Extracting Data to Archive
(prior to automatic purge per Certain’s Data Retention Policy)
Contents
- Introduction
- Reports
- Profile Data
- Registration Data
- Event Data
- Large Data Sets
Introduction
This article explains how to extract historic profile, registration, and event data from your Certain account, using custom reports.
See also the Webinar recording.
Certain’s updated Data Retention Policy explains that from September 15, 2019, Certain will retain attendee profile and registration data for a full three years past the date of the last change.
Parts of this involve Certain automatically removing old profiles, registration, and event data.
- Profile data is deleted for profiles that:
- were not created or modified in the last three years
- and do not have any registrations that were created or updated in the last three years.
- Event data is deleted for events that:
- are not marked as templates
- and have an event end date that is at least three years old.
There are two ways you can extract data before it is purged from your instance of Certain.
1. Using custom reports, as explained in this document and the webinar mentioned above. 2. Using Certain Application APIs to build an integration.
See the API 2.0 documentation: https://developer.certain.com/api2docs/
Reports
This is how to use custom reports to extract your data.
The process is very similar for Profiles, Registrations, and Events, which are explained separately below.
In each case, you only need to add the report once.
You can then use the report regularly in the future, changing just the date filter.
Profile Data
1. Go to > PROFILES > Reports
2. Click Create Report
3. Give the report a name. For example, “Profile – Data Extraction”
4. Choose its visibility.
- Recommended: “All Accounts”.
- That means you can run the report in sub-accounts without having to create new reports.
5. Choose a report type:
- Profiles
- Profile and Registrations (that is, profiles with their registration history across events).
6. Save
Next, customize the report’s columns and filters to extract the data you want to retain outside Certain.
Filters
7. Click Filters in the Left Navigation Panel.
8. Include only the profiles that haven’t been updated in the last three years.
9. For Interval #1, select Date Modified
10. Select “Custom (see below)” as the filter.
11. For the Start Date, select the date your organization started using Certain.
12. Select an End Date of three years ago
13. Save and Run the report.
14. The report lists the people whose profile data hasn’t been updated in the last three years.
Columns
15. Click Columns in the Left Navigation Panel.
16. Use 15 to 20 fields as your columns.
17. Select the fields for the information that you want to extract and add those fields to the fields to display.
18. Save and Run the report.
19. Ensure that the report includes the records you want and the information you want.
20. If the report does not include the information you want, customize the Filters and Columns accordingly.
Export
21. When you’re ready, click Export at the top of the page.
22. Select a file type, such as ‘Excel Spreadsheet’.
23. The system generates the report.
24. The file is on your computer.
25. Move or copy the file to the appropriate location, probably on your organization’s network.
Registration Data
1. To run a report about registrations in all the events in your account, go to Account > Consolidation.
2. Most of the steps are the same as for Profile reports.
3. Add a report, and name it.
4. Set its visibility to All Accounts.
5. Select the data to report on, such as ‘Registrations across events’.
6. Use 15 – 20 columns and Save.
7. Filter on the Reg Date Modified, using the same custom date range as before, and Save.
8. Run the report.
9. Export the results.
Event Data
1. To run a report about all the events in your account, remain in Account > Consolidation.
2. Add a report, and name it.
3. Set its visibility to All Accounts.
4. Select the report type ‘Events’, and Save.
5. Filter on the event end date.
6. The event end date filter is under ‘Standard Event Fields’.
7. Use a custom date range ending with a date three years ago, and Save.
8. Use 15 – 20 columns and Save.
9. Run the report.
10. Export the results.
Large Data Sets
If your data set is large — over 10,000 records — please get in touch with Certain Support.
- to ensure reliable system performance while running huge reports,
- or if you’d like some help extracting your information.