How to update the variants of a product

I tried to update the variants of a product, but it actually delete all the variants i want to update. could somebody help me out?
here is the code i use in the text area:

product_code, product_parent_id, price_value, product_quantity, Carrier, Capacity
Brand_New_Iphone_5,,550, Unlimited, Verizon, 16gb
Brand_New_Iphone_5_6_3, Brand_New_Iphone_5, 550, Unlimited, Verizon, 16gb
Brand_New_Iphone_5_6_4, Brand_New_Iphone_5, 580, 50, Verizon, 32gb
Brand_New_Iphone_5_6_5, Brand_New_Iphone_5, 610, 50, Verizon, 64gb
Brand_New_Iphone_5_7_3, Brand_New_Iphone_5, 530, Unlimited, AT&T or Unlocked, 16gb
Brand_New_Iphone_5_7_4, Brand_New_Iphone_5, 550, 50, AT&T or Unlocked, 32gb
Brand_New_Iphone_5_7_5, Brand_New_Iphone_5, 570, 50, AT&T or Unlocked, 64gb
Brand_New_Iphone_5_9_3, Brand_New_Iphone_5, 400, Unlimited, Sprint, 16gb
Brand_New_Iphone_5_9_4, Brand_New_Iphone_5, 410, 50, AT&T or Sprint, 32gb
Brand_New_Iphone_5_9_5, Brand_New_Iphone_5, 420, 50, AT&T or Sprint, 64gb

price and quantity are the two parameters i want to update, and "carrier" and "capacity" are the characteristics

Hi there,

How do you update these variants?
You should try by using the csv export and import, it's the best way to update informations of existing products.

well i will try. however, isn't it going to be same whether using csv or text?

eliot wrote: Hi there,

How do you update these variants?
You should try by using the csv export and import, it's the best way to update informations of existing products.

I don't understand what you mean by text.
Do update your variants one by one?
Anyway, i still think that csv import is the best way to update many variants in a one shot.

eliot wrote: I don't understand what you mean by text.
Do update your variants one by one?
Anyway, i still think that csv import is the best way to update many variants in a one shot.

I used "Import products from text area" as shown here:



it did find all the variants but didn't update them, instead delete them.

To import from csv, do I have to specify all the parameters like images, descriptions or just the parameters(price & quantity) that I want to update?

thanks again

You should leave all the columns as they are in the export CSV.
Also, please make sure that you don't add spaces between the commas and the values in your CSV as the system might not be able to find the data in such case. If you look at the exported CSV, there are no spaces between the commas and the values.

finally got some time looking at this csv file. it looks very complicated, with all those quotation marks and the semicolons. My excel can't separate them therefore it looks very messy. Here are a few lines of the file, could you please help me understand them and how to import it to excel? what should be the "delimiter"?

"product_id;""product_parent_id"";""product_name"";""product_description"";""product_quantity"";""product_code"";""product_published"";""product_hit"";""product_created"";""product_sale_start"";""product_sale_end"";""product_delay_id"";""product_tax_id"";""product_type"";""product_vendor_id"";""product_manufacturer_id"";""product_url"";""product_weight"";""product_keywords"";""product_weight_unit"";""product_modified"";""product_meta_description"";""product_dimension_unit"";""product_width"";""product_length"";""product_height"";""product_max_per_order"";""product_access"";""product_group_after_purchase"";""product_min_per_order"";""product_contact"";""product_last_seen_date"";""product_sales"";""product_waitlist"";""product_layout"";""product_average_score"";""product_total_vote"";""product_page_title"";""product_alias"";""product_price_percentage"";""product_canonical"";""product_msrp"";""categories_ordering"";""parent_category"";""categories_image"";""categories"";""price_value"";""price_currency_id"";""price_min_quantity"";""price_access"";""files"";""images"";""related"";""options"";""Capacity"";""Carrier"";""Function"";""Body"";""Cracked"," has bright spot or dead pixel"";""Screen"";""Back"";""Buttone & Switches"";",,
"1;0;""Brand New iPhone 5"";""<p>Brand New Phones must be purchased within one month", in its original box that has the matching IMEI number. There should be no sign of wear or tear, and all accessories should be wrapped in plastic," -$30 if the original manufacturer screen protectors were removed.</p>"";1996;""Brand_New_Iphone_5"";1;54;1370833313;0;0;0;11;""main"";0;0;"""";1.000;"""";""kg"";1371349193;"""";""m"".250;5.700;1.750;10;""all"";"""";0;0;1372039040;9;0;"""";0;0;"""";"""";0.0000000;"""";0.0000000;1;"""";"""";""Brand New Phones"";550.00000;""USD"";0;""all"";"""";""iphone5white.jpg;iphone5black_1106602244.png"";"""";"""";""16gb"";""Verizon"";"""";"""";"""";"""";"""";"""";"
"8;"""";"""";"""";-1;""Brand_New_Iphone_5_6_3"";1;0;1370833313;0;0;0;11;""variant"";0;0;"""";0.000;"""";""kg"";1370833313;"""";""m"";0.000;0.000;0.000;10;""all"";"""";0;0;0;0;0;"""";0;0;"""";"""";0.0000000;"""";0.0000000;"""";"""";"""";"""";550.00000;""USD"";0;""all"";"""";"""";"""";"""";""16gb"";""Verizon"";"""";"""";"""";"""";"""";"""";",,,
"9;"""";"""";"""";50;""Brand_New_Iphone_5_6_4"";1;0;1370833313;0;0;0;11;""variant"";0;0;"""";0.000;"""";""kg"";1370833313;"""";""m"";0.000;0.000;0.000;0;""all"";"""";0;0;0;0;0;"""";0;0;"""";"""";0.0000000;"""";0.0000000;"""";"""";"""";"""";580.00000;""USD"";0;""all"";"""";"""";"""";"""";""32gb"";""Verizon"";"""";"""";"""";"""";"""";"""";",,,

