5.3 Merging Scan Files

You can combine the contents of two or more scan files by merging the files. The merge results show any devices with invalid data; you can correct the invalid data or discard the device entry.

If two devices are duplicates, only one device entry is kept. To determine if two devices are duplicates, the merge compares all device properties except the Comment property and the OS properties (OS Device Class, OS Device ID, and OS Device Parent).

To merge files:

  1. If the Device List includes devices you don’t want included in the merge, clear the devices.

    The merge includes any devices that are displayed in the Device List, either from a scan or from a scan file. If you don’t want the Device List data included in the merge, discard the scan data or close the scan file.

  2. Click File > Merge to display the Merge Files dialog box.

    or

    Click on the toolbar.

  3. On the Files tab, click Add File, select the files you want included in the merge, then click Open to add them to the list of files to be merged.

    You can Shift+click and Ctrl+click to select multiple files.

  4. Click Merge to merge the files.

    The files are processed from top to bottom in the list. If the Device List includes devices, it is considered to be the first file and is processed before the files in the Merge Files list.

    When the merge is finished, the status for each file is displayed:

    • Success: No merge errors. All devices are included in the merge.

    • Invalid Data: The file contains devices with data that is not valid. The devices are listed on the Invalid Data tab.

  5. If invalid data was found, click the Invalid Data tab to display the devices.

    The list includes each device from which invalid data was removed during the merge process. You can choose to merge the devices (minus the invalid data) or exclude the devices from the merge.

    • USB Devices: Displays the USB Devices list.

    • Removable Drives: Displays the Removable Drives list.

    • Merge: Includes the devices in the merge. After the merge is complete, you can edit the device in the Device List to add valid data.

  6. When you are finished, click OK to accept the merge and populate the Device List.

    or

    Click Cancel > Yes to discard the merge file.