FAQ Article: The User Batch Import Process

Keywords:

Instead of creating user accounts manually one by one, you can use the “User Batch” process to create accounts in bulk. This process can also be used to make updates and edits to existing user accounts.  

To upload a user batch import file, select the “Users & Groups” menu from the Administrator Toolbar on the left-hand side of the LMS. In the sub-menu that appears, select “Users”:  

On the new page that appears, select the “User Batch” button: 

There is not a prebuilt template for you to download and populate to create your import file. Instead, you will see the instructions for building your file outlined on the new page that appears.  

To create your import file, open a blank Excel spreadsheet. You will need to begin populating the Excel spreadsheet to align with the outline provided in the instructions on this page of the LMS. The instructions will indicate what user data needs to be populated in which column of the Excel file.  

You do not need to populate every field that is outlined in the instructions. You do need to populate each field indicated as “Required” on the list. If a required field is missing, the import file will fail to upload. 

Once your Excel file is populated and complete, save the file as a “txt” file. To do this, click “Save As” in your Excel spreadsheet and select “Text (Tab delimited).” 

This will be the file that you upload to the LMS. Take the “txt” file and upload this via the “Upload User Batch File” button: 

Once you select the “Upload User Batch File” button, you can import your file. You will also have the choice to select the checkbox for “Only create new users, ignore (do not update) users that already exist.” Use this option as needed depending on your business needs and the data you are including in the import process.  

If you are updating existing user accounts via the import file, any data for these users in the file will be added to their user account and those fields will be updated on their account to accommodate the new data. All other data on the existing user’s account will be untouched by the import file, unless new data is submitted for those fields.  

If your txt file was formatted and populated correctly, after it is uploaded to the system, you will see the following message appear: 

To confirm that the process was successful, you can navigate to your user list and review user accounts that were created and updated for confirmation.  

If data was missing from your import file, or data was formatted incorrectly, the system will let you know what errors to resolve. You will see an error message like the following: 

Click “OK” and on the pop-up message that appears, the system will list the file errors: 

Resolve the errors and reupload the file. If there are errors in the file, no users will be updated or created from your import file until the file is 100% error free.  

User Batch Import Tips & Tricks 

• The “Local Timezone” field needs to be in the ISO standard format. 
• For example, for users in the US Central timezone, this field should be populated in the following format: Central Standard Time 

• The “Language” field needs to also be in the ISO standard format. 
• For example, for a user with the English language as their default language setting, this field should be populated in the following format: en-US  

• Each row needs to have the word “END” typed into it in the column indicated in the instructional guidelines: 

Updating Existing User Accounts  

If you are updating existing user accounts, you do not need to populate the “Password” field for these users. This field is only required for brand new user accounts. For existing users, this field can be left blank. The system will recognize that the user already exists and keep their existing password in place. 

The system will recognize that a user already exists if the username in the file matches an existing user’s username in the portal. Note that usernames are not always the user’s email address, the username is unique to the user’s account and can be found via the User Demographic report.