About

OptimaBSC

Optima Business Systems and Consulting (aka OptimaBSC) is a registered Bitrix24 Partner and a Bitrix24 specialist. OptimaBSC provides Bitrix24 subscriptions, as well as services such as implementation & configuration, training and support. OptimaBSC’s clients range from across various industries and include various sized organisations.

SPA-I

The Smart Process Automation Importer, aka the SPA-I, was developed by OptimaBSC to service it’s Bitrix24 client’s requirement to import data into SPA’s in their Bitrix24 accounts, as there was no native functionality in Bitrix24 (at the time) nor were there Market app’s available that could satisfy the client’s requirements. OptimaBSC then choose to make this app publicly and freely (at least for the time being!) available to other Bitrix24 clients.

Pre-Import

Before using the SPA-I to import data, the following must be done:

1. The SPA must be created & configured in Bitrix24, including all custom fields.
2. A Bitrix24 Inbound Webhook must be created.
3. The import file (*csv) must be populated with the import data in the correct formats.

Bitrix24 SPA:

Although the SPA-I can accommodate most field types during importing, there are a few field types that are not support (at this stage). The SPA can still be configured to include these unsupported field types, but the SPA-I will not be able to import data into these unsupported field types. Check for the unsupported field type in the section of this guide covering the import file.

Bitrix24 Inbound Webhook:

The SPA-I requires a Bitrix24 Inbound Webhook to import data into a SPA.

The inbound webhook is created as follows:

1. Go to Developer Resources>Other>Inbound webhook
2. Under ‘Assign permissions’ find and select ‘CRM (crm)’
3. Click on SAVE
4. Copy the URL in the ‘Webhook to call REST API’ and store it safely and securely somewhere.

Note: The above steps must be completed by a Bitrix24 user on the account that has adequate access permissions to create data in the specific Bitrix24 SPA. Refer to the Bitrix24 Helpdesk article, 'Create webhooks and apps in Bitrix24' for more information.

Important: When performing an import on the SPA-I, the inbound webhook must be provided with the import file. Keeping this inbound webhook secure is a priority and therefore:

• the webhook is inputted as a password
• the webhook is encrypted by the SPA-I
• the webhook is only used/stored for the duration of the import, and
• the webhook is deleted once the import is completed.

The Import File

Some general points regarding the import file:

• The import file must be a comma separated value (csv) file where the column on each row is separated by a comma.
• The largest file size that can be uploaded to the SPA-I is 256Mb.
• The first row in the file must contain the column headers with no blanks and there must be the same number of headers as there are columns of data.
• The file must contain at least one row of data.

Some specific points regarding the SPA fields, the field types and the import data:

• The SPA-I supports most SPA field types but there are a few that are not (currently) supported.
  • The Created By and Previous Stage fields on not support in the Bitrix24 REST API, so are not supported by the SPA-I.
  • The Pipeline field is currently not supported.
  • Address Details are not supported.
  • File type fields, i.e. for uploaded files, are not supported.
• The import data for the following default Bitrix24 fields must be captured as the index value and not the title/name value for the field’s option:
  • Stage
  • Source
• The import data for SPA fields that can accept multiple values within one column must be separated by a ‘pipe’ (‘|’) character, without spaces between the values and the ‘|’.
• The data for a linked Contact/Company via the Customer field must be provided by the Contact’s/Company’s ID value.
• The format for the import data for Bind-to-CRM type fields must formatted as follows for the respective CRM entities, using the entities’ ID value(s):
  • Contacts: C_{ID}
  • Companies: CO_{ID}
  • Lead: L_{ID}
  • Deal: D_{ID}
  • SPA: {ENTITY_TYPE_ID}_{ID}
• The data for fields linked to Bitrix24 users (e.g. Responsible Person, Observers) must simply be the ID value.
• The format for the data for Date & Date-Time type field must be correct (dd-mm-yyyy & dd-mm-yyyy hh:mm:ss) to ensure the data is imported correctly.

Importing

Importing data is done in 4 easy steps:

1. Submit the inbound webhook and upload the import file.
2. Select the SPA where the import is destined.
3. Map the import file’s columns to the SPA fields.
4. Import the data!

Registration

Although the SPA-I can be used free of charge without a limit on the number of imports done, there is a restriction on the number of records that can be imported at one time of 100 rows. The main reasons for this restriction are to mitigate abuse and to avoid overloading the server (which has limited resources at present).

The records-per-import restriction can however be removed if a registration is completed. After registering, there is no restriction on the number of records per import, although the maximum import file size is still restricted.

Registering, and providing the required registration information, is completely optional. When registering, it necessary to accepting the terms and conditions of registration. So, take the time to read through the “the fine print”.

Support

You are welcome to contact OptimaBSC with any questions or comments or recommendations regarding the SPA-I.

Also, if you need any assistance or support for your Bitrix24 in general, please contact OptimaBSC.