Can omit elements that are not required from Voyager patron XML import file

Question

Can I omit elements that are not required from the XML Patron Import file, rather than leave them empty?

Answer

A number of elements are not required, and if present must be a specific length. Rather than keeping these empty elements in the XML import file, you can omit them when there are no values with which to populate them. 

Additional Information

You can view the XSD that governs the XML for patron import here: https://developers.exlibrisgroup.com/resources/voyager/PatronSchema.xsd

If you question whether an element is required, you can look for it in the XSD; where you see minOccurs="0" that indicates the element is not required. For example, here is the section of the XSD that governs the use of the smsNumber element:

<xs:element name="smsNumber" nillable="true" minOccurs="0">
<xs:simpleType>
<xs:restriction base="xs:string">
<xs:minLength value="1"/>
<xs:maxLength value="50"/>
</xs:restriction>
</xs:simpleType>
</xs:element>

This portion of the XSD is saying, "smsNumber is not required (minOccurs="0"), but if you use it, it must be at least 1 character in length (minLength value="1"), and no more than 50 (maxLength value="50")".

• Article last edited: 04-Mar-2021