Data Import

1. Overview

IoTDB supports two methods for data import:

• Data Import Tool: Use the import-data.sh (Unix/OS X) or import-data.bat (Windows) script in the tools directory to manually import CSV, SQL, or TsFile (open-source time-series file format) data into IoTDB.
• TsFile Auto-Loading Feature

File Format	IoTDB Tool	Description
CSV	import-data.sh/bat	Can be used for single or batch import of CSV files into IoTDB
SQL		Can be used for single or batch import of SQL files into IoTDB
TsFile		Can be used for single or batch import of TsFile files into IoTDB
	TsFile Auto-Loading Feature	Can automatically monitor a specified directory for newly generated TsFiles and load them into IoTDB.

2. Data Import Tool

2.1 Common Parameters

Short	Full Parameter	Description	Required	Default
-ft	--file_type	File type: csv, sql, tsfile.	​Yes	-
-h	--host	IoTDB server hostname.	No	127.0.0.1
-p	--port	IoTDB server port.	No	6667
-u	--username	Username.	No	root
-pw	--password	Password.	No	root
-s	--source	Local path to the file/directory to import. ​​Supported formats​: CSV, SQL, TsFile. Unsupported formats trigger error: The file name must end with "csv", "sql", or "tsfile"!	​Yes	-
-tn	--thread_num	Maximum parallel threads	No	8 Range: 0 to Integer.Max(2147483647).
-tz	--timezone	Timezone (e.g., +08:00, -01:00).	No	System default
-help	--help	Display help (general or format-specific: -help csv).	No	-

2.2 CSV Format

2.2.1 Command

# Unix/OS X
> tools/import-data.sh -ft<format>  [-h <host>] [-p <port>] [-u <username>] [-pw <password>]
       -s <source> [-fd <fail_dir>] [-lpf <lines_per_failed_file>] [-aligned <use the aligned interface>] 
      [-ti <type_infer>] [-tp <timestamp precision (ms/us/ns)>] [-tz <timezone>] [-batch <batch_size>] 
      [-tn <thread_num>]
      
# Windows
> tools\import-data.bat -ft<format>  [-h <host>] [-p <port>] [-u <username>] [-pw <password>]
       -s <source> [-fd <fail_dir>] [-lpf <lines_per_failed_file>] [-aligned <use the aligned interface>] 
      [-ti <type_infer>] [-tp <timestamp precision (ms/us/ns)>] [-tz <timezone>] [-batch <batch_size>] 
      [-tn <thread_num>]

2.2.2 CSV-Specific Parameters

Short	Full Parameter	Description	Required	Default
-fd	--fail_dir	Directory to save failed files.	No	YOUR_CSV_FILE_PATH
-lpf	--lines_per_failed_file	Max lines per failed file.	No	100000 Range: 0 to Integer.Max(2147483647).
-aligned	--use_aligned	Import as aligned time series.	No	false
-batch	--batch_size	Rows processed per API call.	No	100000 Range: 0 to Integer.Max(2147483647).
-ti	--type_infer	Type mapping (e.g., BOOLEAN=text,INT=long).	No	-
-tp	--timestamp_precision	Timestamp precision: ms, us, ns.	No	ms

2.2.3 Examples

# Valid Example
> tools/import-data.sh -ft csv -h 127.0.0.1 -p 6667 -u root -pw root -s /path/sql 
      -fd /path/failure/dir -lpf 100  -aligned true -ti "BOOLEAN=text,INT=long,FLOAT=double" 
      -tp ms -tz +08:00 -batch 5000  -tn 4
      
# Error Example
> tools/import-data.sh -ft csv -s /non_path
error: Source file or directory /non_path does not exist

> tools/import-data.sh -ft csv -s /path/sql -tn 0
error: Invalid thread number '0'. Please set a positive integer.

2.2.4 Import Notes

1. CSV Import Specifications

• Special Character Escaping Rules: If a text-type field contains special characters (e.g., commas ,), they must be escaped using a backslash ().
• Supported Time Formats: yyyy-MM-dd'T'HH:mm:ss, yyyy-MM-dd HH:mm:ss, or yyyy-MM-dd'T'HH:mm:ss.SSSZ.
• Timestamp Column Requirement: The timestamp column must be the first column in the data file.

