Documentation

Set up data extraction

Learn how you can set up data extraction in four steps

You can start the configuration of the data extraction in two ways:

  • Click on the Extract for the required connection in the connected sources list. If you don’t see the necessary connector in the list, click the Make a new connection button to add it first.
  • Click the Extract button on the top right corner of the connection page.

This instruction will help you to set up data extraction in four steps:

  1. Select Accounts
  2. Choose Extraction Templates
  3. Configure Extraction Template
  4. Check the result

Step 1. Select Accounts 

You can see all available accounts and their IDs on the left side of the screen and the list of selected accounts on the right. The number in the orange circle shows how many accounts you have chosen.

Also, you can sort them by ascending or descending date added and use the search field to find the necessary account by its name or ID.

The Date added column shows when each account was added to Improvado.

  • e.g., when you connect a Business Account to Improvado, it has only two related accounts (in this case, the date added for Business Account and two corresponding accounts will be the same).
  • Then you have created one more account inside the Business Account via the connected platform. It is added to Improvado automatically, so the date added for a new account will differ from that of other accounts.

Recently added accounts are shown first by default. That allows you to find the necessary accounts faster.

When all the necessary accounts are selected, click the Continue button. This button is non-clickable while the selected accounts list is empty.

Selecting more than 10 accounts for extraction

If the list contains more than ten items, pagination settings will appear at the bottom of this list. Using the checkbox in the list header, you can select all accounts on this page. To select more accounts, you can move between pages. Marked checkboxes are saved when moving.

To select more than 10 accounts for extraction, follow the steps from the image below:

Step 2. Choose Extraction Templates

This step is similar to the previous. You can see all available templates, their labels and types on the left side of the screen and the selected templates on the right. The number in the orange circle shows how many templates you have selected.

You have two Configuration options for your Data Extraction:

  • The Default Configuration option (predefined data schema) becomes available if you select any Extraction template in the list.
  • The Custom Configuration option (data schema defined manually) is only available if the Data source you’ve selected for the Data Extraction has at least one available Free-Form Report type. It allows you to use API Configurator directly in the Extraction flow. You can learn more about API Configurator here.

You can use type filter to see only global or custom templates and label filter to find the most popular extraction templates. Also, you can sort the data ascending or descending and use the search field to find the necessary template.

Extraction templates filter

Suppose you know the fields you want to see in extracted data. In that case, you can find the relevant global and custom extraction templates by properties/dimensions Field Name from Improvado Data Dictionary without leaving the extraction flow using the Extraction Template filter.

The filter works according to the AND logic. It means that the result extraction templates include all selected fields:

  • Field_1 AND Field_2 AND etc.


Click on the Details to clarify the settings of a particular template. If you don’t have the necessary template, you can edit an existing one (only for custom templates) or click the Create a template button to a new one.

It is important to remember that you can not select all templates together. It depends on which global extraction template they are based on.

You can not select more than one template based on the same global extraction template. This restriction applies to both global and custom templates. 

After selecting all the necessary templates, click the Continue button to move to the next step.

{%docs-informer info%}

This button can be non-clickable in two cases:

  • while the Selected templates list is empty
  • if the resulting number of extraction orders exceeds 1000, you will see the following pop-up note: "The number of the selected orders cannot exceed 1000. You have enabled N orders for extraction".

Description:

Each account + extraction template pair will correspond to the extraction order. It means that there will be only one extraction order with one template and one account.

Let's say the total extraction orders number equals m*n where

  • m is accounts number
  • n is templates number

If m*n ≤ 1000 - the Continue button is clickable.

If m*n > 1000 - the Continue button is disabled.

{%docs-informer-end%}

Step 3. Configure Extraction Template

Extraction Template settings

If you've selected the Custom Configuration option, you'll need to select Parent template for your configuration.

Now you need to configure each selected template. You will see the sequential number of the current template on the left side of the page.

  • Custom settings (depend on the data source)
  • Sync historical data (mandatory for filling in)

You need to select the first date of the historical data interval. The maximum historical data depth varies due to the API specifics of different data sources. If you need historical data depth over the preset maximum value, it is necessary to raise a request via Improvado Service Desk. Our team will check if it is technically possible.

Note that you will be able to change it later by editing the extraction order configuration on the Settings tab.

Scheduling settings

Here you can set the frequency of data extraction by changing the scheduling settings and adding or deleting schedules.

image.png

One schedule is always created by default. You can add one or several more by clicking Add Schedule on the top right corner of this section. If this is not available, it means you have reached your limit. The contract determines the limit. To increase it, please get in touch with your Customer Success Manager.

Also, can delete the schedule by clicking the “trash bin” icon, but it is impossible to delete a schedule if it is the only one.

The schedule settings include three main fields, the additional fields depend on the chosen extraction period:

  • Extraction period allows you to set how often Improvado attempt to load your data to Improvado database.
  • Extraction time determines the exact time for the Improvado extraction schedule.
  • Extraction time zone determines the time zone for this extraction schedule.
  • Lookback window is the period before data extraction, for which data is extracted regularly.

Extraction period

Now you have the option to schedule data extractions on an hourly basis (every 4, 6, 8, or 12 hours), as well as daily, weekly (by selecting a specific day of the week), and monthly (by choosing a particular day of the month).
If you choose the Hourly extraction period, start now and start at set time options will appear:

Start Now Option:

  • This option is designed for immediate data extraction. As soon as you select 'Start Now,' the extraction process will commence using the current time as its starting point.
  • This is particularly useful for obtaining real-time data, conducting immediate analyses, or when working with time-sensitive information. It ensures that you have the most current data without any delay.

