What is it?
The Media Files feature in SDM helps you manage and link assets (e.g., images, files) to product rows during catalog enrichment. It simplifies the process of importing, reviewing, and syncing assets with Akeneo PIM or exporting them in output files.
- Drop media files to enrich product information.
- Control and review imported media files, and add or remove them before exporting.
- Quickly identify format errors or missing assets.
- Use the SDM Akeneo Connector to sync and create new assets in your PIM.
More about Akeneo Assets
This feature does not support the creation of attributes type media_link in Akeneo. If mapped with a type “text” attribute it will be pushed as such.
How does it work?
Importing Media Files
Media files can be dropped directly into SDM during the import step. This step is optional and can be skipped. SDM supports Akeneo attributes type “image” and “asset collection”. See list here. Max media file size is 500MB unless a lower max size has been set at the asset family level in the case of a sync via Akeneo connector.
Automatic pairing
If the product file has a dedicated column with the media file names reported (same name + extension), they will be automatically paired with product rows.
Separator must be “;” if multiple assets are in the cell.
During the import step, if your SDM is connected to Akeneo, the interface will automatically detect and display errors when media files have unsupported formats (e.g., GIF, JPEG, JPG, PDF, PNG). It will also show an error if there are duplicate media files with the same name. Meaning if the format type is not accepted by the Asset manager
Managing Media
In the Normalisation module, you can manually add, remove, or correct media files linked to specific product rows. SDM allows bulk editing, where changes to media files in multiple rows are applied based on the first selected row.
Depending on your SDM configuration, the Normalisation can show errors if media are missing. If this is a required attribute, then you'll need to add a media before finalizing the step.
It is also possible to upload media from your computer directly using the UPLOAD NEW MEDIA button
Preview is not available yet for PDF, GIF (only extension JPG, PNG, Jpeg).
Sync with Akeneo PIM
When connected to Akeneo PIM, SDM pushes media files based on mapped attributes and asset family configurations. Naming conventions and attribute types (e.g., “image” or “asset collection”) are automatically retrieved and matched to ensure proper sync. There are no other metadata being pushed.
PIM Naming Convention and product linked rules
PIM pre-set rules are applied at push time. Naming conventions are also applied to the created assets. So if link rules are established in the naming convention and “abort_asset_creation_on_error” is set to “true”, then media that were previously linked to products at the SDM level can be automatically relinked after the push. More details here.
To avoid this, make sure your naming conventions are not mandatory and that “abort_asset_creation_on_error” is set to “false” when using SDM.
Updating an existing media in PIM is not possible
In the context of a push toward the PIM Akeneo destination, the system will automatically rename the assets and add a UUID at the end of your media. The aim is to push a unique asset code toward the PIM. So no updates are possible via SDM for now.
Output files
At the end of the workflow, after an Akeneo sync or not, several files are available:
- The media files not linked to a product
- The media files linked to at least one product
Why Use It?
- Seamless Integration: SDM’s Akeneo connector ensures that media files are correctly synced with the PIM’s asset family structure, reducing manual work and errors.
- Flexible Media Management: Even without an Akeneo connection, SDM enables flexible management of media files during product enrichment, allowing you to link, review, and edit media files easily.
- Enhanced Workflow: With features like bulk media file editing, normalization, and error correction, SDM helps streamline your product enrichment workflow while ensuring media files are accurately linked to products.