Vendors can upload bulk entities such as Applications, Catalogs, Notes, and Assets into the application through an ACES XML file. You can create and encode an ACES XML file using any of the available cataloging tools.
For Aces, you must first provide a list of catalogs before you onboard the Vendor data.
Prerequisite
You must configure the following Reference Data table:
- Vendor Information: This Reference Data table includes all the vendor IDs.
Prerequisite
For onboarding Vendor data through ACES, you must configure the following Reference Data table:
- Authorized Catalog: You must provide the catalog and catalog keys, and mark it as “Protected”.
| Features | Scenario | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Vehicle based ingestion of Application data | Scenario 1 |  |
| Equipment based ingestion of application data | Scenario 2 |  |
Sample Scenario 1
Consider that you wish to import the Windshield Wiper Blade Application records with Base Vehicle id "1". The application records with Basevehicle Id and related base vehicle attributes are defined in the App section of the ACES XML file. Upon uploading the XML file, the application records are imported with the related attribute details. In this topic, you upload a sample ACES XSD file:
ACES_AutoApp_UBMachine_Wiperblade.xml
Sample Scenario 2
Consider that you wish to import the Lawn Mower Application records with "Equipment base id "1". The application records with Basevehicle Id and related base vehicle attributes are defined in the App section of the ACES XML file. Upon uploading the XML file, the application records are imported with the related attribute details.
The following is a sample XML file of Equipment Based ID:
How to Upload ACES XML File
On preparing the ACES XML file using any cataloging tools, log in to the application, to begin with the submission process.
- On the navigation menu, click Quick Actions > Upload ACES XML File.
Result: The ACES Upload page is displayed.
If multiple ownership IDs are present, the application displays an ownership selector drop-down in the Header. For more information, see Onboard & Manage Data based on Multiple Ownership and Enable Ownership Selector in the Application Header.
- Select the region from the Geography dropdown. You can select either North America (NA) and Latin America (LA).
- It is mandatory to select the region before uploading the XML file. If you try to upload the file without selecting it, the application displays an error “Please select the geography to upload”.
- You must set the preferences for North America and Latin America in the app config: regionsforexplosion(NA) and regionsforexplosion(LA). For more information, see Configure Region for Explosion in App Config.
- The region(s) specified in the XML file uploaded must match with the region selected in the Geography dropdown.
- Use any of the below two options to upload the file:
- Click Upload File or drag and drop the file.
- Enter the URL path of the ACES XML file in the Give a file link here section. You can upload the XML file from Dropbox, Google Drive, or OneDrive by copying its URL and pasting it into the textbox. Then, click Retrieve File to complete the process.
- The Vendors can upload the ACES XML files into the system.
- The supported XSD and Autocare DB versions are listed on the left-hand side of the Upload XML window.
Result: The "File(s) uploaded and under processing. You can review the progress of the <task ID> in task details" notification is displayed.
- Locate the ACES XML file that you wish to upload and click Open to load the file.
Result: The dialog box displays the message "File(s) uploaded and under processing. You can review the progress of the task in task details".
You can perform any of the following:
- Click Finish & Close to go to the Home page.
- Click Show task details to view the import task status. A batch task is submitted for importing data.
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Click Show task details.
Result: The Task Detail page is displayed with its key components. You can view the summary and the task filters, processing details, and sub-details of the task. You can also view and search the entities that were part of the batch task.
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Initially, the Task Status is indicated as “Queued” and waiting to be processed. Click Refresh to load the Task Detail page with the Task status as Completed.
Result: The Task Detail page of the respective XML file is displayed with the File Size, Total Records, and other details as depicted in the below image.
In the Task Detail (Automotive ACES Bulk Import or Automotive Data Bulk Import) page you can use the Related Tasks, File Submission Report, and Downloads tabs to view the tasks details and download the reports.
View Task Detail Page
You can use either one of the task options from the Type drop-down list in the Task Status window of the Home page to view the ACES bulk import task details:
- Automotive ACES Bulk Import: Displays exclusive ACES bulk file import task details.
- Automotive Data Bulk Import: Displays import task details based on the type of file imported, either ACES or PIES.
To view the Task Detail page for the Automotive ACES Bulk Import task type:
- Click Task Status icon on the Home page.
- Click Automotive ACES Bulk Import option from the Type drop-down list.
- Click View Details link of the required file.
Result: The Automotive ACES Bulk Import task details page is displayed.
Task Status - Completed
If the Task Status is Completed, the imported data satisfies the defined validation parameters. The system then performs the data normalization on the incoming part number to map the application data and to store a new base vehicle name that includes Year, Make, and Model attributes. The system explodes the data based on Year, Make, Model, Region, and Submodel attribute values.
- In the Task Details page, click Related Tasks. You can view multiple child task details.
- When vendors or suppliers have imported 4 Catalog records, the system processes individual catalogs separately and the Child Related Tasks displays each catalog record separately. Each task includes a Catalog record with related Applications Groups and Applications.
