Import relationships and their properties

A relationship import addresses individual connections. Use it to maintain their properties, distinguish parallel links, or update a specific instance by its Boldo ID.

You need an Administrator or Owner account in the organization. Check the current organization and real data or scenario context. For asset properties, use asset import.

Map a relationship file

Prepare one file per relationship type. For a creation, each row needs one source and one target. An existing relationship can be identified by its ID or unique key without repeating both endpoints.

1. Open the organization's Imports page and select your CSV or XLSX file.
2. Choose Relationships and the intended relationship type. Check the source type, relationship and target type together.
3. Map the relationship's Boldo ID column if your file includes existing identifiers.
4. Map the source and target columns, choosing how each identifies its asset: name, ID or unique key.
5. Map relationship properties and their choice values. Mark properties that distinguish parallel instances where needed.
6. Map Archived only if your file intentionally controls archive or restore actions.
7. Review the handling of existing relationships, duplicate rows, empty values and missing endpoint assets.
8. Select Verify.

Below each column’s destination, click the options summary to open its settings. Depending on the column, check value mapping, Resolve by, missing-asset behavior and Distinguishes multiple relationships.

For a date property, check Date format in its column options; date interpretation follows that choice. No value can treat file markers as empty, following the empty-value setting below. The value-mapping rules are the same for relationship properties.

Each endpoint cell identifies one asset. Comma-separated target lists from an asset import are not interchangeable with this format.

Identify each instance

An existing relationship ID takes priority. It identifies the connection itself, not its source or target. If endpoints are also supplied, they must match that instance; importing does not move an existing connection to different assets.

Without a recognized ID, a configured relationship unique key can identify an instance. An unknown unique-key value describes a new instance rather than falling back to the same source/type/target connection. Creation still requires valid endpoints and must satisfy uniqueness rules. An archived instance can keep a value that an active instance now holds; the value then designates the active one.

Without a populated unique key, Boldo can match the source, relationship type and target, refined by properties marked Distinguishes multiple relationships. Several matching active instances without sufficient distinction block the preview.

An unknown relationship ID can still find an existing instance through the other matching information. It never creates a new instance when no match is found; that row is skipped.

For example, two allocations between the same application and capability may differ by period. To change only one allocation, supply its relationship ID. Matching only the two endpoint names does not identify which allocation you intend to update.

Choose existing-data behavior

The existing-relationship setting lets you update matching instances, skip them, report an error, or create another instance when the type supports properties. An ID or unique key still addresses an existing instance; choosing creation does not turn that explicit identity into a duplicate.

For duplicate rows, choose merging or rejection. Inspect the preview instead of assuming every spreadsheet row produces a separate relationship. Parallel instances still need different entered properties and valid unique keys.

Skip empty values preserves existing property values. Overwrite with empty clears the corresponding empty properties. New relationships retain the default values configured for their type when applicable.

For a missing source or target, name or unique-key matching can offer Create the asset or a blocking error. A unique-key creation uses its value as the asset name. An unknown endpoint ID does not create an asset and can cause the row to be skipped.

Archive and restore

A mapped Archived value of true requests archiving; false requests restoration. Check the value mapping rather than assuming every spelling of yes or no is recognized.

Without an explicit archive value, a matched archived relationship is normally restored when existing relationships are processed. Choosing to skip existing relationships preserves it, unless an explicit false value requests restoration.

An explicit archive value can therefore cause a lifecycle change even when you chose to skip existing relationships. Review those actions separately from property updates.

Exchange unique keys

Two relationships cannot directly swap unique-key values in one import. The check also blocks cycles involving several relationships. Use Boldo IDs to preserve each relationship’s identity during the exchange.

For example, A holds KEY-A and B holds KEY-B:

1. Import an unused temporary value for A, then check the result.
2. Prepare a second import: B receives KEY-A and A receives KEY-B.
3. Verify the preview, confirm and check both relationships.

Restoration must also respect keys retained by the archive, even when those columns are absent from the file. Correct a conflicting key in the row identified by its Boldo ID, or free the value before restoring.

Confirm and check

1. Read the preview counters and expand the relevant entries.
2. Match row numbers and detailed changes against your file. Check displayed endpoints, newly created endpoint assets and archive or restore actions.
3. Correct ambiguous instances, conflicting keys and mismatched endpoints. Run Verify again after making corrections.
4. Select Confirm import when the preview is correct.
5. Wait for the final result and open the relationship inventory.
6. Inspect representative instances, their identifiers and their properties. Enable View archives to check archived relationships.

Preview details may be truncated; their counters can exceed the visible rows. With no changes, the dialog offers Close.

The data is checked again at execution. A new conflict can prevent the import even after an earlier valid preview. If execution reports an error or the connection is interrupted, inspect the result before retrying. A failure reported after changes were saved does not prove that nothing changed.

For the ordinary inventory controls, see managing relationships. For an unexpected result, follow import troubleshooting.