Creating Mappings to Lookups with Common Record Names

Your target object contains a lookup to the Accounting Currency object, but these records typically do not contain unique names. You have several Accounting currency records with the name USD, CAD, or GBP.

A typical lookup mapping cannot identify the correct related lookup without additional information as the name alone is not unique to the record. However, Accounting currency records also include a field that stores the name of a specific company. The combination of the record name and the company is unique, so can be used to identify a single record.

If both values are present in the message, you can use the data to identify a specific record that contains that information. When creating a lookup mapping, you can specify a source resolution key that relates to the company data and a source resolution field on the target record that must match the value.

The following table demonstrates two types of setup for the lookup mapping described above:

• A simple lookup mapping that uses only one key, which cannot identify a single record (examples 1 and 4)
• An advanced lookup mapping, which includes a supplemental source resolution key and target resolution field to successfully identify a record (examples 2, 3, 5 and 6)

Example Number	Source Data	Key	Target Lookup Record Name	Target Resolution Field Value	Unique Record ID Identified
1	USD	ISO	USD		No, the name alone is not unique.
2	USD	ISO	USD		Yes, the combination is unique.
	Merlin Technologies, Inc.	Company		Merlin Technologies, Inc.
3	USD	ISO	USD
	Merlin Technologies Canada	Company		Merlin Technologies Canada
4	CAD	ISO	CAD		No, the name alone is not unique.
5	CAD	ISO	CAD		Yes, the combination is unique.
	Merlin Technologies, Inc.	Company		Merlin Technologies, Inc.
6	CAD	ISO	CAD
	Merlin Technologies Canada	Company		Merlin Technologies Canada

An administrator can assess whether you need to specify additional source and target resolution information and configure the mapping using the following steps:

1. Identify whether the records linked via the lookup contain unique names across the object:
   • If the names are and will continue to be unique in the future, a simple lookup mapping is all that's required.
   • If the record names are not unique, or if it's possible they won't be unique in the future, you can create an advanced lookup mapping. Proceed with the following steps.
2. Find a field on the lookup record that would identify a unique record when combined with the name field. Make a note of this field as you will specify this later as the target resolution field. In the example above, company information and name create a unique combination per record.
3. Ensure that you have permission to view the object and field identified in step 2.
4. Ensure that the publication sends data that matches information stored in the source resolution field you've identified. If it is not already included, request that the publication is updated to include this information. No separate subscription mappings need to be created for this key, but the data must exist in the message in order to use it to identify the correct record. Make a note of the key used for this data as you will specify this later as the source resolution key.
5. Follow the usual steps to create or edit the lookup mapping that requires additional information. When you select a lookup, you are automatically presented with two new fields:
   • Source Resolution Key
   • Target Resolution Field
   Note:

   You cannot use data transformation tables for lookup mappings that specify a source resolution key or target resolution field.

6. Enter the source resolution key identified in step 4.
7. Enter the target resolution field identified in step 2.
8. Save the mapping and subscription. The next time a message is sent, your target lookup field will be populated with the record identified by the message data.