Import data with a preview before commit

Goal

Import one reviewed data set without committing unknown columns, guessed dates, or unresolved validation errors.

Prerequisites

• You are the owner of the active company. The Import workspace is owner-only.
• You have an export from the source system or a completed 4fleet template.
• You know the source date order and timezone when dates could be ambiguous.
• You have a safe copy of the original export outside 4fleet.

Steps

1. Open Settings > Import / Migrate. Use the public Switch to 4fleet guide only to prepare source exports before signing in.
2. In the Source step, choose the matching source profile. Choose the generic or AI-assisted lane only when no specific profile matches the file.
3. Read the export instructions for the chosen source and acknowledge the template requirements.
4. In Upload, add each file to the correct slot. Confirm ambiguous workbook sheets manually instead of accepting an uncertain assignment.
5. Set date order and timezone when the source profile exposes those controls.
6. In Map, review every target field and source column. Correct required fields and mark irrelevant columns as ignored.
7. Save the mapping as a template only when the source export format is stable and the mapping has been verified.
8. Open Preview and run the dry-run check. Review created, updated, skipped, duplicate, warning, and error counts for every entity.
9. Return to Map or Upload when the preview exposes missing required data, wrong dates, wrong currencies, or uncertain entity links.
10. Select Commit only when the preview report is acceptable, then review the final import report and spot-check records in their owning screens.

Expected result

The committed counts match the reviewed preview closely, imported records belong to the active company, and spot checks confirm correct dates, links, money, and statuses.

Troubleshooting

• Upload is rejected: confirm the file type, size, template, and source slot.
• Dates are reversed: return to the source settings and choose the correct day-first or month-first order and timezone.
• Columns are unmapped: map the required target fields manually. Do not commit an uncertain identity, date, or amount.
• Preview shows duplicates: inspect the matching identifiers before deciding whether to skip or update.
• The commit fails or its result is unknown: inspect the import job and final report before repeating it. Keep the job reference and contact support@4fleet.io if you cannot establish what was written. A lost response alone is not proof that nothing changed.
• The completed import is wrong: use the import rollback action promptly when available, then verify the rollback report. Rollback removes records created by that import, not unrelated company data.

Guided check: Import validation

4fleet can run an automated Import validation check on one import job. The check only reads what is already stored, changes nothing, and returns one line per test. A fail line is what is blocking you, a warning works but is degraded, skipped means the test did not apply here, and unknown means the record could not be read, so that line proves nothing either way. What each line means:

• Import job exists (import_job_exists): fails when no import job with that reference belongs to your company.
• Job not failed (job_not_failed): fails when the run failed, in which case nothing from it was written, and warns when the import was rolled back, in which case its rows were removed again.
• Preview produced (preview_produced): fails when no entity was recognised in the file, so there is nothing to preview or commit. Check the column mapping.
• Rows valid (rows_valid): fails when rows failed validation, with the count per entity and the most common reasons. Those rows were not imported.
• Duplicates understood (duplicates_understood): warns when rows were skipped because a record with the same source id already exists. This is the usual reason the imported count is lower than the file.
• Commit matches preview (commit_matches_preview): fails when fewer rows were written than the preview promised, per entity. It is skipped until the job is committed.
• No blocking warnings (no_blocking_warnings): warns with the first importer warnings raised during the run.