CiviCRM Community Forums (archive)

The built-in import allows you to import "related contacts" inline. So, when importing Peter Miller, you could include columns for his children's first and last names in the same row. Then map them by selecting "-related contact info-" >> Child of >> First Name, Last Name.

It may be possible to use the

• "Update if Duplicate" feature to go back and define these on a second pass. I'd first try it with a small sample - and define Head of Household:

* Import a few Household records
* Then re-import existing individuals (head of households) with a column added for Household Name

However,  I have tested this type of update and it might not function as expected. Also, this may be too cumbersome given the structure of your data. It might be better to create a script to do insert the relationships directly via SQL. If you fill the External Identifier (civicrm_contact.external_identifier) field with your Personal_ID value for individuals, and Family_ID for households - you'll have a unique key in the DB to figure out which records need to be connected.

Hi Dave,

I'm surprised you recommend hammering at the sql level directly from the import script.

I'd rather have started with using Civicrm classes to work at an higher level of abstraction, so it takes care of the functionnal constraints and be sure not to miss a record on some table here and there, and makes it hopefully work better next time there is a new db schema.

Are they limitations on the classes and apis that i'm not aware of so they are unfit for that need ?

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