Sources for consolidated catalog import in Eofferix

What counts as a catalog source

A source is the input data that a profile reads and then imports into the consolidated catalog. You choose it when creating a consolidated catalog import profile: app.eofferix.com/profiles/new?target_template=summary_catalog.

The profile can work with these input types:

uploaded files: XML/YML, JSON, CSV, XLS, XLSX, XLSM, and ZIP;
data prepared through Source Manager: URL, authorized URL, FTP/FTPS/SFTP, email, Google Sheets, Yandex Tables, Google Drive, Yandex Disk, 1C/CommerceML, and other supported supplier modules;
on paid plans, another Eofferix consolidated catalog selected as the source for a new profile.

If the input has fields with image URLs, map those fields to product images. Profile rules can then convert images to another supported format, resize them, or apply a watermark.

After a file is uploaded or a source is selected, Eofferix analyzes the input and creates a short snapshot. The snapshot shows unique nodes, elements, attributes, columns, and sample rows instead of displaying the entire large file.

Choosing the source in the profile

If the file is already on your computer, choose "Upload a new file". After upload, the profile detects the format, prepares the working file, and opens the import settings.

A new file can be uploaded directly while creating the import profile.

If the source is already configured in Sources, select it in the profile. This source can be updated separately from the profile, for example from a URL, email, cloud storage, 1C, or FTP/FTPS/SFTP.

An existing source is connected to the profile and used as the import input.

If the source does not exist yet, create it in Sources. On the new source page, choose how Eofferix should receive the data: computer upload, 1C/CommerceML, URL file, authorized link, FTP/FTPS, Google Sheets, Yandex Tables, Google Drive, Yandex Disk, or IMAP mail.

Source types in Eofferix Source Manager — Source Manager stores the data acquisition method that can later be selected in a profile.

On paid plans, another consolidated catalog created in Eofferix can be used as the source. In this mode, products and offers from that catalog are passed to the profile as regular input: you can filter them, transform them, and import them into another consolidated catalog.

Another consolidated catalog can be used as input data for a new profile.

What to check in settings

Before configuring the snapshot, set the product and offer identification fields. Use stable values such as SKU, external ID, or a field combination that lets the profile recognize the same item during later runs.

Selecting product and offer identification fields — Identification fields help the profile decide which record to create and which record to update.

Import rules define actions for found and new records: whether to create products and offers, whether to update found records, and what to do with empty values, zero stock, or zero price.

These rules are configured at profile level before working with the snapshot.

The profile processes the whole source. Cleanup settings define what happens to records that already exist in the catalog but did not come from the current source: leave them unchanged, delete them, unpublish them, or set stock to zero. The scope is selected separately: current source, current-source records without other links, or the whole catalog.

Cleanup settings and scope after import — Cleanup controls records missing from the source and the area where the action is applied.

How the snapshot works

After you select a source or upload a file, the next step creates a snapshot: a short version of the source file where you configure the final structure and transformations. In this snapshot, choose which fields become product, offer, and section fields, which fields become product properties and values, whether images should be converted to another supported format, resized, watermarked, and more.

In practice, start with the XML node that repeats for each product. Open that node, for example product, and set its role to "Product". Then open a value inside that node, for example sku, and select the consolidated catalog field "SKU" for it.

Animation of XML snapshot setup: product node and SKU field — First the XML product node is marked as a product, then the sku value is assigned to the product SKU field.

Use the same pattern for price, stock, name, section, image, and property values: set the node context first, then assign each required value to its catalog field.

What happens after the run

After the run, the profile creates or updates records in the consolidated catalog and keeps the link to the source. This link lets later runs update matching products and offers instead of creating duplicates when the keys match.

Consolidated catalog after loading data from the source — After the run, the result appears in the consolidated catalog as products, offers, sections, and related data.

If one product comes from several sources, it can remain one product card. Values from different sources can be placed into separate price groups and stock groups, so the card can show different purchase prices, stock quantities, and warehouses.

Product card with multiple price and stock groups — One product can store values from several sources in different price and stock groups.

Short checklist

Product and offer identification fields are selected from unique, stable values. Most often this is an ID field, SKU, or external ID.
Create, update, and empty-value rules match the import scenario. Pay special attention to this setting: an incorrect import can erase the entire catalog.
Cleanup settings apply to the intended scope: current source, current-source records without other links, or the whole catalog.
Separate price and stock groups are configured for multiple suppliers, prices, or warehouses.
Image fields are mapped only where images should be added to the catalog or processed by profile rules.