Automatic Periodic Table Import

Periodically update tables from a configured import source.

Some people maintain their tables in other programs, like Excel, and regularly (e.g. twice daily) save it as a CSV file to their server. They would then have to manually import the table into TablePress, to update it on their site.

The “Automatic Periodic Table Import” feature module can make this process easier. It just needs to be configured once and will then periodically import a file from the server or a URL and replace the existing table with the data from the file.

When using this Module, the “Import” screen in TablePress will have a new section for the auto import. There, you can configure the auto update process (i.e. the format, the type of the source, and the source) for each table, and also set how often you want this to happen, from “once every minute”, “every 15 minutes”, “hourly”, “twice daily”, and “daily”.
Whenever the configured time interval has passed, TablePress will automatically import a table from the source again. With this method, you’ll just have to keep the source file up-to-date, e.g. by copying a new CSV to the server via FTP.

Note that most servers save a so-called revision of the table in the database whenever it is updated. This can lead to large databases quickly. It is therefore recommended to limit the amount of revisions in the database, e.g. by setting the WP_POST_REVISIONS constant to a small number in the site’s wp-config.php file. For more information and instructions on this, please see this WordPress Support Article.

Usage instructions

To use the “Automatic Periodic Table Import” feature with your tables, enable the module on the TablePress “Modules” screen, which you will see after upgrading your site to a TablePress Max license.

Then, configure the desired import sources and interval in the “Automatic Periodic Table Import” section on the “Import” screen of TablePress.

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