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 mapping to a lookup, you can specify additional information in the mapping to compare the company data sent in the message to the 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 additional data to successfully identify a record (examples 2, 3, 5 and 6)

Example Number	Source Data	Key	Target Lookup Record Name	Additional Identifier on Target	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 identifiers for your lookup mapping 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 target 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 additional identifier on the target record. 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. Check whether the publication sends data that matches information stored in the additional identifier you've identified on the source. If it is not already included, the key is created automatically when you create the advanced lookup mapping. 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 field used for this data as you will specify this later as the additional identifier for the source record.
5. Follow the usual steps to create or edit the lookup mapping that requires additional information. From the Target Type picklist, select Advanced Lookup. This option presents two fields:
   • Additional Identifier on <Source Object>
   • Additional Identifier on <Target Object>
   Note:

   You cannot use data transformation tables for advanced lookup mappings.

6. Enter the field that provides the additional identifier for the source (identified in step 4).
7. Enter the additional identifier on the target record (identified in step 2).
8. Save the mapping. The next time a message is sent, your target lookup field will be populated with the record identified by the message data.