Basically, I am looking for a way to quickly update all the products and within one "view" so I don't have to click at each product's page to make changes. that's very tedious and confusing. Is there any better way to do it other than the "export and import excel file".

nicolas wrote: You should leave all the columns as they are in the export CSV.
Also, please make sure that you don't add spaces between the commas and the values in your CSV as the system might not be able to find the data in such case. If you look at the exported CSV, there are no spaces between the commas and the values.

Ok, I don't know why it looks like that. but I export the products again, and edit it and save. The format was changed automatically. so now hikashop refuse to update some of the products said "they can not be imported". Here are the snapshot of the files:
File exported(with quotations around text, semicolon as the delimiter):



"product_id";"product_parent_id";"product_name";"product_description";"product_quantity";"product_code";"product_published";"product_hit";"product_created";"product_sale_start";"product_sale_end";"product_delay_id";"product_tax_id";"product_type";"product_vendor_id";"product_manufacturer_id";"product_url";"product_weight";"product_keywords";"product_weight_unit";"product_modified";"product_meta_description";"product_dimension_unit";"product_width";"product_length";"product_height";"product_max_per_order";"product_access";"product_group_after_purchase";"product_min_per_order";"product_contact";"product_last_seen_date";"product_sales";"product_waitlist";"product_layout";"product_average_score";"product_total_vote";"product_page_title";"product_alias";"product_price_percentage";"product_canonical";"product_msrp";"categories_ordering";"parent_category";"categories_image";"categories";"price_value";"price_currency_id";"price_min_quantity";"price_access";"files";"images";"related";"options";"Capacity";"Carrier";"Function";"Body";"Cracked, has bright spot or dead pixel";"Screen";"Back";"Buttone & Switches";
1;0;"Brand New iPhone 5";"<p>Brand New Phones must be purchased within one month, in its original box that has the matching IMEI number. There should be no sign of wear or tear, and all accessories should be wrapped in plastic, -$30 if the original manufacturer screen protectors were removed.</p>";1996;"Brand_New_Iphone_5";1;56;1370833313;0;0;0;11;"main";0;0;"";1.000;"";"lb";1372122893;"";"m".250;5.700;1.750;10;"all";"";0;0;1372105341;9;0;"";0;0;"";"";0.0000000;"";0.0000000;1;"";"";"Brand New Phones";550.00000;"USD";0;"all";"";"iphone5white.jpg;iphone5black_1106602244.png";"";"";"16gb";"Verizon";"";"";"";"";"";"";
8;"";"";"";-1;"Brand_New_Iphone_5_6_3";1;0;1370833313;0;0;0;11;"variant";0;0;"";0.000;"";"kg";1370833313;"";"m";0.000;0.000;0.000;10;"all";"";0;0;0;0;0;"";0;0;"";"";0.0000000;"";0.0000000;"";"";"";"";550.00000;"USD";0;"all";"";"";"";"";"16gb";"Verizon";"";"";"";"";"";"";
9;"";"";"";50;"Brand_New_Iphone_5_6_4";1;0;1370833313;0;0;0;11;"variant";0;0;"";0.000;"";"kg";1370833313;"";"m";0.000;0.000;0.000;0;"all";"";0;0;0;0;0;"";0;0;"";"";0.0000000;"";0.0000000;"";"";"";"";580.00000;"USD";0;"all";"";"";"";"";"32gb";"Verizon";"";"";"";"";"";"";

