Importing and Exporting Entities
FlexNet Operations 2014
You can import and export entities from FlexNet Operations database into other Operations databases. This allows you to migrate data between different FlexNet Operations installations. In addition, data export can be helpful when troubleshooting issues. For example, problematic entities can be exported to a file and then sent to tech support for review.
Most imports and exports are contained in packages, which are .jar file that contain an XML meta-file to describe the contents of the package and the order in which they should be loaded, and content XML files for the entities. However, it is also possible to export the contents of many of the most common landing pages and search results as comma-separated value (CSV) files. (See Exporting to CSV, on this page, for more details about this option.)
Importing and Exporting Entities
When importing or exporting, you can select a single entity, specific entities, or all entities of a certain type. For example, you can export a single product, selected products, or all products. If you export an entity, you can also choose to export its dependent entities (dependencies). For example, if you export an entitlement, and you select its dependencies, FlexNet Operations can also export the entitlement’s dependent product, features and other associated entities.
Permission to view an entity also includes permission to export it.
Importable and exportable entities include:
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License Technologies, License Models and License Generator Configurations |
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Publishers and publisher identities |
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Features and Feature Bundles |
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Product relationships to license models, features, feature bundles, license models, part numbers and other products |
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Simple entitlements and line items |
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Bulk entitlements and Web register keys. |
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Fulfillments, including fulfillment vendor names |
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All business objects in FlexNet Operations (including including organization units, license technologies, products, suites, features, feature bundles, license models, entitlements, and fulfillment records). |
Important: You cannot import or export test entities, such as test entitlements.
Note: Administrative entities like roles and domains, and records like history and audit trails cannot be exported or imported.
Imports and exports are processed as background jobs. Before importing or exporting, you should configure an alert for the background queue.
To configure alerts for background queue processing
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Click Administer Operations > Define Alerts. |
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Under Export and Import Background Jobs, click Configure. |
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On the Set Alert Handlers page, set your alert handlers. |
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If desired, set a value for the interval at which Operations will check for background jobs. The default is 5 seconds. |
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Subscribe to the alert as usual. |
To export an entity or set of entities from FlexNet Operations
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On the landing page for the entity, do one of the following: |
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To export selected entities, select one or more entities, then click Export > Export Selected or Export Selected with Their Dependencies. |
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To export all entities in the list, click Export > Export All Entities or Export All with Their Dependencies. |
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The selected entities are exported to a jar file. If you chose to include dependencies, the dependencies are included. |
Note: The structure of the required metafile is described in detail in the FlexNet Operations Implementation Guide.
To export the entire FlexNet Operations database
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Click Administer Operations, and select Export from the navigation bar. |
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On the Export Business Objects page, click Export. |
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Click Yes to confirm export. |
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All exportable business objects in FlexNet Operations are exported to a .jar file. Your job is assigned a request number, and an alert is sent when processing is completed. You can check job status on the Status page. |
To import a set of entities into FlexNet Operations
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Click Administer Operations, and select Import from the navigation bar. |
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On the Import Business Objects page, under Would you like to submit the import job and come back for the results?, select one of the following: |
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Yes: A large file, over 2 MB in size, should be processed asynchronously. The job is submitted for processing and assigned a record number, and you can check the job status on the status page. |
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No: A smaller file, under 2 MB, can be processed synchronously. (It will not be placed in a processing queue but processed immediately.) |
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Under File Name, click Browse. Browse to the.jar file you wish to import. |
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Under Do you want the process to continue if some records fail to import?, select one of the following: |
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Continue: the import process will continue even if errors are encountered. |
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Stop: the import process will stop upon encountering an error. |
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Under Should duplicate records be updated or generate an error?, select one of the following: |
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Update: If the entity already exists in the database, the record is updated with the information in the import file. |
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Generate Error: If the entity already exists in the database, it is not updated and an error message is generated. |
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Click Import. The file is imported into FlexNet Operations. |
To check the status of an import or export job
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Click Administer Operations. Under Import/Export Data, click Status. |
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The status of all import/export jobs is displayed. |
To delete a job from the historical record, select the job and click Delete.
To download a job log to a local file, select the job and click Download Exported File.
Exporting to CSV
The contents of most landing pages and search results pages can be exported as comma-separated value (CSV) files. You can export all the rows shown in the table on the current page or select specific rows to be included in the CSV. This process is not the same as the traditional entity exports that are stored as .jar files and that can later be imported into another FlexNet Operations instance. Instead, the exported CSV files can be opened in or imported into spreadsheet applications or other reporting tools.
To export selected items as a CSV file
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On the landing page or search results page for the entity, click the checkboxes for the rows of the items you want to export. |
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Click Export > Selected Items as CSV. |
FlexNet Operations generates a CSV from the rows you checked and prompts you to open or save the file. (The exact user experience, here, depends on web browser you are using.)
To export all items as a CSV file
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On the landing page or search results page for the entity, click Export > All Items as CSV. |
FlexNet Operations generates a CSV from all the rows that match your search criteria (or simply all rows, if no search applies). Typically, your browser will prompt you to save the file. (The exact user experience, here, depends on web browser you are using.)
By default, the CSV filename corresponds to the entity type you are exporting. For example, when exporting from the Package Products page, the default CSV filename is PackageProducts.csv.
The CSV file also includes the table heading row, even if it is not expressly selected prior to exporting. This way, all CSV files include column headings to clearly describe the contents of the columns.
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