Top > About mapping data
When you map data during an import, you define which object is created or updated, what content is imported, and what changes, if any, are made to the source data. This “data map” encompasses everything needed, including the destination object, the properties of that object, and what action to perform on the source data as it is being transformed into a property. The entire data map can be saved as an XML template and shared between multiple systems through a template import.
How you map depends on the type of property. For example, a property that is a list is treated differently from a property that is a text field.
In summary, a data map permits you to:
• copy the contents of your source file or database exactly as-is
• substitute some of the source content with new values that you manually input
• substitute some of the source content with predefined list values recognized by Service Manager
• choose to ignore a particular property, i.e., not copy any values into it. This is useful if you are updating an object and you are not changing all of its properties.
• manipulate the source content during the import, such as concatenating several values together
• create duplicate objects from the source content
• split the source content, i.e., create different objects based on the existence of relationships in the content
More details on how to perform some of these actions with the data map can be found in Property types and actions for them.