Import a catalog from a vendor
Important
This content is archived and is not being updated. For the latest documentation, see Microsoft Dynamics 365 product documentation. For the latest release plans, see Dynamics 365 and Microsoft Power Platform release plans.
Applies To: Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 R3, Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 R2, Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 Feature Pack, Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012
To import a catalog from a vendor, you must complete the following tasks:
Create a catalog for the vendor in Microsoft Dynamics AX. This is where you will store the catalog maintenance request (CMR) files for the vendor.
Configure the vendor for catalog import.
Generate a catalog import file template and create a CMR file. A CMR file is an XML file that contains the product data for the vendor’s catalog.
Upload the CMR file from the vendor and verify that the upload was successful.
Note
CMR files can be created for vendor products by the customer, in the Microsoft Dynamics AX client, or by the vendor. Vendors can work in the Vendor portal in Enterprise Portal for Microsoft Dynamics AX, or they can submit their product data directly to the customer in other formats. The information in this topic explains how to import vendor catalog data from within Microsoft Dynamics AX.
Create a vendor catalog
Use this procedure to create a new vendor catalog. This is the catalog to which you upload a CMR for a vendor. If you delete the vendor catalog, you can no longer import CMR files to it. If you still want to import catalog data from the vendor, you must create a new catalog for the vendor
Click Procurement and sourcing > Common > Catalogs > Vendor catalogs.
On the Vendor catalogs list page, on the Action Pane, on the Catalogs tab, in the New group, click Catalog.
In the New catalog form, in the Vendor field, select the vendor that you are creating the catalog for.
Enter a name and description for the catalog, and then click Close.
If the vendor has not been configured for catalog import, the Enable vendor dialog box appears. Click Yes to automatically enable the vendor for catalog import.
Note
The vendor must be configured for catalog import before you can create a vendor catalog for them.
If you want to configure the catalog so that all CMR files that are received for this vendor are automatically approved, do the following:
On the Vendor catalogs list page, select the catalog that you want to configure for automated approval.
On the Action Pane, on the Catalogs tab, in the Maintain group, click Enable automated approval. This sets the Automated approval field on the Details FastTab to Enabled.
You must configure workflow for catalog import whether the catalog will be automatically approved or the CMR files will be manually reviewed. For more information about how to configure workflow for catalog import, see Set up Procurement and sourcing workflows.
Manually configure or disable a vendor for catalog import
Use this procedure to manually configure a vendor for catalog import. If you no longer upload catalog maintenance request (CMR) files for a vendor, use this procedure to disable the vendor for catalog import.
Click Accounts payable > Common > Vendors > All vendors.
On the All vendors list page, double-click the vendor that you want to configure or disable for catalog import.
In the Vendors form, on the Action Pane, on the Procurement tab, do one of the following:
To configure the vendor for catalog import – In the Set up group, click Set up, and then click Configure vendor for catalog import.
To disable the vendor for catalog import – In the Set up group, click Set up, and then click Disable catalog import.
Generate a catalog import file template
The catalog import file template is an industry-standard XSD file that you use to create a CMR file for a vendor’s products. You can use the CMR file to create a new catalog, replace an existing catalog, or modify an existing catalog.
After you create the CMR file, you can upload it to the vendor catalog. In the vendor catalog, you can review the details of the file.
Click Procurement and sourcing > Common > Catalogs > Vendor catalogs.
On the Vendor catalogs list page, double-click the catalog that you want to work with.
To download a current catalog import template (XSD file), in the Update catalog form, on the Action Pane, on the Catalogs tab, in the Related information group, click Generate catalog template. Select one of the following options:
Procurement category – Generate a catalog template that includes the procurement categories in which the vendor is authorized to provide products.
Commodity code – Generate a catalog template that includes industry-standard commodity codes.
In the Save as dialog box, select the location where you want to store the catalog file template and save the file.
