Importing Members
Bitcaster allows you to add multiple members at once by importing them from a comma-separated values (CSV) file. This is useful for populating the system with a large number of users quickly.
How to Import Members
- From the admin sidebar, navigate to Bitcaster > Members.
- On the Member list page, click the Import Members button located in the top-right corner.
- On the "Import Members" page, you will see two fields:
- File: Click "Choose File" and select the CSV file you want to upload.
- Group: Select the Group to which all newly imported members will be assigned. This field is required and defaults to the systems default group.
- Click the Confirm button to begin the import process.
After the import is complete, you will be redirected back to the Member list, and a message will appear confirming how many members were successfully created (e.g., "Record successfully imported 2/3").
Supported File Format
The importer has specific requirements for the file format.
- File Type: CSV (Comma-separated values).
- Encoding: The file must be UTF-8 encoded.
- Header Row: The first line of the file must be a header row containing column names.
Column Mapping
email (Required)
A column named email is mandatory. The value from this column is used to set the member's unique username and their email address.
- If the
emailcolumn is missing from the header, the import will fail. - Any data row with a missing or incorrectly formatted email address will be skipped.
Custom Fields (custom__*)
You can populate the JSON custom_fields for each member during the import. To do this, add columns to your CSV file with a header that starts with the prefix custom__.
For example, a column named custom__department will populate the department key in the custom_fields object.
Example
Here is an example of a valid CSV file:
email,first_name,last_name,custom__department,custom__employee_id
user1@example.com,John,Doe,Sales,1001
user2@example.com,Jane,Roe,Engineering,2005
invalid-email,,,Human Resources,3003
- The first two rows will be successfully imported. The
first_nameandlast_namecolumns will be ignored as they are not standard mapped fields, but the custom fieldsdepartmentandemployee_idwill be populated. - The third row will be skipped because the email address is invalid.
- The final success message will report that "2/3" records were imported.
Note: The import process is designed to add new members only. It uses the email address to identify conflicts. If a member with a given email already exists in the system, that row will be skipped. All successfully imported members will be automatically added to the group you select on the import form.