Creating a changes-only download file

Payflow enables you to download a file containing just the changes that have been made to the data since a previous download, reducing the size of the download and enabling you to focus on the latest information.

Note

To ensure inclusion of fields in a changes-only download that have had values deleted (that is, changed from a value to no value), set the default value of that field to something that would not normally be held in the field, for example null, blank, or - (hyphen). This enables Payflow to identify the field as changed when running the first download after the change. Subsequent downloads correctly identify no change.

There are two levels of change identification:

  • At the record level, to identify if any fields have changed within each record. Downloads can then exclude unchanged records.
  • At the field level, to identify specific fields that have changed.

You can use the two levels in combination:

  • To produce a download of minimum size, containing just those records and fields that have changed:

    1. Create a download file specification exclusively for the changes only download.

      Check Changes Only. The Changes Only checkbox operates at the record level, and tells Sage People to include records in the download only if any fields in the record have changed. All unchanged records are excluded from the download.

    2. Map Sage People fields to the download file.

      If you are looking for changes to a known range of fields, map just those fields. Fields not included in the mapping are not included in the downloaded file.

      For each field where you want to download changes, check Changes Only. The Changes Only checkbox operates at the field level.

      You can also set a condition to check for a change in the value of a selected field before including the main field in the download.

  • To produce a download containing all records, but with blanks in unchanged fields:

    1. Create a download file specification exclusively for the changes only download.

      Leave the Changes Only checkbox unchecked. This Changes Only checkbox operates at the record level and if unchecked, tells Payflow to include all records in the download, subject to any other conditions you might have set in the download file specification.

    2. Map Sage People fields to the download file.

      If you are looking for changes to a known range of fields, map just those fields. Fields not included in the mapping are not included in the downloaded file.

      For each field where you want to see changed values, check Changes Only. This Changes Only checkbox operates at the field level. With Changes Only checked, fields with no changes display as blanks.

      For fields where you want to see a value whether it has changed or not, leave Changes Only unchecked. For example, leaving an identifier field such as a Team Member name or unique ID unchecked enables you to identify records more easily.

      You can also set a condition to check for a change in the value of a selected field before including the main field in the download.

You are now ready to run the download. By default, Payflow compares current values with the values in the most recent download from the previous payroll period. To compare current values with those in any other batch, change the Last Batch field before you run the download.