The Rave Alert SmartLoader lets you easily maintain membership information in Rave’s Alert system. SmartLoader accepts complete user membership files, processes them for differences, and applies any changes to the Rave system. SmartLoader can add users, delete users, or change user information. Optionally, if purchased, Smartloader can be automated to help reduce effort required to keep users in sync with your database of record.
Rave's new loadfile format is extremely flexible and allows you to create user records with as few as four fields. Please contact Rave Technical Support (techsupport@ravemobilesafety.com) to ensure you are running the proper version of the loader job.
Creating the CSV file
When you create a list of users to import, you'll probably generate this list from another user management system such as an employee database. If you need to create the list from scratch you can use a program like Microsoft Excel, however Rave strongly recommends against using the Alert system as the database of record.
Note:
- The first row of the CSV file is the header row, and you must include it in the file.
- The header row must contain the four required fields in the table below, plus any other fields listed in the table below that you want to include.
- Field names must be exactly as indicated in the "Field Name" column below, including spaces, underscores, etc.
- Included fields can be included in the csv in any order
- Subsequent load files MUST contain a full set of data except in the case of Managed Contacts
- Empty columns/missing data in the file will overwrite any existing data for that user. (note exceptions in load control section below)
Required Fields
| Field Name | Description |
|
Unique Loader ID |
REQUIRED Rave uses this ID to match records during updates. The value must be unique within the site for each user and must stay consistent for each user as long as the user is in the Rave Alert database |
|
First Name |
User's first name |
| Last Name |
User's last name |
| Registration Email Address | User's primary email. The value must be unique within the site for each user. |
Optional Fields
| Field Name | Description/Notes |
| Mobile Phone 1 | Primary mobile phone number. For US numbers, 10 integer digits. For International, + followed by number including country code |
| Site Username | User’s authentication system login value - Used for CAS authentication only |
| Email Address 2 | |
| Email Address 3 | |
| Mobile Phone 2 | |
| Mobile Phone 3 | |
| Mobile 1 Voice | Option to deliver voice to mobile 1: 0 = No, 1 = Yes, null = use site default |
| Mobile 2 Voice | Option to deliver voice to mobile 2: 0 = No, 1 = Yes, null = use site default |
| Mobile 3 Voice | Option to deliver voice to mobile 3: 0 = No, 1 = Yes, null = use site default |
| Landline Phone 1 | Voice Only provider |
| Landline 1 Extension | Valid values: 0 - 9, “#” (pound) , * (asterisk) or “p” |
| Landline Phone 2 | |
| Landline 2 Extension | |
| Landline Phone 3 | |
| Landline 3 Extension | |
| Language Preference | 2 character language code. See Full load specifications for details |
| Notify By SMS | Send text alerts to the user. |
| 0 = No, 1 = Yes, null = use site default | |
| Notify by Email | Send email alerts to the user. |
| 0 = No, 1 = Yes, null = use site default | |
| Optional Custom Attributes | Rave Alerts supports 20 string attributes, 5 integer attributes, 5 true/false attributes, and 5 date-time attributes. You can manage attributes by adding them through the loader or through the Rave Alert console. For header column layout, please see full documentation. |
Importing the CSV data file
Your completed csv file can be loaded into the system one of two ways: if you have purchased SmartLoader automation, you can simply drop the file in the webdav or sftp folder that you set up during your implementation. The automation will pull the file into the system at the specified time.
If you do not have automation set up, upload the file to your webDAV folder and manually click on the "Run Smart Loader" button on the Smartloader page.
Load Control
User data within the Rave system can be modified in different ways. Users can edit their information, authorized administrators can manually change user information, and SmartLoader can perform automated data uploads.
Although load control can be complicated, it can be distilled down to a discussion about what process last updated the data. If SmartLoader updated the data in question then the data is in load control (or load controlled) whereas if a user or managed contacts updated the data the data in question is out of load control.
User profiles can be partially in load control if some of their fields are user-edited. For example, if a user changes their preferred email address, SmartLoader can still update the user’s first and last name, phone number, and registration email address as specified by the load file. Data is pulled back into load control when a SmartLoader load is run and the data matches the data in the system.
Additional Related Resources
Rave SmartLoader full specifications
Smartloader Logging