navigate to Settings > Bulk Imports.
  6. Click on New and upload your CSV file.

In Discovery, corresponding entities (vendors, locations, clients, etc.) should now be created complete with your External Reference ID's.

Moving forward, you can now reference these External Reference ID's in lieu of a matching entity ID (_id) in subsequent bulk import template file uploads. Here's more on that.

  1. Open any template file (CSV) in Excel.
  2. Fill in all required data fields, except "_id" type fields that have External Reference ID's saved in Discovery.
  3. Substitute your External Reference ID for those "_id" type fields and save as a CSV file (do not change the name of the Bulk Import template file.
  4. In Discovery, navigate to Settings > Bulk Imports.
  5. Click on New and upload your CSV file.

Your new entities should be created in Discovery and associated with the entities you've determined via the included External Reference ID's.

Here's an example in using External Reference ID's.

We'll be creating new Vendors and corresponding Vendor Accounts in Discovery using the bulk import feature.

First we'll be creating a list of Vendors using the  vendors.csv template file. In our example, all required data fields are populated along with an External Reference ID that represents each Vendor in a system outside of Discovery. This is usually a database or accounting system. This is beneficial as it allows you to continue to reference an entity just as you do outside of Discovery.

Import these new Vendors using the method described above.

Next, open the  vendor_accounts.csv bulk import template file. Populate all required data fields except for those in the vendor_id column. Normally, this data type would need to be filled with unique Vendor ID's that are created by Discovery for each Vendor upon their creation. However, since Vendors have been created along with their External Reference ID, the Vendor ID can be substituted with the External Reference ID allowing you to consistently reference the Vendor as you're accustomed to in your own system.

Import these new Vendor Accounts. In Discovery, these new Vendor Accounts will be associated with their corresponding Vendor as dictated by the External Reference ID.

Best of all, the vendors.csv and vendor_accounts.csv template files can be prepared and uploaded in tandem in a single zip file. Discovery will process the vendors.csv bulk import template file first to establish the Vendors along with their External Reference ID. Then, it will process the vendor_accounts.csv bulk import template file and establish the entity associations accordingly. Simply save your bulk template files and compress them into a single zip file (any name) for upload into Discovery.

External Reference ID's can be leveraged across nearly every entity type inside of Discovery providing for expedient importation of data and retention of established nomenclature.