Start at Set Time Option:

  • With this option, you can schedule the extraction to begin at a specific time of your choosing. This is ideal for planning extractions to align with specific business processes or reporting schedules.
  • You can set the extraction to start at a time that ensures data is fresh and relevant for your daily operations, such as the beginning of your workday, or just before important meetings or decision-making processes.

After choosing either of these options, the system will automatically calculate the timing for the next extraction based on your initial choice.

Note:  Hourly schedule is available by request only. Please contact your Customer Success Manager for more details.  

Lookback window

The first schedule will always have a default lookback window: 

  • in days for daily extraction template
  • in weeks for weekly extraction template
  • in months for monthly extraction template

IMPORTANT: no lookback window for last day and last day (inc) extraction templates.

Previously the subsequent schedules had a Live lookback window. Now we’ve added the possibility to choose the max lookback window option.

IMPORTANT: if you have selected two or more global templates, the schedule settings of the first one will be applied to the following global templates, and then you can change them sequentially. This will not affect the custom templates settings.

Dimensions and metrics

Available dimensions and metrics are presented in lists similar to accounts and templates and work in the same manner.

A complete set of all fields provided by the API is available for the Custom Configuration only. You can learn more about the API Configurator configuration here.

Some dimensions and metrics are selected by default. You can not deselect them because they define the data table structure.

Note: You can also remove selected fields by clicking the Bin button in the Selected dimensions/metrics list.

Data Table name

The Data Table name configuration can be found below the selection of dimensions & metrics - after defining the data schema.

{%docs-informer info title="Custom Configuration only"%}

It allows you to have two or more data tables with the same granularity for Custom Configuration. If you already have a Data Table with the same level of granularity, you can either select it from the dropdown or create a new one:

{%docs-informer-end%}

After selecting all necessary items, click the Continue button. If there are any more extraction templates to be configured, they will appear on the screen one after another.

If all extraction templates are configured, let’s move to the last step and check the result.

Step 4. Check the result

This is the last step before the data extraction starts. Here you see the list of extraction orders you’ve configured on previous steps. It includes the following:

  • Extraction order name
  • ~It is formed by the Data Source — Extraction Template — Account rule
  • Data Table name
  • ~This name is formed by Data Source — Extraction Template rule
  • ~Only one data table will be created for all accounts based on the same extraction templates
  • Account Name
  • Extraction Template Name

Check the resulting extraction orders carefully. If you notice that some order was added to this list by mistake, deselect it. Only selected extraction orders will be set up. Click the Continue button to finish the extraction configuration process.

Conflicted extraction orders (optional)

A conflicted extraction orders list will appear after step 4 if you are trying to set up any existing extraction order. All existing orders will not be duplicated.

Two resolution actions are available:

  1. You can skip the conflicting orders.
  2. You can update an existing extraction order with new extraction settings. Historical data will not be updated!

Updated extraction orders and new ones will be displayed at the beginning of the extraction orders list. But unlike the new ones, the synch process will not be launched automatically for updated orders.

Frequently asked questions

How to connect a Data source?

You can connect any data source in two simple steps:

  1. Select a Data source on this page
  2. Authorize your account with the required credentials. The list of credentials depends on the authorization method: OAuth, Login & Password, Authorization that requires additional credentials (e.g., API Token)

The created connection will appear at the top of the Connected sources list. You can find a setup guide for a Data source on the right side of the Authorization page.

How to select the right Extraction template?

Extraction template selection depends on the specific Data source and the type of data you want to extract. Here are some steps to help you choose the appropriate Extraction template:

  1. Consider the frequency of the data you want to extract (e.g., daily, weekly, monthly).
  2. Check the Improvado Data Dictionary for the available Report types.
  3. You can also use the new Extraction templates filter by dimensions & metrics in the second step of the Data extraction setup.

If you didn’t find the needed global Extraction template, you can create a custom one:

  1. Go to this page to create a new Extraction template.
  2. Look for a parent template that matches the data class you need.
  3. Configure the extraction template settings based on your requirements, such as historical data depth or specific parameters.

You can check out a more in-depth guide here.

How to create a new Extraction template?

Click the Create a template button on the Extraction Templates page.Then, you can a new custom Extraction template in two simple steps:

  1. Select a Data source and give your template a name
  2. Configure the Extraction template - this step is similar to the third step of the Data extraction setup flow.

You can check out a more in-depth guide here.

Customize GA4 Extraction templates with any set of dimensions and metrics from the GA4 API

You can create custom Google Analytics 4 Extraction templates with flexible dimension settings and any set of compatible dimensions and metrics available in the GA4 API. Learn more here.

Can you show me the list of available Report types?

You can find an extensive overview of all common Report types by Data sources in the Improvado Data Dictionary. It includes metrics, properties, dimensions, etc.

If you didn’t find Report types you were looking for - you can create a request for a new Request type via the Service Desk.

How to re-load (backfill) my historical data?

You can check out a detailed guide here.

How to enable custom conversions?

You can enable custom conversions by setting the Load Dynamic Fields field to Yes on the third step of the Data extraction setup.

It allows Improvado to load dynamic fields from the platform, such as custom conversions, custom events, pixel data, and other fields unique to your accounts.

Note: Only certain Data sources and Report types support this feature.

Learn more here.

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Questions?

Improvado team is always happy to help with any other questions you might have! Send us an email.

Contact your Customer Success Manager or raise a request in Improvado Service Desk.