---

File edited and saved (excel reported incompatible format, lose the quotation around the text, and delimiter was changed from semicolon to comma)



product_id,product_parent_id,product_name,product_description,product_quantity,product_code,product_published,product_hit,product_created,product_sale_start,product_sale_end,product_delay_id,product_tax_id,product_type,product_vendor_id,product_manufacturer_id,product_url,product_weight,product_keywords,product_weight_unit,product_modified,product_meta_description,product_dimension_unit,product_width,product_length,product_height,product_max_per_order,product_access,product_group_after_purchase,product_min_per_order,product_contact,product_last_seen_date,product_sales,product_waitlist,product_layout,product_average_score,product_total_vote,product_page_title,product_alias,product_price_percentage,product_canonical,product_msrp,categories_ordering,parent_category,categories_image,categories,price_value,price_currency_id,price_min_quantity,price_access,files,images,related,options,Capacity,Carrier,Function,Body,"Cracked, has bright spot or dead pixel",Screen,Back,Buttone & Switches
1,0,Brand New iPhone 5,"<p>Brand New Phones must be purchased within one month, in its original box that has the matching IMEI number. There should be no sign of wear or tear, and all accessories should be wrapped in plastic, -$30 if the original manufacturer screen protectors were removed.</p>",1996,Brand_New_Iphone_5,1,56,1370833313,0,0,0,11,main,0,0,,1,,lb,1372122893,,m,3.25,5.7,1.75,10,all,,0,0,1372105341,9,0,,0,0,,,0,,0,1,,,Brand New Phones,550,USD,0,all,,iphone5white.jpg;iphone5black_1106602244.png,,,16gb,Verizon,,,,,,
8,,,,-1,Brand_New_Iphone_5_6_3,1,0,1370833313,0,0,0,11,variant,0,0,,1,,lb,1370833313,,m,0,0,0,10,all,,0,0,0,0,0,,0,0,,,0,,0,,,,,550,USD,0,all,,,,,16gb,Verizon,,,,,,
9,,,,50,Brand_New_Iphone_5_6_4,1,0,1370833313,0,0,0,11,variant,0,0,,1,,lb,1370833313,,m,0,0,0,0,all,,0,0,0,0,0,,0,0,,,0,,0,,,,,580,USD,0,all,,,,,32gb,Verizon,,,,,,

---

Tried to import anyway but received error messages:



The column 'has bright spot or dead pixel' is not in the list of possible columns : product_parent_id | product_name | product_description | product_quantity | product_code | product_published | product_hit | product_created | product_sale_start | product_sale_end | product_delay_id | product_tax_id | product_type | product_vendor_id | product_manufacturer_id | product_url | product_weight | product_keywords | product_weight_unit | product_modified | product_meta_description | product_dimension_unit | product_width | product_length | product_height | product_max_per_order | product_access | product_group_after_purchase | product_min_per_order | product_contact | product_last_seen_date | product_sales | product_waitlist | product_layout | product_average_score | product_total_vote | product_page_title | product_alias | product_price_percentage | product_canonical | product_msrp | price_value | price_value_with_tax | price_currency_id | price_min_quantity | price_access | files | images | parent_category | categories_namekey | categories_image | categories_ordering | categories | related | options | capacity | carrier | function | body | cracked, has bright spot or dead pixel | screen | back | buttone & switches. The column data was ignored
You need 63 arguments per line