2. CSV File Example

• Time Alignment

-- Headers without data types
Time,root.test.t1.str,root.test.t2.str,root.test.t2.var
1970-01-01T08:00:00.001+08:00,"123hello world","123\,abc",100
1970-01-01T08:00:00.002+08:00,"123",,

-- Headers with data types (Text-type data supports both quoted and unquoted formats)
Time,root.test.t1.str(TEXT),root.test.t2.str(TEXT),root.test.t2.var(INT32)
1970-01-01T08:00:00.001+08:00,"123hello world","123\,abc",100
1970-01-01T08:00:00.002+08:00,123,hello world,123
1970-01-01T08:00:00.003+08:00,"123",,
1970-01-01T08:00:00.004+08:00,123,,12

• Device Alignment

-- Headers without data types
Time,Device,str,var
1970-01-01T08:00:00.001+08:00,root.test.t1,"123hello world",
1970-01-01T08:00:00.002+08:00,root.test.t1,"123",
1970-01-01T08:00:00.001+08:00,root.test.t2,"123\,abc",100

-- Headers with data types (Text-type data supports both quoted and unquoted formats)
Time,Device,str(TEXT),var(INT32)
1970-01-01T08:00:00.001+08:00,root.test.t1,"123hello world",
1970-01-01T08:00:00.002+08:00,root.test.t1,"123",
1970-01-01T08:00:00.001+08:00,root.test.t2,"123\,abc",100
1970-01-01T08:00:00.002+08:00,root.test.t1,hello world,123

2.3 SQL Format

2.3.1 Command

# Unix/OS X
> tools/import-data.sh -ft<format>  [-h <host>] [-p <port>] [-u <username>] [-pw <password>] 
        -s<source> [-fd <fail_dir>] [-lpf <lines_per_failed_file>] [-tz <timezone>] 
        [-batch <batch_size>] [-tn <thread_num>]
      
# Windows
> tools\import-data.bat -ft<format>  [-h <host>] [-p <port>] [-u <username>] [-pw <password>] 
        -s<source> [-fd <fail_dir>] [-lpf <lines_per_failed_file>] [-tz <timezone>] 
        [-batch <batch_size>] [-tn <thread_num>]

2.3.2 SQL-Specific Parameters

Short	Full Parameter	Description	Required	Default
-fd	--fail_dir	Directory to save failed files.	No	YOUR_CSV_FILE_PATH
-lpf	--lines_per_failed_file	Max lines per failed file.	No	100000 Range: 0 to Integer.Max(2147483647).
-batch	--batch_size	Rows processed per API call.	No	100000 Range: 0 to Integer.Max(2147483647).

2.3.3 Examples

# Valid Example
> tools/import-data.sh -ft sql -h 127.0.0.1 -p 6667 -u root -pw root -s /path/sql 
        -fd /path/failure/dir -lpf 500  -tz +08:00 
        -batch 100000  -tn 4
      
# Error Example
> tools/import-data.sh -ft sql -s /path/sql -fd /non_path
error: Source file or directory /path/sql does not exist


> tools/import-data.sh -ft sql -s /path/sql -tn 0
error: Invalid thread number '0'. Please set a positive integer.

2.4 TsFile Format

2.4.1 Command

# Unix/OS X
> tools/import-data.sh -ft <format> [-h <host>] [-p <port>] [-u <username>] [-pw <password>] 
        -s <source> -os <on_success> [-sd <success_dir>] -of <on_fail> [-fd <fail_dir>]
        [-tn <thread_num> ] [-tz <timezone>] [-tp <timestamp precision (ms/us/ns)>]
      
# Windows
> tools\import-data.bat -ft <format> [-h <host>] [-p <port>] [-u <username>] [-pw <password>] 
        -s <source> -os <on_success> [-sd <success_dir>] -of <on_fail> [-fd <fail_dir>]
        [-tn <thread_num> ] [-tz <timezone>] [-tp <timestamp precision (ms/us/ns)>]

