Merge Duplicate Record
Location in standard build: Top of Details Screen for an organisation/person
We all know that duplication is a bad thing, but sometimes accidents happen and you end up with multiple records on the system that relate to the same person. Ways this might happen include...
- Users do some work with a client, then enter them on their Charitylog system without first checking that they are not already entered
- Users enter someone as a client, then enter them separately as a volunteer
People should only be entered to the system once. If they become another type of person (e.g. Client becomes a Volunteer too) their type should be changed; either by using the "Make Into" button on a set of search results, as detailed in the end user manual; or by using the Extended Orgs & People List.
Why avoid duplicate entries?
- If an organisation or person is entered twice on the system, contacts may be recorded against both. This will lead to each client having an incomplete history, which will cause problems for end users.
- Reporting will also be compromised, as two people will show up in reports where there should only be one, and numbers of contacts per person will be incorrect... plus many more problems.
Having said all of that, Charitylog makes it easy for Administrators to merge two people on the system, so that these mistakes can be undone.
Contents
How to merge records
You should always start the merging process with the organisation or person that you want to keep - usually the oldest or most complete record.
In the screenshot below, we can see that the same client has been entered twice. One entry looks like it has all the details; the other has only been entered with a title, surname and postcode.
Start with the one that you want to keep (in this case it would probably be the more complete one), and click on the name of the person.
"Merge" link on a Details screen
At the top of an Organisation/Person's Details screen, there will be a button, as shown.
If there is no "Merge Records" link displayed
Two steps have to be taken for this link to be available.
Set Group Access permissions
Go to Administration > Security > User Settings > Group Access. Select the relevant Group (the Group to which the person who needs to do the merging belongs) and click "Set Group Access Rights".
Then, on the "Main Program" tab, make sure that the permissions relating to the "Merge Record" option are all selected.
Save Details when done.
Enable merging for the user in question
Because merging records constitutes a deletion of sorts, the ability to merge records should be carefully controlled. For this reason, we build in a second level of security, in that as well as the Group Access permissions being set, any user who wants to merge records must also be specifically allowed to do so, with a preference in their User record. Go to Administration > Security > User Settings > Users, then click on the name of the User in question.
On the "System Access" tab, you can specify whether this user is allowed to merge records or not.
Again, Save Details when this has been set as required.
Once these steps have been completed, you should be ready to continue, by verifying that there has been a duplication, and clicking on the name of the organisation/person that you wish to keep;
Then clicking the "Merge Record" button.
Specifying the duplicate
Once you click the "Merge Record" button, you will be taken to a search form, where you can search for the record that you want to merge into the one that you are keeping.
From the search results, pick the record to merge, and click the "Merge" button. (If you do not find the record you need, use the "Return to Previous Search" button to go back and alter the search parameters, and search again.)
Note that this search allows you to search by Charitylog ID number. The best way to make sure that you merge the right records is to write down the relevant ID numbers beforehand, and search by these. This makes it impossible to select the wrong record for merging.
Now there will be another confirmation screen to go through, reminding you that you are keeping only one set of data. You will be shown the data that is to be kept, and the data that will be overwritten. If you are happy, click "Continue with Merge".
Now another warning...
If you click "OK", the records will be merged and you will be returned to the record which has been retained. Check this record for completeness, and if necessary, fill in missing data.
Flow Chart
Rob Kay - manual author (talk) 11:25, 31 December 2014 (GMT)