Create a catalog maintenance request (CMR) file
You create a CMR file by using a schema-aware XML editor. You must use the most current catalog import file template. Complete the following steps in the XML editor:
To create a CMR file for a new catalog set the "Action type" attribute of the <Vendor catalog> element to New. You can create a CMR file that contains only product data, product data and product images, or only product images. The details that you include in the CMR file can include product details, product pricing, product attributes, detailed product descriptions, and product images.
Note
If you are creating a new catalog to replace an existing catalog, all items and services that are in that catalog are overwritten by the matching items and services in the new CMR file. Any existing items and services that are not in the new CMR file are deleted. Any items and services that are included in the new CMR file, but that are not included in the existing catalog, are treated as new products.
To include product images in the CMR file, enter the location of the image file for the product, and associate it with the product by using the Image element in the CMR file.
To create a CMR file to update an existing catalog, set the "Action type" attribute of the <Vendor catalog> element to Update. Add the details for the products that you want to add, delete, or modify.
To delete a selected product from an existing catalog, add the product to the CMR file, and set the "Delete" attribute of the <Product> element to Yes.
Save the CMR file in the folder that you created for your vendor catalogs.
Upload a catalog maintenance request (CMR) file in the Microsoft Dynamics AX client
After you create a CMR file, you can upload it to the vendor catalog. When you upload the CMR file, the file is validated against the catalog import template that you used. If you did not use the most current catalog import template, the catalog upload process will fail. You can view the details for the CMR file upload status in the event log. After the CMR file is uploaded successfully, you can review the details of the CMR file in the vendor catalog.
After the products in the CMR file are reviewed and approved, you can release the approved products to the legal entities in which the vendor is authorized to supply products, and appropriate trade agreements can be created. For more information about how to view and approve the products in a CMR file, see Validate and approve imported catalogs.
Click Procurement and sourcing > Common > Catalogs > Vendor catalogs.
On the Vendor catalogs list page, double-click the catalog that you want to work with.
In the Update catalog form, on the Catalog file history tab, click Upload file.
In the Upload file dialog box, browse to the location of the CMR file that you created.
Enter an effective date and an expiration date. These dates define the date range in which the pricing for the products in the CMR file is valid.
Select one of the following update types for the CMR file:
Add updates to the existing vendor catalog – Add product updates to an existing catalog.
Replace the existing vendor catalog with a new catalog – Add a new catalog, or replace an existing catalog with a new catalog.
Click OK to start the upload process for the CMR file.
To view the details about the processing status of the CMR file, on the Catalog file history tab, click Event log.
In the Event log form, the status of the CMR file is updated as the file is processed. CMR files can have the following statuses:
Start processing – The CMR file has been submitted for import.
Start catalog upload – The CMR file has been submitted and is in process.
Catalog upload failed – An error occurred after the file was submitted for processing, and the CMR file was not imported. The upload process can fail for several reasons. For example, it can fail if the file exceeds the maximum size allowed, or if too many files were submitted at the same time.
Catalog upload complete – The CMR file was successfully uploaded.
Validating with schema – The CMR file is being validated against the most current schema for catalog import.
Invalid CMR – The CMR file does not comply with the current schema for catalog import. If the CMR file was created by using an outdated schema, the CMR file must be recreated by using the current schema.
Import complete – The products and images have been successfully copied from the CMR file to the staging tables in Microsoft Dynamics AX.
Pending approval – The CMR file is in review and waiting for approval by the purchasing agent.
Product rejections – Products in the CMR file were rejected for import into the procurement catalog. Product rejections are indicated by a warning during the import process, and the file continues to be processed for products that are approved.
Approval complete – The purchasing professional has completed the review of the products and images that are contained in the CMR file.
Finish processing – Approved products and images have been added to the product master in Microsoft Dynamics AX and trade agreement journals have been created. The data in the CMR file has been passed to the archive folder for the vendor.
Note
When the vendor products are approved, they can be added to the product master and released to the selected legal entities. Additionally, the appropriate trade agreement journals can be created in the legal entities. For more information about how to create trade agreement journals and how to add products to the product master for vendor catalog files, see Validate and approve imported catalogs.
See also
Imported vendor catalogs overview
Validate and approve imported catalogs