The line '8,,,,-1,Brand_New_Iphone_5_6_3,1,0,1370833313,0,0,0,11,variant,0,0,,1,,lb,1370833313,,m,0,0,0,10,all,,0,0,0,0,0,,0,0,,,0,,0,,,,,550,USD,0,all,,,,,16gb,Verizon,,,,,,' could not be imported
The line '9,,,,50,Brand_New_Iphone_5_6_4,1,0,1370833313,0,0,0,11,variant,0,0,,1,,lb,1370833313,,m,0,0,0,0,all,,0,0,0,0,0,,0,0,,,0,,0,,,,,580,USD,0,all,,,,,32gb,Verizon,,,,,,' could not be imported
The line '10,,,,50,Brand_New_Iphone_5_6_5,1,0,1370833313,0,0,0,11,variant,0,0,,1,,lb,1370833313,,m,0,0,0,0,all,,0,0,0,0,0,,0,0,,,0,,0,,,,,620,USD,0,all,,,,,64gb,Verizon,,,,,,' could not be imported
The line '12,,,,-1,Brand_New_Iphone_5_7_3,1,0,1370833313,0,0,0,11,variant,0,0,,1,,lb,1370833313,,m,0,0,0,0,all,,0,0,0,5,0,,0,0,,,0,,0,,,,,530,USD,0,all,,,,,16gb,AT&T or Unlocked,,,,,,' could not be imported
The line '13,,,,50,Brand_New_Iphone_5_7_4,1,0,1370833313,0,0,0,11,variant,0,0,,1,,lb,1370833313,,m,0,0,0,0,all,,0,0,0,0,0,,0,0,,,0,,0,,,,,550,USD,0,all,,,,,32gb,AT&T or Unlocked,,,,,,' could not be imported
The line '14,,,,50,Brand_New_Iphone_5_7_5,1,0,1370833313,0,0,0,11,variant,0,0,,1,,lb,1370833313,,m,0,0,0,0,all,,0,0,0,0,0,,0,0,,,0,,0,,,,,570,USD,0,all,,,,,64gb,AT&T or Unlocked,,,,,,' could not be imported
The line '16,,,,-1,Brand_New_Iphone_5_9_3,1,0,1370833313,0,0,0,11,variant,0,0,,1,,lb,1370833313,,m,0,0,0,0,all,,0,0,0,0,0,,0,0,,,0,,0,,,,,385,USD,0,all,,,,,16gb,Sprint,,,,,,' could not be imported
The line '17,,,,50,Brand_New_Iphone_5_9_4,1,0,1370833313,0,0,0,11,variant,0,0,,1,,lb,1370833313,,m,0,0,0,0,all,,0,0,0,0,0,,0,0,,,0,,0,,,,,395,USD,0,all,,,,,32gb,Sprint,,,,,,' could not be imported
The line '18,,,,50,Brand_New_Iphone_5_9_5,1,0,1370833313,0,0,0,11,variant,0,0,,1,,lb,1370833313,,m,0,0,0,0,all,,0,0,0,0,0,,0,0,,,0,,0,,,,,405,USD,0,all,,,,,64gb,Sprint,,,,,,' could not be imported
The line '23,0,Brand New iPhone 4s,"

Brand New Phones must be purchased within one month, in its original box that has the matching IMEI number. There should be no sign of wear or tear, and all accessories should be wrapped in plastic, -$30 if the original manufacturer screen protectors were removed.
",997,Brand_New_Iphone_4s,1,23,1367817895,0,0,0,11,main,0,0,,1,,lb,1371349206,,in,3.25,5,1.8,0,all,,0,0,1372105334,3,0,,0,0,,,0,,0,2,,,Brand New Phones,390,USD,0,all,,iphone4s16gb-overview-large-white.png;iphone-4s-glass-back.jpg,,,16gb,AT&T or Unlocked,,,,,,' could not be imported
The line '45,0,Brand New iPhone 4,"

Brand New Phones must be purchased within one month, in its original box that has the matching IMEI number. There should be no sign of wear or tear, and all accessories should be wrapped in plastic, -$30 if the original manufacturer screen protectors were removed.
",998,Brand_New_Iphone_4,1,13,1367818541,0,0,0,11,main,0,0,,1,,lb,1371349221,,in,3.25,5,1.8,0,all,,0,0,1372105466,2,0,,0,0,,,0,,0,3,,,Brand New Phones,250,USD,0,all,,iphone4s16gb-overview-large-white.png;iphone-4s-glass-back.jpg,,,,AT&T or Unlocked,,,,,,' could not be imported
The line '55,0,Used iPhone 5,

Requirements:
,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,' could not be imported
The line '"

1. Screen must be intact, no damage
",,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,' could not be imported
The line '

2. No sign of water damage.
,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,' could not be imported
The line '"

3. All functions are working properly including but not limited to Phone, Wi-Fi, Speaker, Camera.
",,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,' could not be imported
The line '

4. All buttons and switches are working smoothly.
,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,' could not be imported
The line '"

