Bulk upload related objects to a RAiD

Use bulk upload to add multiple related objects to a RAiD at once using a spreadsheet template. This is more efficient than adding related objects one by one when you have several to add.

Applicability

This procedure applies to the ARDC RAiD Service User Interface.

Prerequisites

In order to do this, you will need to be an authorised Operator, Service Point Admin, or Service Point User of at least one ARDC RAiD Service Point.

The RAiD you want to update must already exist. To create a new RAiD, see Mint a new RAiD.

About related objects

A related object is any resource associated with the research activity — for example a publication, dataset, report, or piece of software. Each related object requires:

Identifier — a DOI URL (e.g. https://doi.org/10.xxxx/xxxxx) or a timestamped web.archive.org URL (e.g. https://web.archive.org/web/20260525114818/https://ardc.edu.au/)
Type — what kind of object it is; exactly one type per object (see Valid types and categories below)
Category — how the object relates to the activity; one or more categories may be assigned per object

Process

Log in to the RAiD User Interface.
Locate the RAiD you want to update and click through to its record.
Click Edit RAiD.
Scroll to the Related Objects section.
Click Upload Bulk Related Objects. The Bulk Upload panel will expand below any existing related objects.
Download the template in your preferred format by clicking Download Template under the .XLSX or .CSV icon.
Open the template and fill in your related objects — one row per object. See Valid types and categories below for accepted values.
- Each object requires one identifier, exactly one type, and at least one category.
- If you need to assign multiple categories to a single related object, separate the category values with commas in the CSV file. (In the Excel template, use the multi-select dropdown in the Categories column.)
Save the completed file.
Upload the file by dragging and dropping it onto the drop zone, or clicking the drop zone to browse for the file. Accepted formats are .xlsx, .xls, and .csv.
The system will parse the file and display a Preview table showing one row per object, with columns for Identifier, Type, Categories, and Remove. A green All rows valid badge will appear if there are no errors.
If any rows contain errors — such as a missing identifier, invalid type, or unrecognised category — they will be highlighted in the table. You can correct errors directly in the preview by editing the Type and Categories dropdowns inline, or remove a row using the trash icon.
If you want to discard the upload entirely and start again, click START OVER. This will restore the file drop zone so you can upload a new file.
Once all rows are valid, click CONFIRM UPLOAD (n) (where n is the number of rows to be added).
The related objects will appear in the Related Objects section, ready to review and edit if needed.
Click SAVE to save the RAiD.

Valid types and categories

Types

Each related object must have exactly one type. Valid type values are listed in the downloadable spreadsheet templates and in the RAiD metadata schema documentation.

Limits and scope

You can upload a maximum of 100 related objects per file. For larger sets, upload in multiple batches.
Bulk upload is currently available for related objects only. Other metadata fields — such as contributors and organisations — must be added manually.

Tips

You can use Add Related Object and Upload Bulk Related Objects at the same time — the manual entry form and the bulk upload panel can both be open and active simultaneously.
If you close the bulk upload panel (using the × button) before confirming, your uploaded file and preview will be discarded. Your manually entered related objects will not be affected.
Bulk upload adds to any related objects already on the RAiD — it does not replace them.
Not sure what your data will look like? Try it first in the RAiD demo environment before uploading to production.