Bulk Import Devices in rConfig V8 Core

Importing devices into rConfig V8 Core means configuring a set of supporting components first, then loading devices that reference them. After reading this page you can plan those prerequisites, prepare a CSV import file, run the import, and fix the most common failures.

When to use this

Use this workbook when you are populating rConfig with more than a handful of devices, for example a fresh install or a migration from a legacy configuration management tool. For one or two devices, add them directly on the Devices page instead. A migration is also the right moment to standardise naming, model strings, and tag taxonomy, because cleaning the data in a spreadsheet before import is far cheaper than fixing it afterwards.

Prerequisites

Before you run an import, create the components each device row references. Without them the importer skips rows with an Invalid ... ID warning. Build them in this order so each component’s dependencies already exist:

• Vendors (no dependencies). See Vendors
• Connection templates (no dependencies). See Connection Templates
• Commands (no dependencies). See Commands
• Command groups (depend on commands). See Command Groups
• Tags (no dependencies). See Tags
• Credential sets (no dependencies), created under Settings → Device Credentials

You also need access to the import file format, which you download from Settings → Import / Export. The Import & Export page is the canonical reference for the column headers and how each row is validated.

Record the IDs as you go

The CSV references vendors, templates, command groups, tags, and credential sets by their numeric ID. Note each ID as you create the component, then keep a mapping table beside your import file so you can look them up while preparing rows.

How the prerequisite components relate

Each device connects to several supporting records. Understanding these relationships explains why the build order above matters.

Component	Per-device count	Purpose
Vendor	One	Manufacturer label used for filtering and reporting
Connection template	One	How rConfig connects: protocol, port, prompts, enable mode
Command group	One	Which commands run during a configuration download
Tags	Zero or more	Cross-cutting categorisation (site, environment, criticality)
Credential set	One (or inline per device)	Stored username, password, and enable password

Templates are the most critical prerequisite, because a device cannot connect without one. Command groups link a device to the right command set for its role. Tags are the only multi-value relationship: a device can carry several tags, which makes them useful for filtering and reporting across hierarchical boundaries.

Standardise data during migration

A migration is the point to fix inconsistency that legacy systems accumulate:

• Device names: adopt a location-role-sequence format, for example NYC-CORE-RTR-01.
• Model strings: consolidate variants (C3850, Cat3850, WS-C3850 all become Cisco-Catalyst-3850).
• Template names: use a platform-protocol format, for example Cisco-IOS-SSH.
• Tags: design one taxonomy across geography, environment, criticality, and function before you assign any.
• Credentials: consolidate to role-based credential sets rather than per-device passwords, which simplifies rotation.

Keep credentials out of plaintext files

rConfig encrypts stored credentials. Do not keep device passwords in unencrypted spreadsheets during preparation. Where possible, reference a saved credential set by ID in the CSV rather than placing inline passwords in the file, and delete any working file that does contain credentials once the import succeeds.

Choosing an import method

rConfig offers three ways to add devices. Pick the one that matches your scale.

Scenario	Method	Scale	Effort
Initial setup or learning	Manual entry	1 to 10	Low
Many similar devices	Clone an existing device	10 to 50	Low
Migration or large rollout	CSV import	50 to 5,000	Medium

Manual entry

Manual entry gives full control over every field and immediate validation feedback, which suits unique devices or learning the data model. It does not scale: it is slow and error-prone past a handful of devices.

1. Go to Devices → Add Device.
2. Complete the required fields.
3. Select the vendor, template, and command group.
4. Assign any tags and a credential set.
5. Submit, then download the first configuration to verify connectivity.

Clone a device

Cloning copies an existing device’s template, credential, command group, vendor, model, tags, and prompt configuration. It suits batches of near-identical devices such as branch rollouts or stack members.

1. Find a representative device in the device table.
2. Open its row dropdown and choose Clone.
3. Change the unique fields: device name and IP address.
4. Submit, then download the first configuration to verify connectivity.

CSV import

CSV import handles tens to thousands of devices and lets you validate and transform data in a spreadsheet first. It requires that every referenced prerequisite ID already exists, and works best at up to 500 devices per file.

