With the Excel integration, you can import your data as components and references in Ardoq using .xls, .xlsx, .xslm, or .csv files.

The Excel integration enables you to translate a tabular dataset such as an Excel spreadsheet to a graph representation in Ardoq. This is done by mapping your tabular data so that it fits into your Ardoq metamodel.

Mapping allows you to:

You can also use the Excel integration to update existing data in Ardoq. This is a great option for doing bulk updates or changes.

The Excel sample file provides an example of how your should structure your Excel spreadsheet for import into Ardoq.

Each worksheet should represent either a set of components or a set of references between components. Ardoq requires each worksheet to be configured separately.

In our sample Excel file, we have the following structure:

Note: The -> symbol is a short-hand to symbolize a reference between components. It has no functional impact on the importing or mapping process.

Workspaces define the repositories where components will live. Each worksheet can have its components imported into a unique workspace or you can use a single workspace to store all your components.

You'll have the option to create or re-use workspaces for each worksheet in your Excel import.

References, unlike components, can connect a source and a target workspace together. This allows you to create references between components in different workspaces. You can also have the source and target workspace be the same workspace and make connections between components in the same place.

Each row in a sheet — excluding the first header row — will be mapped to create a component in Ardoq.

Components are given more details by mapping each column in the sheet to a different type. For example, some common types include:

You can indicate a hierarchy in your import by assigning multiple Component name types to your columns.

For example, if you have a parent application column, setting that column to be of Component name type will automatically give it a hierarchy level of 1. If you have a child application column related to the parent, you can also set it to be of the Component name type, and its hierarchy level will be set to 2, indicating that it is a child component.

When creating this import, Ardoq will create two components from a single row: one component from the parent and one component from the child.

References express how components relate to each other and can take many forms. Some common references include:

When importing references, you need to define a source workspace and a target workspace. The source and target workspace can be the same workspace.

With that defined, you can establish the sort of relationships exist between the components in those workspaces. This is done by specifying columns as Source and Target types, as well as adding a Type column type to specify the relationship name.

You can do this in two ways:

In the next steps, we'll use the sample Excel file as the basis for creating our components and references.

This step will perform validation on your column mapping and warn you if there are any problems that make the data import impossible.

In our case, our mapping is correct, and we should be able to execute our data import.

Click Next: Import my data to complete importing your Excel data into Ardoq.

You can open the workspaces you created to see your components and the references between them. The view of our example data looks like this:

You can save your column mapping for use later by clicking the Save configuration button in the top-right corner of the import flow. You can think of saved configurations as templates for your data.

Saved configurations are useful if you're going to be importing new data using Excel sheets with the same structure. Returning to a saved configuration will automatically set the mapping of the Excel import to your last saved mapping.

Be aware that if you add or rearrange the order of worksheets in your Excel file, Ardoq will not preserve your structure or mapping.

In addition, the first row in your Excel sheet is considered to be a column header and will be ignored by the importer.

Text paragraph fields in Ardoq are rendered as Markdown. As a result, values imported into Text paragraph fields, especially line breaks, can look differently than in Excel. In Ardoq's Markdown formatting, a line break is indicated by " \n" (two spaces followed by a newline). A new paragraph is indicated by "\n\n" (two consecutive newlines), as per standard Markdown practices, largely in line with the CommonMark specification.
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Some field names are reserved for internal systems in Ardoq. If you are trying to map a field using a reserved field name, you'll get a warning and will have to choose a different name for the field.

The Excel importer is subject to permissions checks. This means that you cannot import into workspaces where you only have read permissions.

Using commas to import several references at once is currently possible for outgoing references from a Components sheet only. To create them:

Separate the components in your spreadsheet that you wish to make multiple references to by using commas.

Next, upload your file and follow the steps in the importer or read step-by-step instructions in the Component Mapping section above.