Export a Project

Home > selected Project > Export

Users in a role with the required permissions can export a Project and its contents, with the option of later importing it to Reef ECA. For example, you might use export to archive a Project, or export and import to move a Project to another Reef ECA system.

When you perform a Project export, all successfully indexed Data Sets that are part of the Project are exported as is. (Any failed Data Sets or Do Not Index Data Sets are not retained in the Project export.)

If you include all of the actual files, all of the files from the appropriate Data Sets (and the import locations referenced by the Data Sets) are copied to the Project Data Area under the subdirectory specified. Otherwise, only the Connector configuration information is saved.

To accommodate the exported Project, the user must first identify provision a read/write NFS Connector with at least one defined Project Data Area.

If the software cannot locate the selected Project Data Area, the operation will fail.

For an overview of the Project Export process, see How to Export a Project.

For more information about what items are inherited from the exported Project upon Project Import, see Import a Previously Exported Project into a New Project . (For example, the Users in a Project are not retained upon Project Export and therefore will not be present in a new Project upon Project Import.)

Export Project Options

Perform an export of your entire Project based on consideration and selection of the following options:

Source files:

Select one of the following options:

  • Include Files (default) — Exports a copy of the actual files with their import locations. Exporting a copy of all actual files is appropriate if the target environment does not provide access to the native import locations. Including a copy of the actual files helps you maintain a permanent, retrievable copy of a Project.
  • Connector References Only — Exports references to the files using Connector references. These provide the Connector information as a reference to the Project data areas instead of copying all of the files. This selection is appropriate if you are planning on importing the Project into the same Organization at a later time.

Regardless of which option you choose, the appropriate expanded archives and uploaded files are included in the export.

  • Project Data Area (required) — Select from a list of available Project Data Areas, which then populates the Path area on the right, enabling you to select a path location to use as the source of the import (the Import Directory). A Project Data Area and associated NFS Connector must be configured by a user with Organization Administrator or equivalent permissions. Consult your System Administrator to make sure that you identify the correct Connector and Project Directory for import. Data Areas are identified by the icon.
  • Path — Either browse to select the path (which populates the Path box) or type in the path with the source Project data.
  • Click Export Project to start the Project Export, or Cancel to cancel the operation.

Note: Bear in mind that to import an exported Project, Reef ECA must be able to access the directory containing it. To ensure this, an importing user in the same Organization from which the Project was exported must identify and specify the project data area to which it was exported, while a user in a different organization or on a different Reef ECA system must obtain from the exporting Organization the mount point and path of the NFS connector and project data area used for the export, recreate them within their own Organization, and specify the project data area when importing.

When the operation starts, an Export Project task appears in the Work Basket. To monitor the operation, return to the Project and check the task status in the Work Basket. If you see a Warning icon () in the completed task, one or more files were either excluded from the Project Export or failed to copy as part of the Project Export. You can then download a WarningDetails.csv file that identifies the reason why these files were not part of the Project Export.

While a Project Export is in progress, you can open the Project and examine the Export Project task in the Work Basket, but you cannot perform other operations within the Project. After reviewing the status of the Project Export, you can perform a Project Import at the destination within the context of a new Project. Note that if you perform a Project Export and Project Import within the same Reef ECA system (same or different Organization), be sure to delete the previously exported Project from the Project list before you start a Project Import operation that references the previously exported Project. If you do not delete the previously exported Project from the Organization's Project list, your Project Import into the new Project will fail.