Falcon POS Import

What is this?

The Falcon import reads inventory data directly from an Excel spreadsheet (.xlsx) exported from the Falcon POS system and loads it into Margin Master for pricing analysis. This import was recently rewritten to use Excel files instead of the older text-based pipeline.

Import File Format

• File type: Excel workbook (.xlsx)
• File pattern: *.xlsx in the configured import directory
• Header row: Yes (column names are matched case-insensitively)

How Import Works

The export file is read from the Import Path set under Tools > Options > Miscellaneous:

1. Place the Falcon Excel export file (.xlsx) in the configured import directory.
2. Margin Master opens the Excel file using the DevExpress Workbook engine (no need for Excel to be installed on the computer).
3. Column headers in the first row are matched case-insensitively to the expected field names.
4. Each row is read and mapped to Margin Master fields.
5. Duplicate records (same SKU + Store combination) are automatically filtered out so only one record per combination is kept.
6. Leading zeros are stripped from store numbers.
7. The existing [Store] table is cleared and all rows are bulk-loaded in one operation.
8. After a successful import, the Excel file is renamed with a .bak extension and a timestamp to prevent re-importing the same data.
9. Import results are recorded in the ImportProcessing table.

Field Mapping

Troubleshooting

Every import failure shows one error dialog; the log under File > Utilities > Show Log Files has the detail to send to support.

Tips

Excel does not need to be installed. Margin Master reads the .xlsx file directly using a built-in workbook engine. You do not need Microsoft Excel installed on the computer.

Column headers are case-insensitive. The header row must contain the expected column names, but capitalization does not matter. For example, "stock #", "Stock #", and "STOCK #" are all recognized.

The file is renamed after import. After a successful import, the Excel file is renamed to .bak with a timestamp appended (for example, data.xlsx becomes data.xlsx.bak.20260321_143022). This prevents accidentally importing the same file twice.

Duplicates are automatically removed. If the Excel file contains multiple rows with the same SKU and Store combination, only one record is kept. The deduplication happens automatically during import.

Place only one export file at a time. Margin Master looks for *.xlsx files in the import directory. To avoid confusion, place only the current export file in the directory before importing.

Common Questions

Q: What happened to the old text-based Falcon import? A: The Falcon import was recently rewritten to read directly from Excel files. The older pipeline that used text files, BCP staging, and FileHelpers is no longer used. The new Excel-based import is simpler and more reliable.

Q: What if my Excel file has extra columns? A: Extra columns are ignored. Margin Master only reads the columns listed in the field mapping above.

Q: Why was my file renamed to .bak? A: After a successful import, Margin Master automatically renames the file by adding .bak and a timestamp. This is normal and prevents the same file from being imported again.

Q: What if I have multiple stores in one file? A: The Warehouse # column identifies which store each row belongs to. Multiple stores in a single file are supported and will be separated during main table processing.

Q: What is the unique key for records? A: Each record is identified by the combination of SKU and StoreNumber. If duplicates exist in the Excel file, they are automatically deduplicated during import.