Linking Connect RE records

If your school used the Connect RE plugin before moving to Total School, you already have record links that pair an Education Management user with a Raiser’s Edge NXT constituent. Total School can use those existing links to match records, so you don’t have to review those users one at a time in the unlinked students, parents, and extended relationships lists.

When you turn this on, Total School finds and validates every Connect RE record link in your environment and collects them in a list under Needs attention. From that list, you can import and merge records one at a time, or import many at once.

This list includes users in all Education Management roles that have a Connect RE link—not just students and parents. Teachers, coaches, employees, and alumni appear here as well.

Warning: When Total School links a record, the record is marked as imported in Connect RE and stops syncing with Connect RE. Plan to work through this list as a one-time migration rather than an ongoing process.

 

Before you begin

  • Your environment must be enabled for Connect RE record links. If the Connect RE record links option doesn’t appear in your settings, contact Blackbaud Support.

  • You must have the Manage records permission. For more information, see Setting up Total School.

  • Turn on enrollment education syncing first. Under Common data settings > Enrollment education, enable Show school enrollment as a constituent education record in RE, and make sure the school enrollment uses the same school name that Connect RE uses.

    If the school name doesn’t match, education records on existing students and alumni won’t match correctly, and those records appear as Out of Sync after you link them.

 

Turning on Connect RE matching

To use Connect RE record links when matching:

  1. Navigate to Total School and select Fundraising rules.

    If you haven’t finished the Getting started steps, Fundraising rules isn’t available yet. Instead, select Set up Connect RE record links on the Getting started page, then continue with step 3. For more information, see Setting up Total School.

  2. Select Connect RE record links.

  3. Review the information and warning messages in the dialog. They explain where the linked records appear and that linked records stop syncing with Connect RE.

  4. Choose one of the following options:

    • Use Connect RE record links when matching records

    • Do not use Connect RE record links when matching records

    Neither option is selected until you choose one, and you must choose one to save. Total School doesn’t change this setting for you.

  5. Click Save.

The first time you save Use Connect RE record links when matching records, Total School begins checking your Connect RE links against Raiser’s Edge NXT and displays the message Connect RE matching has started.

Total School checks each link and includes only the ones it can verify. A link is left out if the Raiser’s Edge NXT constituent no longer exists, is inactive, can’t be resolved, or is already linked to another Education Management user. Records that Total School has already linked through normal matching aren’t included either.

 

Reviewing unlinked records with Connect RE links

When Total School finishes checking your links, a new entry appears at the top of the Needs attention section on the Total School page, showing how many records are ready to import—for example, Import 6 records using Connect RE links. The entry appears only when at least one record is ready to work, and it no longer appears once the list is empty.

Select the entry to open the Unlinked records with Connect RE links page. Each row is an Education Management user with a verified Connect RE link to a Raiser’s Edge NXT constituent.

  • The Roles column shows every Education Management role the user holds, separated by commas—for example, Parent, Coach. Roles that are hidden in Education Management aren’t shown.

  • Use the Roles filter (is one of or is not one of) to work through the list by role.

  • You can scroll through all records and select all records.

Records with a verified Connect RE link appear only on this list. They are excluded from the unlinked students, parents, and extended relationships lists, so you don’t work the same record twice.

 

Importing and merging a single record

Use this method when you want to review the two records side by side and choose which values to keep.

To import and merge one record:

  1. On the Unlinked records with Connect RE links page, find the user and open the context menu ().

  2. Select Import and merge. The Import and merge records screen opens immediately—there is no confirmation step.

  3. Review the Education Management and Raiser’s Edge NXT values and make your field selections.

  4. Select Import and merge to save.

Nothing is written until you save. If you select Cancel, the record stays unlinked and its Connect RE link stays intact.

When you save, Total School links the two records and then merges them using your selections. Because you have already reviewed the records, the match review step is skipped for this path.

If an error occurs:

  • If the record can’t be linked, an error appears and nothing is changed. This usually means the record was already linked, or it changed since the list was last refreshed. Refresh the list and try again.

  • If the record is linked but the merge doesn’t start, a warning appears with a reference ID. The record is linked and may appear as Out of Sync. Resolve it from the out of sync records list—it isn’t rolled back.

 

Importing multiple records

Use this method when you trust your Connect RE links and want to move a large number of records without reviewing each one.

To import multiple records:

  1. On the Unlinked records with Connect RE links page, select the records you want to import. You can select all records.

  2. Select Import.

  3. Total School processes the records in batches of 100 and shows its progress as it works. Keep the window open until it finishes.

  4. When it’s done, review the summary. It shows:

    • Records that were successfully linked.

    • Records that were skipped because they were already linked. Skipped records aren’t errors.

    • Records that couldn’t be linked, with the reason for each.

You can safely run this again on the same records. Anything already linked is reported as skipped.

Records imported this way aren’t merged during the import. Total School compares the two sides afterward, and any record whose values differ appears as Out of Sync. After a large import, expect a number of out of sync records—this is normal. Resolve them the same way you resolve any out of sync record. For more information, see Troubleshooting sync issues.

 

Turning off Connect RE matching

To stop using Connect RE record links when matching:

  1. Navigate to Total School and select Fundraising rules.

  2. Select Connect RE record links.

  3. Select Do not use Connect RE record links when matching records.

  4. Click Save.

The Needs attention entry and the Unlinked records with Connect RE links page no longer appear. Records you already imported stay linked.

 

Changing enrollment education after you start

If you turn off Show school enrollment as a constituent education record in RE while Connect RE matching is on, you are asked to confirm the change. Turning it off affects Connect RE imports going forward, and enrollment data for those records will most likely appear as Out of Sync.

Select Proceed to save the change, or Cancel to keep the setting on.

 

Troubleshooting

What you see What it means What to do
Connect RE record links doesn’t appear under Fundraising rules. Your environment isn’t enabled for Connect RE record links. Contact Blackbaud Support.
The Needs attention entry doesn’t appear after you save the setting. Total School found no valid Connect RE links to import. If you have links in Connect RE and the entry never appears, contact Blackbaud Support.
A record you expected isn’t on the list. Its Connect RE link couldn’t be verified. The Raiser’s Edge NXT constituent is missing or inactive, or it is already linked to a different user. Match the record manually from the unlinked students, parents, or extended relationships list. For more information, see Creating and managing matches.
Many records show as Out of Sync after importing multiple records. This is expected. Importing multiple records links them but doesn’t merge them, so any linked record with differing data between the systems shows as out of sync. Work the out of sync records list as usual. For more information, see Troubleshooting sync issues.