The rest of this page covers the CSV workflow in full.

Prepare the CSV file

CSV import is the standard method for bulk onboarding and migration. Download the template, populate it, and validate it before upload.

Get and read the template

1. Go to Settings → Import / Export.
2. Choose Download Device Import Template.
3. Save it to a working directory and review the headers and example rows.

The template columns are:

Required columns (must not be blank, and ID columns must reference existing records):

• device_name: unique device name (invalid characters are stripped on import)
• device_ip: valid IPv4 or IPv6 address
• device_main_prompt: device CLI prompt
• device_enable_prompt: privilege mode prompt
• device_model: model designation (free text)
• device_category_id: reference to a command group
• device_template: reference to a connection template
• device_vendor: reference to a vendor
• device_tag: tag ID or comma-separated tag IDs (for example "1,2,5")
• device_default_creds_on: 1 to use a saved credential set, 0 to use inline credentials
• device_cred_id: saved credential set ID when device_default_creds_on is 1, otherwise 0

Optional columns (used only when device_default_creds_on is 0):

• device_username: inline username
• device_password: inline password (stored encrypted)
• device_enable_password: inline enable password (stored encrypted)

Build the rows

1. Export the device inventory from your legacy system to a spreadsheet.
2. Build mapping tables that translate legacy values to rConfig IDs (legacy vendor name to vendor ID, legacy template to template ID, legacy category to command group ID).
3. Standardise the data: normalise device names, validate IP addresses, and map model strings to the agreed format.
4. Populate the template columns, using VLOOKUP against your mapping tables for the ID columns and TEXTJOIN to compile multi-tag values.
5. Set device_default_creds_on and either device_cred_id or the inline credential columns on every row.

A completed file looks like this:

device_name,device_ip,device_username,device_password,device_enable_password,device_main_prompt,device_enable_prompt,device_category_id,device_template,device_model,device_vendor,device_tag,device_default_creds_on,device_cred_id
NYC-CORE-RTR-01,192.168.1.1,admin,s3cret,en4ble,>,#,1,1,Cisco-ASR-1000,1,"1,3,7",0,0
NYC-CORE-SW-01,192.168.1.2,,,,>,#,2,1,Cisco-Catalyst-9500,1,"1,3,7",1,1
LON-ACCESS-SW-01,192.168.2.10,,,,>,#,3,1,Cisco-Catalyst-2960X,1,"2,3,5",1,2
SFO-FW-DMZ-01,192.168.10.1,admin,s3cret,en4ble,>,#,5,4,PaloAlto-PA-3020,3,"7,8",0,0

The first row, NYC-CORE-RTR-01, supplies inline credentials (device_default_creds_on is 0, so device_cred_id is 0), references vendor 1 and template 1, and carries tags 1,3,7. The second row uses saved credential set 1 instead, so its inline credential cells are blank.

Quote any field that contains a comma

Wrap multi-value fields such as device_tag in double quotes ("1,3,7") so the parser does not read the commas as field separators. Spreadsheet tools do this automatically when saving to CSV.

Validate before upload

Confirm every item below before you upload:

• Every device_vendor, device_template, device_category_id, device_tag, and (where used) device_cred_id references a record that exists in rConfig.
• Every row has all required fields populated.
• device_default_creds_on is 0 or 1; rows using a saved set have a valid device_cred_id; rows using inline credentials supply username, password, and enable password.
• No duplicate device names or IP addresses inside the file, and none already in rConfig (the importer does not de-duplicate).
• Device names contain only letters, numbers, dot, dash, or underscore; IPs are valid; the file is at most 500 devices for best performance.

Run the import

1. Go to Settings → Import / Export.
2. In the device import section, choose the file (.csv or .xlsx, up to 2 MB) and confirm the file name shows correctly.
3. Choose Import Devices. rConfig validates and imports in a single action: there is no separate options or confirm screen.

Each row is validated in order. Valid rows are created immediately as new devices. Any row that fails a check is skipped and listed with the exact reason, for example Import Error device5: Invalid Template ID. A summary such as 3 Devices successfully imported is shown, and every event is written to the Application Log. For the full list of validation checks, see Import & Export.