2.4.2 TsFile-Specific Parameters

Short	Full Parameter	Description	Required	Default
-os	--on_success	Action for successful files: none: Do not delete the file. mv: Move the successful file to the target directory. cp:Create a hard link (copy) of the successful file to the target directory. delete:Delete the file.	​Yes	-
-sd	--success_dir	Target directory for mv/cp actions on success. Required if -os is mv/cp. The file name will be flattened and concatenated with the original file name.	Conditional	${EXEC_DIR}/success
-of	--on_fail	Action for failed files: none:Skip the file. mv:Move the failed file to the target directory. cp:Create a hard link (copy) of the failed file to the target directory. delete:Delete the file..	​Yes	-
-fd	--fail_dir	Target directory for mv/cp actions on failure. Required if -of is mv/cp. The file name will be flattened and concatenated with the original file name.	Conditional	${EXEC_DIR}/fail
-tp	--timestamp_precision	TsFile timestamp precision: ms, us, ns. For non-remote TsFile imports: Use -tp to specify the timestamp precision of the TsFile. The system will manually verify if the timestamp precision matches the server. If it does not match, an error will be returned. ​For remote TsFile imports: Use -tp to specify the timestamp precision of the TsFile. The Pipe system will automatically verify if the timestamp precision matches. If it does not match, a Pipe error will be returned.	No	ms

2.4.3 Examples

# Valid Example
> tools/import-data.sh -ft tsfile -h 127.0.0.1 -p 6667 -u root -pw root 
      -s /path/sql -os mv -of cp -sd /path/success/dir -fd /path/failure/dir 
      -tn 8 -tz +08:00 -tp ms
      
# Error Example
> tools/import-data.sh -ft tsfile -s /path/sql -os mv -of cp 
           -fd /path/failure/dir  -tn 8 
error: Missing option --success_dir (or -sd) when --on_success is 'mv' or 'cp'

> tools/import-data.sh -ft tsfile -s /path/sql -os mv -of cp 
          -sd /path/success/dir -fd /path/failure/dir  -tn 0 
error: Invalid thread number '0'. Please set a positive integer.

3. TsFile Auto-Loading

This feature enables IoTDB to automatically monitor a specified directory for new TsFiles and load them into the database without manual intervention.

3.1 Configuration

Add the following parameters to iotdb-system.properties (template: iotdb-system.properties.template):

Parameter	Description	Value Range	Required	Default	Hot-Load?
load_active_listening_enable	Enable auto-loading.	true/false	Optional	true	Yes
load_active_listening_dirs	Directories to monitor (subdirectories included). Multiple paths separated by commas.	String	Optional	ext/load/pending	Yes
load_active_listening_fail_dir	Directory to store failed TsFiles. Only can set one.	String	Optional	ext/load/failed	Yes
load_active_listening_max_thread_num	Maximum Threads for TsFile Loading Tasks:The default value for this parameter, when commented out, is max(1, CPU cores / 2). If the value set by the user falls outside the range [1, CPU cores / 2], it will be reset to the default value of max(1, CPU cores / 2).	1 to Long.MAX_VALUE	Optional	max(1, CPU_CORES / 2)	No (restart required)
load_active_listening_check_interval_seconds	Active Listening Polling Interval (in seconds):The active listening feature for TsFiles is implemented through polling the target directory. This configuration specifies the time interval between two consecutive checks of the load_active_listening_dirs. After each check, the next check will be performed after load_active_listening_check_interval_seconds seconds. If the polling interval set by the user is less than 1, it will be reset to the default value of 5 seconds.	1 to Long.MAX_VALUE	Optional	5	No (restart required)

3.2 Notes

1. ​​Mods Files​: If TsFiles have associated .mods files, move .mods files to the monitored directory ​before their corresponding TsFiles. Ensure .mods and TsFiles are in the same directory.
2. ​​Restricted Directories​: Do NOT set Pipe receiver directories, data directories, or other system paths as monitored directories.
3. ​​Directory Conflicts​: Ensure load_active_listening_fail_dir does not overlap with load_active_listening_dirs or its subdirectories.
4. ​​Permissions​: The monitored directory must have write permissions. Files are deleted after successful loading; insufficient permissions may cause duplicate loading.