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Data Center

The Data Center is your hub for importing data into MessageDesk—starting with contacts and historical messages. Upload a CSV, map fields, resolve duplicates, and monitor progress in one place.

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Access the Data Center

Go to Account → Settings → Data Center (under Workspace Settings).
Don’t see Data Center? Your role may not include access. Ask an Admin or Manager to adjust your permissions.
Data Center Import Pn

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How to Import Contacts

Quickly build your contact list by uploading a CSV and mapping it to MessageDesk fields.

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Start an import

  1. Open Settings → Data Center.
  2. Click Start Import.
  3. Choose your .csv file and upload.

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Map your columns

  • Columns that match MessageDesk field names auto-map.
  • Adjust mapping manually as needed.
  • You can map custom properties (ensure the CSV data type matches the property type).

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Review duplicates & errors

  • Duplicates (by email or phone) are flagged—choose to skip or update.
  • Invalid data (e.g., bad phone/email format) is reported so you can fix and re-upload.
  • Problem rows are skipped during processing.

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Monitor progress

After you start the import, you’ll see the real-time status. When complete, a summary shows total processed, imported, skipped, and any error reasons.
Note: Need a walkthrough? See Create & Import Contacts for step-by-step guidance.

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How to Import Messages

Preserve conversation context by importing past SMS from any platform or service into MessageDesk.

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Start a message import

  1. Open Settings → Data Center.
  2. Click Start Import.
  3. Upload your .csv file.

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Map your data

  • Map CSV columns to MessageDesk message fields (e.g., timestamp, direction, phone number, text, channel/line).
  • Review and confirm the mapping for accuracy.

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Validate, review, and import

  • Preview parsed messages and fix any errors the validator surfaces.
  • Click Import to start processing. A bottom banner shows pre-import issues (if any).

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Supported message types

  • Outbound (sent) messages
  • Inbound (received) messages
  • 1-on-1 conversations
  • Group conversations
Note: Not supported for message import: media attachments (images, videos, files) and internal comments.

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How message import works

  • Automatic conversation creation: If a conversation doesn’t exist for a row, MessageDesk creates it.
  • Existing conversations: Rows match into existing threads when possible.
  • Channel requirement: Messages can only be imported into outbound channels that already exist in your workspace.

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File Requirements & Limits

Format
  • CSV only (.csv)
  • UTF-8 encoding
  • Include a header row
  • Each row must have the same number of columns as the header
Required data
  • For contacts: At least one method — email or phone
  • For messages: Required fields typically include timestamp, direction (inbound/outbound), phone number(s), message text, and channel/line identifier
Validation
  • Emails must be valid email format
  • Phone numbers must be valid E.164 (e.g., +15551234567)
  • Custom properties must match their defined type
  • Duplicate detection runs on email and phone (contact imports)
Limits
  • Max rows per file: 5,000
  • Max file size: 10 MB
  • Platform: Web only (imports aren’t supported on mobile or desktop apps)
If a limit is exceeded, you’ll see errors like “CSV file is too large” or “Imports are only supported on web.”

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What Gets Imported

  • Contacts
  • Custom properties (when mapped)
  • Messages (text content only; no media or internal comments)
Coming soon: additional workflows (e.g., labels, opt-outs). Watch the Data Center for new options.

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Frequently Asked Data Import Questions

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What file types can I upload?

CSV only. Export Excel files (.xlsx) to CSV first.

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Do contacts need both email and phone?

No. Each row must include at least one: email or phone (you can include both).

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How are duplicates handled on contact import?

We check email and phone. Duplicates are skipped by default and listed in the results.

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Why did some rows fail?

Common reasons: invalid email/phone format, missing required fields, custom property type mismatch, or a channel that doesn’t exist (for message imports). Fix and re-upload.

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Can I import more than 5,000 rows?

Split your data into multiple CSV files. Each file can contain up to 5,000 rows and ≤ 10 MB.

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Can I import from mobile?

No. Imports are web-only. Use a desktop browser.

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Best practices

  • Normalize phone numbers to E.164 before upload.
  • Clean your data (dedupe, validate emails) to minimize skips.
  • Test with a small CSV (10–20 rows) to confirm mapping and validation.
  • Keep a backup of your source CSV and import results for audit.