File Upload | Yext Hitchhikers Platform
Overview
With the File Upload Native Source you can upload Excel, CSV, and JSON files within the Connectors framework. This new source allows users to take advantage of the data cleansing capabilities of the Connectors workflow for ingesting and updating data..
With the addition of this new data connector source there are now two ways to ingest data files to pull data into Yext:
- Existing Entity Upload
- File Upload via Connectors
To note, there are feature gaps between File Upload via Connectors and the existing Entity Upload framework. See those details outlined below:
Supported File Types
- Excel (.xlsx)
- CSV
- JSON
File Upload Connector Source vs Data File Upload Framework
The table below outlines key feature differences between the two systems. Though there are additional features and benefits to using the Connector system, it’s important to keep in mind that:
- This system is much newer and does NOT yet match the capabilities of the existing system yet.
- If you want to be able to preview the changes the file upload will make to KG, and subsequently accept or reject the updates, then you MUST use the existing system.
| File Upload via Connector | Existing Entity Upload | |
|---|---|---|
| Supported File Types | Excel(.xlsx), CSV, JSON | Excel(.xlsx), CSV |
| Robust Transform Library |  |
 |
| Saved Configuration | |
(limited) |
| Improved Speed | |
|
| Preview of Results | |
|
| Multiple Entity Types | |
|
| Move Entities of a certain type to a new folder | |
|
| Multiple Sheets | |
|
| Maximum File Size | 48 MB | 48 MB |
Additional Feature Details
Below we will add additional detail about the features that are not supported in the Field Upload Connector Source.
Preview of Results
- You cannot preview data prior to applying it
- You cannot fix errors via the upload flow - failed entities will be returned in the Connector for additional troubleshooting.
Multiple Entity Types
To upload multiple entities types you will need to create one connector per entity type.
Moving Entities to a New Folder
You can add entities to an existing folder, but you cannot creat a new folder via the connector.
Additional Notes on Handling Files
- Invisible sheets are skipped
- Formulas are NOT executed by the connector. If the cell value is ‘=A1+B2’, the value in the connector will be the string ‘=A1+B2’, and not the computed value.
General Connector Gaps
- Field values are never cleared by the Connector. So, if a blank value is mapped to a field, if an existing field value exists it will not be cleared.
- When mapping to a list field, the mapped value is considered to be comprehensive – this means that the connector will not append these values to the list, if there are existing values on the field already
New, Missing, and Existing Entities
In the existing entity upload framework, you can take action different actions based on the status of the entity — for example, new entities in the upload, entities missing from the upload, or existing entities that are in the upload. The File Upload Connector source does not have this concept. The Connector maps to fields - meaning entities can be mapped to a folder, and added to that folder, but we cannot take action dynamically based on the “status” of the entity in the upload.