Help > Forum > General > Importing users from a different system

Importing users from a different system

You can import users from a different system into your forum by uploading a text file containing all of their account information separated by commas. Download a sample CSV to see an example of the required format.

If your user data is in a different format, such as SQL, and you aren't aware of how to convert it to the required format, please contact us and we can do it for you.

Only the username and email address are required. Other fields must be included in each row, but can be left blank.

If you only have the hashed or encrypted version of the user's password, leave the password field blank. In that case, a link to choose a password will be included in the welcome email.

If you have the information in a spreadsheet, you can save it in a comma separated format by changing Save as type to CSV (Comma Delimited) in the Save As dialog of your spreadsheet editor.

If you would like to hide the users from the forum members list, you can create a new user group that has the Viewable on the members list option turned off and import the users into that user group.

If you are using the WordPress plugin or Single Sign On, there is no need to import users. In those cases, the user's forum account is automatically created when they log in to your website.

You can import users from a different system into your forum by following the instructions below:

  1. Log in to your Website Toolbox account.
  2. Click the Users link in the main menu.
  3. Click the New User button.
  4. Click the Import tab.
  5. Browse for the file containing your user data.
  6. Click the Import Users button.

Alternatively, you could import users using our API.

If you need to import other content aside from just users, you can do a Content Import.


If you still need help, please contact us.