Import CSV data

Introduction

CSV import can be easily achieved through PHP's built-in fgetcsv() method, but this method doesn't know anything about your datamodel. In SilverStripe, this can be handled through the a specialized CSV importer class that can be customised to fit your data.

The CsvBulkLoader class

The CsvBulkLoader class facilitate complex CSV-imports by defining column-mappings and custom converters. It uses PHP's built-in fgetcsv() function to process CSV input, and accepts a file handle as an input.

Feature overview:

Custom column mapping
Auto-detection of CSV-header rows
Duplicate detection based on custom criteria
Automatic generation of relations based on one or more columns in the CSV-Data
Definition of custom import methods (e.g. for date conversion or combining multiple columns)
Optional deletion of existing records if they're not present in the CSV-file
Results grouped by "imported", "updated" and "deleted"

Usage

You can use the CsvBulkLoader without subclassing or other customizations, if the column names in your CSV file match $db properties in your dataobject. E.g. a simple import for the Member class could have this data in a file:

	FirstName,LastName,Email
	Donald,Duck,donald@disney.com
	Daisy,Duck,daisy@disney.com

	$loader = new CsvBulkLoader('Member');
	$result = $loader->load('<my-file-path>');

interface out of the box.

Import through ModelAdmin

The simplest way to use CsvBulkLoader is through a ModelAdmin interface - you get an upload form out of the box.

	<?php
	class PlayerAdmin extends ModelAdmin {
	   private static $managed_models = array(
	      'Player'
	   );
	   private static $model_importers = array(
	      'Player' => 'CsvBulkLoader',
	   );
	   private static $url_segment = 'players';
	}
	?>

below the search form on the left.

Import through a custom controller

You can have more customised logic and interface feedback through a custom controller. Let's create a simple upload form (which is used for MyDataObject instances). You'll need to add a route to your controller to make it accessible via URL (see director).

	<?php
	class MyController extends Controller {

		private static $allowed_actions = array('Form');

		protected $template = "BlankPage";

		public function Link($action = null) {
			return Controller::join_links('MyController', $action);
		}

		public function Form() {
			$form = new Form(
				$this,
				'Form',
				new FieldList(
					new FileField('CsvFile', false)
				),
				new FieldList(
					new FormAction('doUpload', 'Upload')
				),
				new RequiredFields()
			);
			return $form;
		}

		public function doUpload($data, $form) {
			$loader = new CsvBulkLoader('MyDataObject');
			$results = $loader->load($_FILES['CsvFile']['tmp_name']);
			$messages = array();
			if($results->CreatedCount()) $messages[] = sprintf('Imported %d items', $results->CreatedCount());
			if($results->UpdatedCount()) $messages[] = sprintf('Updated %d items', $results->UpdatedCount());
			if($results->DeletedCount()) $messages[] = sprintf('Deleted %d items', $results->DeletedCount());
			if(!$messages) $messages[] = 'No changes';
			$form->sessionMessage(implode(', ', $messages), 'good');

			return $this->redirectBack();
		}
	}

with certain access rights.

Column mapping and relation import

We're going to use our knowledge from the previous example to import a more sophisticated CSV file.

Sample CSV Content

	"Number","Name","Birthday","Team"
	11,"John Doe",1982-05-12,"FC Bayern"
	12,"Jane Johnson", 1982-05-12,"FC Bayern"
	13,"Jimmy Dole",,"Schalke 04"

Datamodel for Player

	<?php
	class Player extends DataObject {
	   private static $db = array(
	      'PlayerNumber' => 'Int',
	      'FirstName' => 'Text',
	      'LastName' => 'Text',
	      'Birthday' => 'Date',
	   );
	   private static $has_one = array(
	      'Team' => 'FootballTeam'
	   );
	}
	?>

Datamodel for FootballTeam:

	<?php
	class FootballTeam extends DataObject {
	   private static $db = array(
	      'Title' => 'Text',
	   );
	   private static $has_many = array(
	      'Players' => 'Player'
	   );
	}
	?>

Sample implementation of a custom loader. Assumes a CSV-file in a certain format (see below).

Converts property names
Splits a combined "Name" fields from the CSV-data into FirstName and Lastname by a custom importer method
Avoids duplicate imports by a custom $duplicateChecks definition
Creates Team relations automatically based on the Gruppe column in the CSV data

	<?php
	class PlayerCsvBulkLoader extends CsvBulkLoader {
	   public $columnMap = array(
	      'Number' => 'PlayerNumber', 
	      'Name' => '->importFirstAndLastName', 
	      'Birthday' => 'Birthday', 
	      'Team' => 'Team.Title', 
	   );
	   public $duplicateChecks = array(
	      'Number' => 'PlayerNumber'
	   );
	   public $relationCallbacks = array(
	      'Team.Title' => array(
	         'relationname' => 'Team',
	         'callback' => 'getTeamByTitle'
	      )
	   );
	   public static function importFirstAndLastName(&$obj, $val, $record) {
	      $parts = explode(' ', $val);
	      if(count($parts) != 2) return false;
	      $obj->FirstName = $parts[0];
	      $obj->LastName = $parts[1];
	   }
	   public static function getTeamByTitle(&$obj, $val, $record) {
	      return FootballTeam::get()->filter('Title', $val)->First();
	   }
	}
	?>

	<?php
	class PlayerAdmin extends ModelAdmin {
	   private static $managed_models = array(
		  'Player'
	   );
	   private static $model_importers = array(
		  'Player' => 'PlayerCsvBulkLoader',
	   );
	   private static $url_segment = 'players';
	}
	?>

Edit on Github

Import CSV data#

Introduction#

The CsvBulkLoader class#

Usage#

Import through ModelAdmin#

Import through a custom controller#

Column mapping and relation import#

Related#