Custom Mapping: String Manipulation

String manipulation is used within custom map files to truncate or extract characters from a string. If you have a unique format for an attribute we suggest you create a custom map file and use the examples below as a guide to producing desired results. Of course, you are always welcome to contact our Technical Support Team for assistance.

The basic syntax for string extraction is:

[dest attribute]#[Num of characters],[Offset]=^some source attrib^

Please note, [Num of characters] refers to how many characters you would like to extract from the string, and may be specified alone. [Offset] refers to where in the string to begin pulling from. Zero or no value means to start at the left most character. A positive value means so many characters from the left. A negative value means so many characters from the right. When using [Offset], [Num of Characters] is required.

Examples

In this case we will manipulate the title attribute. The source value for this attribute is president.

Pull 4 characters from the left

title#4=^title^ or title#4,0=^title^
result: pres

Pull 4 characters from the right

title#4,-4=^title^
result: dent

Pull the 5th character

title#1,4=^title^
result: i

Pull the last character

title#1,-1=^title^
result: t

Remove last 5 characters

title#-5,0=^title^
result: pres

The above examples will work on all versions of UnitySync.

If you want to build a value from multiple source attribute values, however, you may use scripting in combination with string manipulation. A mapped value may be constructed from multiple source fields or with a combination of fixed values. For example, if you want the first letter of given name, period, full last name, dash, last 4 digits of phone number…

IMPORTANT NOTE: In UnitySync v2.4 and later use javascript in combination with string manipulation. In versions earlier than v2.4, we urge you to upgrade to the latest version.

Example 1

In this example, we will concatenate and trim data. Our Source data includes:

telephonenumber=5554563239
sn=Smith
givenname=Jane

If we map:

extensionattribute1=^givenname#1^.^sn^ -&'^telephonenumber^'.slice(-4);&

`homephone=(^telephonenumber#3^) &'^telephonenumber^'.slice(3,6);&-&'^phtelephonenumberne^'.slice(6,10);&

The Synced values will be:

extensionAttribute1=Jane.Smith-3239
homephone=(555) 456-3239

Example 2

In this example, we will reformat the date. Our Source data is:

whenCreated:20141210135109.0Z

And we map:

extensionAttribute1=&'^whencreated^'.slice(0,4)&:&'^whencreated^'.slice(4,6)&:&'^whencreated^'.slice(6,8)&T&'^whencreated^'.slice(8,10)&:&'^whencreated^'.slice(10,12)&:&'^whencreated^'.slice(12,14)&

The Synced value will be:

extensionAttribute1=2014:12:10T13:51:09

Please see the Javascript category in our knowledge base for more information on scripting. For additional assistance with these types of mappings, please contact our Technical Support Team.