- Click any child task to navigate to the respective Task Detail page. Further, drill-down to the sub-details to view the onboarded entities.
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Search the onboarded entities by selecting entity type as Application.
Result: The onboarded "Windshield Wiper Blade" Application records are displayed.
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You can also search the onboarded entities based on various attributes using the Filter option.
Result: You can view one Application ID exploded to multiple applications based on base vehicle, sub-model, and regions. For more information, see Data Storage and Renditions.
Task Status Types
The system supports folowing Task Status types:
- Completed: All data in the file is processed with no validation errors found in the file.
- Completed with Errors: All data in the file is processed with some data not persisted due to validation errors.
- Errored: Identified issues in file or system while processing the file.
- Processing: Indicates the file is currently inprocessing stage.
- Queued: Indicates the file is curretly in the queued stage.
Task Status - Completed with Errors
If the Task Status is Completed with errors, then the imported data is unable to process due to validation errors (Example: Overmap, Overlap, Missing Part Numbers), and files are processed with errors. Upon processing the files, the valid data is persisted in the system and the invalid data is flagged or rejected.
File Rejection (Task Status - Errored)
The unprocessed or errored files are viewed with this status. The system clearly separates unprocessed files having data or file issues with the Task Status as "Errored". The errors are categorized with the following sub-status types:
- File Errors
- Sytem Errors
File Error:
Here are few example scenarios for the files not being processed due to data or file issues:
- Invalid ACES/PIES version number
- Invalid VCdb, PCdb etc in the file
- Not well formed xml file.
- Failed XSD validation
- Parsing Error (File Error: Invalid uploaded xml file)
- File Error (File Error: More than 1 file found in the Zip. Only 1 valid ACES xml file per zip is supported)
- Submission type issue
- Subbrand based ACES files
- Invalid dates in files
- Unsupported file size
- Credentials Issue
Upon any file errors, the Application displays "Upload Errored with Substatus: File Error".
System Error:
Upon any system errors, the Application displays "Upload Errored with Substatus: System Error".
This section provides information on files that are unable to process due to the following errors:
| Validation | Description | Help Topic | Error Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| XSD Validations | The system performs the validations of the ACES XML schema based on the XSD standards. The ACES file uploaded is invalid or failed based on the XSD schema, if the error message section displays the following messages: • “Unable to parse the file. Please ensure that it is a valid ACES file.” • “No valid header found. ACES header needs to be within <Header></Header> tags. • “File Error: Failed XSD validation. Example Value Error. Line Number: #; column number. Check the ACES XML file formatting to make sure that it adheres to the latest ACES 4.0 XSD Schema Standard. |
XSD validations | File Error |
| VCdb & PCdb Versioning | The system accepts the three recent VCdb and PCdb versions available as per Auto Care Industry Standards. If your file is not compliant with this requirement, check the file to meet one of these three versions. If there is an invalid VCDB or PCDB versions, then the system system displays the File error in the format:
|
VCdb Validations and PCdb validations | File Error |
| Missing Brand Validations | The system validates the "Brand" information of individual Application records on the Header section of the ACES XML file. If the brand is not available on the "Header" or "App" section of the XML file, then the validation fails and the system rejects the application. | Missing Brand validations | File Error |
| Part Check | The system validates the Application record based on the part attribute value defined in the imported file. If the Part# attribute value has the values such as N/A (NA), N/R (NR), N/S (NS), or NSS, the system rejects the application. | Part Check | File Error |
File Accepted but has Rejected Apps
- On successfully importing the data and if the task status is Completed with errors” (File Accepted but has Rejected Apps), then the imported XML data is processed with errors. The application allows you to view the summary of total changes and errors in the uploaded ACES XML file. Click the Download Report icon from the Task Detail page to locate and identify the errors.
- The Download Report icon in the Task Summary allows you to view reports such as ACES File Submission Report, Part Type Summary Report, and error applications report.
- The ACES Status Report is a zip file that shows the details such as the applications that are accepted, errored, or rejected with other details such as catalogs, part types, vehicle types, Notes, and so on. The zip file includes the following reports:
Accepted Part Number
When you click on ACES Status Report, the report is downloaded in the zip format. In the downloaded reports folder, you can find an Excel file named accepted part number. The Excel file includes the details of the accepted Part Number with the total number of applications including the number of accepted and rejected apps. It also includes other details such as Task ID, Vendor, Brand AAIA ID, Brand, Part Terminology ID, Part Terminology, and so on as illustrated in the sample Excel.
ACES File Submission Report
In the Task Detail page of the Automotive Data Bulk Import task, you can view the File Submission Report tab that displays the overview of uploaded ACES file validations. It provides the submission details of the vendor such as File Name, Company, ACES Version, Submission Type, Sender Name, Sender Phone, and so on. It also includes the details of the total Application, total Notes, total Catalog, total App groups, total Digital Assets and total Entity count created from a file, and so on.
