Synchronize contacts

When you add a record contact by looking up a reference contact (see Add a contact from reference contacts), the record contacts list provides a Reference Contact ID column and a Sync column. The Sync column indicates whether a record contact is in sync with its reference or not. For each individual record contact, you can choose to synchronize it from or to its reference contact, or you can choose to break the synchronization.

If you added a contact as a transactional contact, there is no corresponding reference contact, so the Reference Contact ID column is null, and the Sync column value is No. However, you can still look up a reference contact and synchronize the reference contact with the record contact. After synchronization, the record contact links with the reference contact in the same way as the contact that you add to a record from reference.

Note: The best practice when adding a contact to a record is to search for and select a contact from existing reference contacts. This method enables you to save time by applying the reference contact information to the record. You can also avoid duplicate contact information in the database.

Synchronize a record contact from its reference

Record contacts may not be as current as reference contacts. If a record contact is currently not in sync with the reference, you can the record contact data with the more current reference contact information.

To synchronize a record contact from its reference

From the desired page, find and open the desired record.
Select the Contacts tab.
Select the check box next to the contact you want to synchronize from its reference.

Note: You can only synchronize one record contact at a time.
Hover over the Manage contacts button, and select Sync from reference.
Note: If Civic Platform does not yet associate the record contact with a reference contact, you must select the reference contact to synchronize. Complete the following steps:
1. In the reference contact lookup form, enter search criteria as needed to find the contact you seek, then select Submit. You can search reference contacts by contact standard fields, contact template fields, contact activities, or contact addresses. See Contact detail fields and Contact address fields for field definitions.
2. If the search results do not contain the contact you want to find, select Close matches to retrieve close match contacts. For more information on close match search, see Look for close matches.
3. Select the check box next to the contacts you want to synchronize to the record contact and then select Select.
Note: After the synchronization:
- The record contact stays in synchronization with the reference contact.
- The Sync column of the record contact changes to Yes.
- If the previous record contact contains some contact addresses, Civic Platform adds the contact addresses to the reference contact while also keeping them in the record contact. For more information on contact addresses, see Add, edit, and search reference contacts.
- The contact template fields in the selected reference contact may be different from the contact template fields in the current contact role in the record. If some template fields are common to both, Civic Platform copies the values in the fields from the reference contact to the record contact. If some template fields are unique in the reference contact, the fields remain hidden in the record contact.

Synchronize a record contact to its reference

After you update a record contact, if the record contact is currently not in sync with the reference, you may want to synchronize the information to its reference contact.

To synchronize a record contact to its reference

From the desired page, find, and open the desired record.
Select the Contacts tab.
Select the check box next to the contact you want to synchronize to its reference.

Note: You can only synchronize one record contact at a time.
Hover over the Manage contacts button, and select Sync to reference.
Note: If Civic Platform does not yet associate the record contact with a reference contact, you must select or create a reference contact to synchronize. Complete the following steps:
1. In the reference contact lookup form, enter search criteria as needed to find the contact you seek, then select Submit. You can search reference contacts by contact standard fields, contact activities, or contact addresses. See Contact detail fields and Contact address fields for field definitions.
2. If the search results do not contain the contact you want to find, select Close matches to retrieve close match contacts. For more information on close match search, see Look for close matches.
3. To synchronize the record contact to an existing reference contact, select the contact you want to synchronize the record contact to and select Select.
4. To synchronize the record contact to the reference as a new reference contact, select New in reference to create a new reference contact. After you complete the fields in the pop-up Contact new form, select Submit.
  
  The standard contact fields display as read-only in the contact new form, with the values populated from the record contact.
  
  If some template fields are common in the record contact and the reference contact, the template fields are editable in the contact new form, with the values populated from the record contact.
  
  Do not edit the values, because when Civic Platform synchronizes the existing information from the record contact to the new reference contact, your changes get overwritten.
Note: After the synchronization:
- The record contact information synchronizes to the reference contact.
- The record contact stays in synchronization with the reference contact. Civic Platform synchronizes the change in either side to the other side.
- The Sync column of the record contact changes to Yes.
- If the previous record contact contains some contact addresses, Civic Platform adds the contact addresses to the reference contact while also keeping them in the record contact. For more information on contact addresses, see Add, edit, and search reference contacts.