Step-by-step walkthrough of the Universal Importer. Import tickets, customers, and articles from any platform.

The Universal Importer brings in data from any support platform or spreadsheet. Find it at Settings → Team → Import.

What You Can Import

  • Tickets: full conversation history, statuses, priorities, tags, custom fields
  • Customers: profiles with email, name, phone, sentiment, tags, metadata
  • Articles: knowledge base content with categories, tags, publish status

Supported Formats

  • CSV: from any spreadsheet or platform export
  • JSON: structured exports from most platforms (nested objects handled)
  • JSONL / NDJSON: one JSON object per line
  • XLSX: Excel and Google Sheets exports
  • XML: structured markup exports
  • ZIP: compressed archives containing any of the above

Limits

  • File size: 50MB max
  • Records per import: 10,000 max
  • Larger datasets: split your file into chunks and import each one. Save your configuration after the first run so field mappings, merge strategies, and match keys carry over automatically.

The 7-Step Process

1. Upload

Drag and drop your file or click to browse.

2. Detect

cStar reads the file structure and identifies the source platform. Built-in detection for Zendesk, Freshdesk, Intercom, Help Scout, HubSpot, Front, Crisp, LiveAgent, and Zoho Desk. Falls back to generic mode if the format isn't recognized.

3. Map Fields

Two-column layout with auto-suggested mappings based on field names. Accept, change, or skip each field.

4. Match and Merge

Choose how to handle existing records: match by email, prefixed ID, external ID, slug, or custom field. Set per-field merge strategies.

5. Preview

See creates, updates, and skips with sample data before anything changes.

6. Execute

Real-time progress tracking with batch processing.

7. Summary

Results with successful creates, updates, and any errors.

Large Migrations (10,000+ Records)

  1. Split your file into chunks of 10,000 or fewer.
  2. Import the first chunk through the full wizard.
  3. Save the configuration when prompted.
  4. For each remaining chunk: load the saved config, upload the file, preview, execute.

With saved configs, each subsequent import skips detection and mapping entirely. A 50,000-record migration becomes 5 imports, each taking a couple of minutes.

Tips

  • Export from the old platform first. Most platforms have data export somewhere in their admin settings.
  • Start with a small test file (10-50 records) to verify mappings before committing to the full dataset.
  • Original timestamps are preserved, keeping your analytics and SLA history accurate.
  • Use a match key (email, ID) to prevent duplicates when importing across multiple batches.