Import creates, it does not update

The importer always creates new devices. It does not update or de-duplicate existing ones, and it does not start configuration downloads. Imported devices show a status of Unknown until rConfig first reaches them.

Verify and download configurations

After the summary appears, confirm the result and pull the first configurations.

1. Open the Devices page and confirm the imported devices appear and the count matches.
2. Spot-check a few device detail pages for correct vendor, template, model, and tags.
3. Select the imported devices and choose Download Configurations to retrieve the first backup.
4. Open the Queue Manager and filter by status to watch the download jobs.

Stagger large download batches

Downloading from many devices at once can strain the rConfig server and the network. For large populations, split the work into scheduled batches (for example 100 devices every 30 minutes) rather than triggering everything in one action. See Scheduled Tasks for setting up recurring backups.

Troubleshoot the import

Validation failures during import

Invalid prerequisite ID

Symptom: a skipped row reading Invalid Category ID, Invalid Vendor ID, Invalid Template ID, Invalid Tag ID, or Invalid Credentials ID.

Cause: the row references an ID that does not exist in rConfig.

Fix: read the skipped-row warnings (and the Application Log) to find the missing ID, create the prerequisite on its page (Vendors, Connection Templates, Command Groups, Tags, or Settings → Device Credentials), correct the file, and re-upload.

Blank required field

Symptom: a skipped row reading Import Error {name}: Blank Fields.

Cause: a required column is empty on that row.

Fix: locate the named device, populate the empty cell (use placeholder text where a value genuinely does not apply, such as an unused enable prompt), and re-upload. Spreadsheet data validation can flag empty required cells before you save.

Duplicate devices

Symptom: a device you already had now appears twice.

Cause: the importer always creates and never checks for existing devices, so a repeated name or IP becomes a second record.

Fix: before importing, remove rows for devices that already exist and de-duplicate names and IPs within the file. If duplicates were created, delete the extras on the Devices page.

Invalid characters in names

Behaviour: device names are sanitised on import. Any character that is not a letter, number, dot, dash, or underscore is stripped, so Core Switch 01 becomes CoreSwitch01. Rows are not rejected for this.

Fix: if the sanitised name is not what you wanted, correct device_name yourself and re-import, keeping names unique after sanitisation.

Configuration download failures after import

Issue	Symptom in logs	Fix
Authentication	Authentication failed	Confirm the credential set or inline credentials, then test SSH or Telnet to the device manually
Connectivity	Connection timeout or Network unreachable	Confirm the IP is reachable from the rConfig server and check firewall rules and the port
Prompt mismatch	Timeout waiting for prompt	Correct the main and enable prompt to match the device exactly, or use a regex such as .*[>#]
Template	Immediate failure on connection	Review the template settings and test against a representative device

For a stubborn prompt mismatch, see Device Prompts, then run the download in debug mode to see the live session:

cd /var/www/html/rconfig
php artisan rconfig:download-device 1234 -d

Performance at scale

For 1,000 or more devices, split the inventory into files of 500 devices, run imports during off-peak hours, and schedule downloads separately rather than all at once. Database query performance can degrade after importing thousands of devices, so run database optimisation if you notice slowdowns. Very large deployments are better served by the Pro, Enterprise, and Vector editions, documented separately at docs.rconfig.com.

Common gotchas

Avoid these import mistakes

• Missing prerequisites. Every vendor, template, command group, tag, and credential set ID must exist before import, or the row is skipped.
• No de-duplication. The importer never checks for existing devices. Remove already-present devices from the file first, or you will create duplicates.
• Unquoted multi-tag fields. A device_tag value like 1,3,7 must be quoted, or the extra commas break the row.
• Expecting downloads to start. Import only creates records. Devices stay Unknown until you trigger the first configuration download yourself.

What’s next

• Manage devices in rConfig for day-to-day device operations after import
• Configure connection templates to refine how rConfig connects to each platform
• Import & Export reference for the exact column headers and validation rules

Edition note

This page covers the standard CSV import in rConfig V8 Core. Advanced migration tooling and synchronisation from external sources are part of the Pro, Enterprise, and Vector editions, documented separately at docs.rconfig.com.