An upload is stuck, or takes very long

Reading, checking and comparing a file happen in the background, so you can leave the page and come back or wait for the email. A big file takes a while. This page helps you tell "slow" from "stuck".

Symptoms#

• The page has said Reading your file, Preparing content or Comparing with published content for a long time.
• The progress bar and the numbers (1800 of 4000 rows prepared.) have stopped moving.
• The page says This file could not be processed with …was interrupted… or The import queue is unavailable.

Likely causes#

Confirmed (from how the background work is built):

1. The file is large. Each stage works through every row, and the last one, Comparing with published content, also asks your site about the items it already has. Thousands of rows take minutes; a slow site makes the last stage slower. The numbers on the page show it moving.
2. A background worker restarted while it was working. Nothing is lost. A file that has made no progress for 10 minutes is picked up again automatically; the check for such files runs every five minutes, so allow up to about 15 minutes before you suspect anything.
3. The work could not be queued at the moment you uploaded or retried (The import queue is unavailable.).
4. Your workspace is suspended, or all publishing is paused: files wait by design and are started again when it is released (workspaces).

Possible:

• A very slow or unreachable site during Comparing with published content.

Step-by-step solution#

1. Look at the numbers. If rows read, rows prepared or items compared is rising, it is working: wait. A file near the 10,000-row limit takes a good while; you can close the page, because you are emailed when the file needs you.
2. Wait 15 minutes if nothing moves. A stalled file restarts by itself.
3. If the page shows This file could not be processed with …interrupted…, select Retry. It continues from the last batch that was completed, so nothing is repeated.
4. If it says The import queue is unavailable., wait a minute and select Retry.
5. If it says The destination site is not connected…, reconnect the site or edit the configuration, then Retry (the connection fails).
6. If the stored file cannot be read (The source could not be read…), upload the file again from the card on your dashboard.
7. If the file will not finish after Retry, upload it again: it is a new check.

How to verify#

• The page reaches What will change with the number of rows you expect, or shows the amber or red box that says what is wrong.
• The Uploads list shows the file as Ready for review.

If it persists#

Contact support with the file's name, the configuration's name, what the page says and for how long it has said it. Support can see where the file is.

Tips for big files#

• Split very large files (large files), and leave out columns the configuration does not use.
• After the first big import, upload only what changed.