Web Development·12,095 discussions

How do I set up certain types of data in an imported Microsoft List?

Tags: Software, Web development, Windows

I have moved a Microsoft List from one shared platform to my platform. The way I did this was to first download it as an Excel file to my local computer. Then I formatted the CSV data to be an actual Table in Excel. Then I saved this into an Excel Workbook file.

Now, I assume it goes without saying that, doing all this and using the resulting file to upload and create a new Microsoft List would mean that all the data type information is lost and each column would be assumed to be text.

After I have used the Excel Workbook file to set up the new Microsoft List, I am taken to the “Customize” phase where I can define the column type. I can match the “Title” column to be the same as the Microsoft List I am copying from. I can set data types defined as Choice to be a Choice type. But here I come to my first question. How do I further set up a Choice data types to be a set of types and have them color-coded as they are in the List I am copying from?

And here is my second question. A few of the columns are Person types. How do I set up a Person type? The Person option is not even available as an option in the Customize phase.

The only options I am given are:

* Single Line of Text
* Multiple Line of Text
* Choice
* Title
* Do Not Import

Topic

Re: Microsoft List

In reply to How do I set up certain types of data in an imported Microsoft List?

https://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/msoffice/forum/all/duplicate-a-microsoft-list-with-contentdata/2c89f076-7e47-4715-a314-1d4958307dd3 might help.

It seems a common question. 175 people had the same question, and there are 37 replies, which might be helpful also.

Reply To: How do I set up certain types of data in an imported Microsoft List?

In reply to Re: Microsoft List

Unfortunately, this information I already know. I know how to export a List into an Excel file and I know how to import that Excel file into a Microsoft List. The issue is how to format a Choice data type once I have imported that Excel file and set the column data type to “Choice”.

Also, I need to know how to make a Person data type. I am thinking right now that I would have to delete the column since it does not come OOTB, and then add a Person data type to replace the deleted column. Is that right?

Finally, there is one more thing I would like to understand because it pertains to another list I am working on. How do I crate a “Card” type data column?

How do I set up certain types of data in an imported Microsoft List?

In reply to How do I set up certain types of data in an imported Microsoft List?

you can’t directly set up advanced data types like colored choices or Person columns during the initial import to Microsoft Lists.
You can’t import color coding, but you can set up choices later. After creating the list, go to list settings and edit the “Choice” column. There, you can define the list of options and format them later within the list view.
Person column isn’t available during import either. You’ll need to create a new “Single Line of Text” column for now. Later, you can convert this to a “Person” column using Power Automate. It’s a bit more technical, but there are online tutorials to guide you through the process.

How do I set up certain types of data in an imported Microsoft List?

In reply to How do I set up certain types of data in an imported Microsoft List?

Unfortunately, during import, data types and formatting like color-coding aren’t directly transferred. But there’s a fix! After importing, in the “Customize” section, you can define data types like “Choice.” While you can’t set colors during import, you can add them later directly in your new Microsoft List.

For “Person” columns, there isn’t a direct option during import either. You’ll need to recreate them as “Single Line of Text” for now, and then consider using Power Automate to manage them as “People” later.

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