Configuring the Initialize Properties settings

The Initialize Properties settings of the Document Import Tool determine:

• How the properties of imported documents will be populated with data, if at all
• Whether new versions of documents will be created for existing documents

Warning    After files have been imported a vault, document properties that were not explicitly set during the import (from title blocks, default property assignments, and so on) contain no values. Those properties will not be synchronized to the imported content files by the Meridian application links. This is done by design to prevent overwriting existing values. The properties can be synchronized from the imported content files. Such properties must be set in the vault to an explicit value at least once before the properties will be synchronized to the content files.

To configure the Initialize Properties settings:

1. Click Initialize Properties in the left pane. The Initialize Properties property page opens in the right pane. The custom properties defined in the vault’s configuration are listed along with their property set and data type.

   If the data source field name matches either a Meridian property internal name or display name, it will be mapped automatically.

2. This view of the properties is one of several provided by the Document Import Tool. Click the Properties Page Layout button  to select other views.
3. For each field (except the file path field specified on the DataSource page) contained in the data file selected for the import operation, select a corresponding vault property in the list.
4. Enable Initialize in the lower right pane.
5. Select options and type text using the descriptions in the following table.

Property initialization options

Option	Description
Use naming expression to calculate file name	If enabled, the name of the imported document will be calculated by the expression set for the document type that is assigned to the file instead of from any particular database field. This option is only available when the Name property is selected.
With fixed value	Assigns a single value to the selected field for every imported document. Type the value in the text box. If the property’s validation configuration limits its values, select an existing value from the list.
From database field	Imports the value for each document from the data file. Choose a field from the list that corresponds to the selected property.
Document key property	Causes the Document Import Tool to search for existing documents in the vault in order to add new revisions using the imported documents. The Document Import Tool will search for a matching value between the selected field and the selected property.
With result of expression	Type a VBScript expression to calculate the value you want to set in the selected property. Click the Meridian Script Editor button to display the Meridian Script Editor dialog to help you build and validate an expression.
Check property validation	Validates the property value from the database against the rules configured for the property in the vault. If the validation fails, the value is not imported and an error is added to the Errors tab in the Import Details property page.

6. Repeat steps 2 through 4 for each field in the data source file.