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Rather than adding IT asset records one at a time, you can bulk-add and update many records at once by importing a CSV (comma-separated values) file. You must be an admin to bulk import custom object records.

This article contains the following topics:
  • Importing the IT asset records with the data importer
  • Bulk importing asset records with action flows

Importing the IT asset records with the data importer

You can use the data importer to import the CSV file to create new IT asset records. When using the data importer, the following requirements apply:
  • The import CSV file can't exceed 1 GB in size or 10,000 rows of data. Furthermore, each row can't exceed 32 KB in size.
  • The import CSV file can contain a maximum of 100 columns.
  • Don't include the same record more than once within a CSV file. Doing so can cause your import to fail.
  • There's no guarantee that asset records are created or updated in the order they appear in the CSV file.
To bulk import asset data
  1. Before you can bulk upload IT asset records, you must:
    • Create and configure the IT asset type and asset fields.
    • Create a properly formatted CSV file.
  2. In Admin Center, click Objects and rules in the sidebar, then select Tools > Data importer.
  3. Click Import.
  4. Under Target destination, select Assets.
  5. Under Import type, choose one of the following:
    • Create only: Only new asset records are created. Any data in the CSV file pertaining to existing records is ignored.
    • Update only: Replace data for the existing asset records listed in your CSV file. Any data pertaining to new records is ignored.
    • Create and update: Create new asset records and update data for the existing asset records listed in your CSV file.
  6. Under File upload, drag and drop your file or click to upload and select your CSV file from the file browser.

    If you need to change the file you've selected, click the delete icon () next to the file name.

  7. Click Next.
  8. Review the Field mapping list.
    • If the field mapping is correct, click Next.
    • If the field mapping isn't correct, click Back. Edit your CSV file to adhere to the format requirements, and then re-upload the file.
  9. Review the summary of import details in the confirmation dialog and then click Start import.

    After the import starts, the imported changes can't be reverted. To check the status of an import, check your import history.

Creating the asset data CSV file

To bulk import IT asset records, you must use a CSV file. Your CSV file must adhere to the following guidelines:
  • The file must be properly formatted CSV and saved using UTF-8 character encoding.
  • The first row of the CSV file is the header row.
  • The header row must contain the following columns: name, asset type, status, and external_id. All other field names in the header row must be exact matches to the field keys in your asset types.
  • Each row must contain valid values for all of the asset type's required fields. Otherwise, the asset record can't be created.
    Note: The asset type, status, and location values are case-sensitive. Inconsistent capitalization between your CSV file and the asset type, status, and location names in Zendesk can result in a failure to create or update asset records.

    Unrecognized location values, including variations in capitalization, result in the creation of new locations of that name.

  • To import values for dropdown fields, use the custom dropdown field's field_key as the column heading and specify the options tag, not the user-friendly value.
  • To import values for lookup relationship fields, use the custom lookup relationship field's field_key as the column heading and provide either the record's ID or External ID. If you use the record's ID, provide the value. If you use the External ID, use the format external_id:value, where value is replaced with the related record's external ID value.
    Note: To assign an asset to a user during an import, you can provide the user's email in place of the user's id or external id. Assets are linked to existing Zendesk users only.
  • The External system and Reference ID properties must be used together as a pair or not at all. Together, these values are used to associate assets in Zendesk with records in external systems, such as Jamf and Microsoft Intune.
  • If you are not importing data for a field, do not list it in the header row.
  • Add line breaks to notes or multiline custom fields by pressing ALT+ENTER on Windows or CTRL+OPTION+RETURN on macOS.

Bulk importing asset records with action flows

When you connect Jamf Pro or Microsoft Intune to action builder, you can create an action flow to automatically import your asset data in bulk directly from the external system that contains it rather than having to manually create a CSV file and import it with the data importer. The following templated action flows are available for this:
  • Bulk importing assets from Microsoft Intune
  • Bulk importing computer assets from Jamf Pro
  • Bulk importing mobile assets from Jamf Pro

These templated action flows run on a schedule to maintain asset data synchronization between your external service and Zendesk.

For more information, see Using Jamf Pro actions in action flows and Using Microsoft Intune actions in action flows.

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