Import Multiple Users

Unity's Bulk Administration Tool (BAT) can import a text file with comma-separated values (CSV) to create multiple mailboxes at once. This is extremely handy if upgrading from another Voicemail system, such as CallPilot. How easy this is depends on your Excel/Numbers and Copy/Paste dexterity, but it's worth spending some time on it, as a bulk import is huge time saver when it works!

Get some Data!

The source could be an extension list, or an export from another system. Name & extension is enough to start with. Fields must be plain text, and comma separated which may require some preliminary work in a text editor. Open the CSV file in Excel or Numbers, and make sure it looks good, with the correct data in the correct columns.

Eg, mailbox users exported from CallPilot, opened in Excel or Numbers:

1	4993	4993	Smith	Peter	Regular User	Local User	1
2	3899	3899	Sellers	Sarah	Regular User	Local User	1
3	3486	3486	King	Anne	Regular User	Local User	1
4	4229	4229	Hunt	Claire	Regular User	Local User	1
5	3721	3721	Johnson	John	Regular User	Local User	1
6	4999	4999	Green	Anne	Regular User	Local User	1

Converting:

At a bare minimum, Unity requires 7 fields:

Alias	DisplayName	FirstName	LastName	TemplateAlias	Mailbox	ListInDirectory

Therefore, we need to edit the columns and fields to look something like the following...
With some column duplication, fill down, and 'Find & Replace', this actually isn't too hard!

Alias	DisplayName	FirstName	LastName	TemplateAlias	Mailbox	ListInDirectory
PeterSmith	Peter Smith	Peter	Smith	VoiceMailUserTemplate	4993	1
SarahSellers	Sarah Sellers	Sarah	Sellers	VoiceMailUserTemplate	3899	1
AnneKing	Anne King	Anne	King	VoiceMailUserTemplate	3486	1
ClaireHunt	Claire Hunt	Claire	Hunt	VoiceMailUserTemplate	4229	1
JohnJohnson	John Johnson	John	Johnson	VoiceMailUserTemplate	3721	1
AnneGreen	Anne Green	Anne	Green	VoiceMailUserTemplate	4999	1

Export the final table as a CSV (comma separated values) file: File ➤ Export to ➤ CSV...

It should then look as follows when opened in a text editor, where any final tweaking can be done (if necessary).
Ensure that the first row contains the column headings, these are the minimum headings required for Unity Mail:

Alias,DisplayName,FirstName,LastName,TemplateAlias,Extension,ListInDirectory
PeterSmith,Peter Smith,Peter,Smith,VoiceMailUserTemplate,4993,1
SarahSellers,Sarah Sellers,Sarah,Sellers,VoiceMailUserTemplate,3899,1
AnneKing,Anne King,Anne,King,VoiceMailUserTemplate,3486,1
ClaireHunt,Claire Hunt,Claire,Hunt,VoiceMailUserTemplate,4229,1
JohnJohnson,John Johnson,John,Johnson,VoiceMailUserTemplate,3721,1
AnneGreen,Anne Green,Anne,Green,VoiceMailUserTemplate,4999,1

Note that Numbers will separate values with Semi-colons if the decimal separator is a comma (eg, in Europe).
This can be fixed by changing your Region to UK/US in System Preferences, or with 'Find & Replace' in the text editor.

Importing:

In Unity, from the left menu select: Tools ➤ Bulk Administration Tool, choose your CSV file, and click Submit

If an import fails, open the the ''failed objects report file' by clicking the link. Make the necessary changes, and try again.

Rules:

The first row in your CSV file must contain column headings
Ensure that commas separate the data in each row in your CSV file
Although the data must be arranged in the same order as the column heading, the column order is unimportant
If the CSV file includes a column that you want BAT to ignore, use the column heading "Junk"
If any data includes a space, quotes, or commas, contain it within quotes *. Your data should not include double-quotes
Column headings are not case sensitive, but they must be spelled as indicated in Required and Optional CSV Fields section

* Works without quotes in Unity, but may cause problems interacting with external servers, so be aware.