Feed URLs, formats and upload

Each channel has its own feed file. Feedsmith keeps it at a feed URL that the channel can fetch, and it can also upload the file to a server for you. You set all of this on the channel's Settings tab.

Feed URL

The Feed URL card shows the address of the feed, e.g. https://…/f/k3J9xQ2b7.xml. Click Copy to copy it, or Open to see the file. Paste the address into the channel's own system, e.g. as a scheduled fetch in Google Merchant Center or a data feed in Meta Commerce Manager.

• The address only works once Feedsmith has built the feed for the first time.
• Anyone with the address can download the feed, so share it only with the channels that need it.
• The address always gives the latest feed. Feedsmith rebuilds it after every download of the shop and a few seconds after you save a change to the channel.
• If a build fails or the channel is Incomplete, the address keeps giving the last feed that was built.

To stop an old address working, e.g. after a contractor leaves, click Regenerate URL. The current address stops working at once, so update it everywhere you use it.

The address ends with the file type, e.g. .xml or .csv. If you change the channel's format, the ending changes too, so update the address in the channel's system.

Formats

You choose the format under General. Each template allows certain formats. See Channels and templates.

Format options depend on the format:

• Separator (CSV): Comma, Semicolon, Tab or Vertical bar.
• Quote character (CSV and TXT): Quotation mark, Apostrophe, Vertical bar or None. Values are only wrapped in quotes when they need it, e.g. when they contain the separator. TXT uses None unless you change it.
• Root element and Product element (custom XML): the names of the outer element and of each product's element, e.g. catalogue and item. The defaults are products and product.

Fields with several values from Use every matching rule are written as one element per value in XML, as one cell with values separated by commas in CSV and TXT, and as a list in JSON. In XML (RSS 2.0), shipping values such as NZ::Standard:5.00 NZD are split into country, region, service and price, and you can put several shipping rules in one value, separated by commas.

Feedsmith turns &, <, >, " and ' in your product data back into &, <, >, " and ' before writing the feed. So Lime & Orange from a supplier file comes out as Lime & Orange.

Feed title and feed link

An XML (RSS 2.0) feed starts with a title and a link. By default, the title is the channel's name and the link is the shop's storefront URL. To change them, fill in Feed title and Feed link. Other formats don't use these settings.

FTP / SFTP upload

Some channels, e.g. some Google Merchant Center setups, fetch feeds from their own server instead of from a URL. Feedsmith can upload the feed there after every build.

1. Under FTP / SFTP upload, tick Upload the feed to a server.
2. Choose the Protocol, which is ftp, ftps (FTP with encryption) or sftp.
3. Enter the Host, e.g. uploads.google.com, without ftp:// or a folder. Enter the Port only if the server uses an unusual one. The defaults are 21 for FTP and 22 for SFTP.
4. Enter the Username and Password.
5. Enter the Folder, e.g. /feeds, or leave it empty for the top folder, and the File name, e.g. kiwi-outdoor-nz.xml. The file name can't contain spaces or folders.
6. For FTP, leave Passive mode ticked unless the server's owner tells you otherwise.
7. For SFTP, add the SFTP host key (see below).
8. Click Test connection, then Save changes.

The card shows the result of the Last upload, e.g. "OK" with the size of the file, or "Failed" with the error. The Channels tab shows "Last upload failed" next to a channel whose upload failed. A failed upload doesn't stop the feed URL from working.

The password is stored encrypted, and the box shows "Saved — leave blank to keep". If you change the host, port or username, Feedsmith clears the saved password, so enter it again. To remove the password, use Remove saved password.

SFTP host key

A host key is the server's digital fingerprint. Feedsmith checks it on every upload to make sure it is talking to the right server, so it never sends your password to a server pretending to be yours. SFTP uploads need it.

1. Fill in the other upload settings and click Test connection.
2. Feedsmith shows the Server host key, e.g. SHA256:nThbg6kXUpJWGl7E1IGOCspRomTxdCARLviKw6E5SY8.
3. Check with the server's owner that it is the right key, then click Use this key and Save changes.

If the server's key later changes, uploads fail with "SFTP host key MISMATCH". Only update the key if the server's owner confirms they changed it.