5. Without box or accessories is fine.
""",996,Used_Iphone_5,1,29,1367890600,0,0,0,11,main,0,0,,1,,lb,1371349997,,in,3.25,5.7,1.8,0,all,,0,0,1372093518,4,0,,0,0,,,0,,0,1,,,Used Phones,420,USD,0,all,,iphone5white.jpg;iphone5black_1106602244.png,,,,AT&T or Unlocked,,Normal,,,,,,,' could not be imported
The line '71,0,Used iPhone 4S AT&T or Unlocked,

Requirements:
,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,' could not be imported
The line '"

1. Screen must be intact, no damage
",,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,' could not be imported
...
The line '"

3. All functions are working properly including but not limited to Phone, Wi-Fi, Speaker, Camera.
",,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,' could not be imported Product not found
The line '"

5. Without box or accessories is fine.
""",500,Used_Iphone_4_ATT,1,18,1367896672,0,0,0,11,main,0,0,,1,,lb,1371350111,,m,0,0,0,0,all,,0,0,1372044271,0,0,,0,0,,,0,,0,5,,,Used Phones,150,USD,0,all,,iphone4_white.png,,,,,,Normal,,Normal,Normal,,,,' could not be imported Product not found

---

Please let me know how i can export, edit and then import the products back to my shop.

Seems there are no ways to preserve the hikashop format by using excel, so i have to use a text editor to edit it. However is there another way editor that can both preserve the format while aligning the data with the column?

Ok, Now I can update the price information by editing the csv file with just text editor. two things that are still confusing to me are:
1. There is still an error message each time i import the csv file to the shop:

The column '' is not in the list of possible columns : product_parent_id | product_name | product_description | product_quantity | product_code | product_published | product_hit | product_created | product_sale_start | product_sale_end | product_delay_id | product_tax_id | product_type | product_vendor_id | product_manufacturer_id | product_url | product_weight | product_keywords | product_weight_unit | product_modified | product_meta_description | product_dimension_unit | product_width | product_length | product_height | product_max_per_order | product_access | product_group_after_purchase | product_min_per_order | product_contact | product_last_seen_date | product_sales | product_waitlist | product_layout | product_average_score | product_total_vote | product_page_title | product_alias | product_price_percentage | product_canonical | product_msrp | price_value | price_value_with_tax | price_currency_id | price_min_quantity | price_access | files | images | parent_category | categories_namekey | categories_image | categories_ordering | categories | related | options | capacity | carrier | function | body | cracked, has bright spot or dead pixel | screen | back | buttone & switches. The column data was ignored

2. I set "Append characteristics value to product name" to be yes, but the default characteristics are not shown with the name when entering the product page. For example, Iphone 5 has two characteristics, "carrier", and "capacity". The default values are "verizon" and "16Gb" for them, but when loading the product page, these default characteristics names are not appended to the product name. Only when you change one characteristic, the name get updated. Is there a way to make sure the default characteristics are displayed with the product name?

Thanks

Hi,

1. You can ignore that.
That's probably because you have a custom field or a characteristic without a name and thus when you export it you get an empty column.

2. That's indeed the normal behavior. To change it, you can edit the file "show_default" via the menu Display>Views and change the line:
echo $this->element->main->product_name;

to:
echo $this->element->product_name;

nicolas wrote: Hi,

1. You can ignore that.
That's probably because you have a custom field or a characteristic without a name and thus when you export it you get an empty column.

2. That's indeed the normal behavior. To change it, you can edit the file "show_default" via the menu Display>Views and change the line:
echo $this->element->main->product_name;

to:
echo $this->element->product_name;

I made the modification, but it didn't work. here is the part that i changed:

<span id="hikashop_product_name_main" class="hikashop_product_name_main">
<?php
if (hikashop_getCID('product_id')!=$this->element->product_id && isset ($this->element->main->product_name))
echo $this->element->(main->)product_name;
else
echo $this->element->product_name;
?>
</span>

I removed the content within the bracket, but it is still not showing the variant's name

Then, it means that either you're not using the default layout for the product page but the tabular or the reversed layout or another one that you created yourself, or you're not editing the view file your frontend template.

nicolas wrote: Then, it means that either you're not using the default layout for the product page but the tabular or the reversed layout or another one that you created yourself, or you're not editing the view file your frontend template.

No, I am not using the default layout, probably "tabular" layout. what do i change to get that effect in that case?

I did change the layout to "default" and it works as you said, but I sorta like the "tabular" layout more.

Hi,

So you have to edit the file "show_tabular" via the menu Display>Views.