Invalid Application Details
This section includes the details of the Applications count with warnings or errors. The system displays the applications which are rejected due to invalid attributes such as invalid part numbers, invalid vehicle IDs, missing brands, and so on.
Currently, the Application records rejected with errors are highlighted in 'red' color.
Validation Summary
If your data contains records outside of the VCdb or PCdb valid combinations, you will get an invalid part type error on the ACES File Submission Report PDF file inside the ACES Status Report folder. The application will reject them, and you will need to correct and load them again.
Currently, the warnings for inbound validations are highlighted in 'orange', the Application records rejected with errors are highlighted in 'red', and the details which are highlighted in 'black' is for information.
The validation summary displays the following validation errors:
| Errors | Description | Help Topic |
|---|---|---|
| VCdb Error | The system validates all application records within an Application Group against the approved VCdb database version. | VCdb Validation |
| PCdb Error | The system validates all application records within an Application Group against the approved PCdb database version. | PCdb Validation |
| Conflicting Notes | If any two application records have same set of VCdb attributes, part number except Notes, then the Application records are identified as “Conflict”. | Conflicting Notes |
| Conflicting Applications | The Application records that are identical with the same set of all VCdb attributes, same Notes, and except the Part number are considered as Conflict applications. | Conflicting Application |
| Overlap Validation | The system validates applications having the same brand, part terminology, position, notes, or qualifiers with different part numbers and the VCdb attributes configuration, which are set at two different levels where one of the applications covers the more detailed one. | Overlap validation |
| Overmap Validation | Once the Applications of the Application Group are already validated for “Mandatory Attributes” scenarios, the system performs the overmap validation. | Overmap validation |
| Invalid Part Type (Position Vehicle) | The system validates the Application record based on the combination of attribute values such as Part Type, and Position Attribute of the vehicle. | Invalid Part Type - Position Attribute validations |
| Invalid Part Type (Attribute) | The system validates the Application record based on the attribute values such as the Part Type attribute of the vehicle to ensure the mapped attribute follows the configured rule. | Invalid Part Type- Attribute validations |
Currently, the system stores the report in the tenant-specific storage container.
Skipped Catalogs
This section shows the number of catalogs skipped during processing and the reasons for their exclusion.
Processed Catalogs
This section includes the name of Catalogs that are uploaded successfully and the name of Catalogs that are failed to upload or skipped.
Catalog Checks Details
This section includes the name of Catalogs with the respective validation errors.
Downloads
In the Task Detail page of the Automotive Data Bulk Import task, you can view the Downloads tab which allows you to download the uploaded XML files.
The following are the details provided in the Downloads tab:
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Input File: This property provides the link to download the uploaded XML file.
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If the XML file was uploaded via URL, the Click here link is displayed. On click, it redirects to the application (Dropbox, Google Drive, or One Drive) from where the URL was fetched. Upon download, the xml file will be saved to your local drive.
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If the XML file was uploaded via local drive, the downloadable file name is displayed. On click will download the XML file and gets saved to your local drive.
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Upload Report: This property provides the link to download the uploaded XML file in .zip format and save into your local drive.
In case of Equipment application, the downloaded file name is prefixed with “OHE”. For example, OHE_602119-USA_report_20251023030459.
Rejected Applications
In the downloaded reports folder, you can find an Excel file named Rejected_Applications_{{Vendor ID}}_{{Timestamp}}. This Excel file provides the details of vehicles rejected as well as errored out by the system. It includes an error type as "Parent application group rejected" which indicates the "Application Groups" are rejected because of the rejection of one or more applications inside it. The users can update the "Applications" and re-upload the file.
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- File Details:
In case of Equipment application, the downloaded file includes the errored and rejected equipment data. The file name format for equipment is OHE_Rejected_Applications_{{Vendor ID}}_{{Timestamp}}.
Part Number Summary
In the downloaded reports folder, you can find an Excel file named part number summary. This Excel file includes the Part Number and its respective Status. The Status may be Accepted or Rejected. It also includes the other details of Part Number such as Task ID, Vendor, Brand AAIA ID, Brand, Part Terminology ID, Part Terminology, and so on as shown in the sample Excel.
- File Details:
Notes
In the downloaded reports folder, you can find an Excel file named Notes.csv. The Excel file includes a distinct list of Notes for each Catalog record. The report includes Catalog Name, Catalog key, Note Id, Note Text (ACES) post standardization, Task Id, and Record Status (Existing or New).
If the same Note is imported with different Catalog records, the system displays the list of Notes of each Catalog record.
- File Details:
- Download
notes.csv
- Download
- The application will not process the ACES XML file if the sub-brand is present in the ACES Header file. You are notified with the error message on the Task Summary page stopping further processing of the file.
- You must load the full ACES XML file with the Brand-Vendor-Part Type details in the header file.
Walkthrough
In this walkthrough video, you will find the steps on how to onboard ACES XML data.