Commands

In DataEase, every row in your import file can include a command. This command tells the app what to do with that row of data. It can update an existing item, create a new one, delete something, or even skip the row entirely.

Each data type in DataEase may support additional custom commands, which are documented in their specific entity pages.

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⚙️ Default Command: MERGE

• The app will try to find an existing item and update it using the data in the row.
• If no item is found, it will create a new one.

✅ This is the most common command and works for both updating and adding new records.

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✳️ Create Command: CREATE

• The app will try to create a new item.
• If an item already exists (with the same ID or handle), the row will fail.

✅ Use this when importing brand-new data only.
❌ Do not use if some of the data might already exist.

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🔁 Update Command: UPDATE

• The app will search for an existing item and update it.
• If it can’t find a match, the row will fail.

✅ Best for updating existing records only.
❌ Does not create new items.

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♻️ Replace Command: REPLACE

• The app will look for an existing item.
• If it finds one, it deletes it.
• Then it creates a new one using only the data in that row.

⚠️ Be careful: If some data is missing in the row, the new item will not include it.

✅ Useful for fully rebuilding records with clean data.

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❌ Delete Command: DELETE

• The app will find and delete the item.
• If the item cannot be found, the row will fail.

✅ Use this to remove old or incorrect records.

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⏭️ Ignore Command: IGNORE

• The app will skip this row and do nothing with it.

✅ Helpful for temporarily removing rows from import without deleting them from the file.

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📝 Command Summary Table

Command	What it does	Creates new items?	Updates existing?	Deletes existing?
MERGE	Updates or creates if item not found	✅	✅	❌
CREATE	Creates only new items	✅	❌	❌
UPDATE	Updates only if item already exists	❌	✅	❌
REPLACE	Deletes existing and creates new with current values	✅	❌	✅
DELETE	Deletes existing items	❌	❌	✅
IGNORE	Skips the row entirely	❌	❌	❌

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💡 How to Add Commands in Your File

In your import file, include a column named command and fill it with one of the supported values (like MERGE, CREATE, etc.).

title,handle,price,command
"Red T-shirt","red-tee",19.99,MERGE
"Blue T-shirt","blue-tee",21.99,CREATE
"Old Product","old-handle",,DELETE