CSV File Import File Selection Dialog

pniehaus

I give up... I have looked through this forum and the manual, and maybe I am blind, but I cannot find a way for the user to select the file to be imported during a IMPORT ... FROM ... process.

It will be very strange if a simple file open/select dialog does not exist for use in an data import process. The one user's folder and file name is certainly not the other's.

A red face to me if it is something obvious, but please point it out someone. :?

pniehaus

As usual once it is posted I realise that the context is not clear. I mean an IMPORT statement in a Process, and not the standard Import command that is possible from the Admin perspective.

aware_support

IMPORT action in rules does not involve any import dialog.

If you want to use the dialog you have two options:
1) Most people use the standard Import command
2) If you do not want to use the standard import you need to provide your own handling - for example, define a temporary parameter object with an attribute of the Document type and display a form of this object before using the IMPORT action in your process

When uploading the document for the object the user will have to invoke the standard File Dialog. The IMPORT command will then use the Document uploaded into the parameter object.

pniehaus

With option 2:
If I understand it correctly I should:

Create a BO as target for the import (MyBO)
Create a parameter BO (DataImports) with an attribute: TheDataFile (Type: Document)

Create a process with the following:

ENTER NEW DataImport
If FILE_EXISTS(DataImport.DataFile) = 'Yes' Then
IMPORT MyBO FROM DataImport.DataFile CREATE IF NOT FOUND

Nope: DataImport.DataFile is a blob containing a document and not a plain text containing a path/filename.
Where do I get the filename from?
Alternatively how do I do an IMPORT BO data from a document containing csv in a BO?

aware_support

File name can be obtained using one of Aware IM functions - check the function list.

IMPORT DOCUMENT will import the document blob.

IMPORT will import the CSV

pniehaus

The only functions I can find are FILE_NAME and FILE_EXT. They both work as expected and will extract the filename and extension from a Document type attribute.

There is however no "FILE_PATH" or FILE_FULL_CONTEXT. Therefore I am still not able to import from a specified folder.

aware_support

You don't need to import from a folder - you just need to put the document stored in a temporary object into the attribute stored in the database, so you are just storing the document blob.

There is NO OTHER WAY to import the document from a path specified by the user. The user is operating on a CLIENT, the system works on the SERVER. The server cannot directly import from the client's machine. The only way to do is transfer a physical document from a client to the server using the technique that I have described (or a standard Aware IM import functionality)

pniehaus

I will then have to report this as a bug.

This Works:

If FILE_EXISTS('/home/msa/asource.csv' ) = 'Yes' Then
IMPORT MyBO FROM '/home/msa/asource.csv' CREATE IF NOT FOUND

This does not work:
A DataImportBO BO exists with an attribute DataFile of document type. This allows a user to upload the csv file into the DataFile.

ENTER NEW DataImportBO
DISPLAY MESSAGE FILE_NAME(DataImportBO.DataFile)  <--This works!  

IMPORT MyBO FROM DataImportBO.DataFile  <-- Nothing happens and it does not crash
DISPLAY MESSAGE 'End import' <-- this works

aware_support

This is not a bug - you shouldn't be using IMPORT action here:
IMPORT MyBO FROM DataImportBO.DataFile <-- Nothing happens and it does not crash

Use IMPORT DOCUMENT action instead

pniehaus

I understand IMPORT DOCUMENT to be a method to import a file from a data folder (hard drive) into an attribute of the type document or picture.
And not to import instances of a BO from an attribute of type document containing a file in csv format.

According to the editor, my understanding is correct:

ENTER NEW DataImportBO <-- This allows the user to upload the file 
DISPLAY MESSAGE FILE_NAME(DataImportBO.DataFile)  <--This works!  

IMPORT DOCUMENT MyBO FROM DataImportBO.DataFile  <-- This is invalid code and the editor won't save it. 
DISPLAY MESSAGE 'End import' <-- this works

Although I did not want to do this - good habits die hard.(Don't mess with files on an application server, because somewhere in the future the sysadmin from hell is going to prevent access) I believe I have to implement it this way:

ENTER NEW DataImportBO <-- This allows the user to upload the file 
DISPLAY MESSAGE FILE_NAME(DataImportBO.DataFile)  

EXPORT DOCUMENT DataImportBO.DataFile TO FILE '/home/serversaccount/ATempFolderOnTheServer/ATempCSVFile.csv'
IMPORT MyBO FROM '/home/serversaccount/ATempFolderOnTheServer/ATempCSVFile.csv' 
DISPLAY MESSAGE 'End import'

aware_support

I didn't realise that the document is a CSV file for import. In this case your solution is perfect.