Dynobase imports a local CSV file into an existing DynamoDB table. Preview the records, check key and attribute types, and choose how to handle existing keys before starting. AWS also provides managed S3 import, which creates a new table rather than adding data to an existing one.
The demo shows an earlier interface. The written steps describe Dynobase 3.0.8.
1
Open the file importer
Choose the destination profile, Region, and table, then select Import and Import from file.
2
Preview and configure
Select your CSV file and review the preview, attribute types, and primary keys. Choose the Import Merging Strategy and write concurrency; validate a representative sample before a large import.
3
Run and inspect the result
Start the import, wait for completion, and inspect failures. Run a fresh query or scan with Cmd+R on macOS or Ctrl+R on Windows/Linux to check the imported items.
Frequently Asked Questions
What other import methods does AWS provide?
Managed
import from S3 accepts CSV, DynamoDB JSON, or Amazon Ion and creates a new table without consuming its write capacity. For an existing table, use file import or SDK writes; plain JSON arrays are not the same format as DynamoDB JSON.
Is importing a file free?
Local-file import writes items to the target table and consumes write capacity; index writes and conflict-handling reads can add cost. Managed S3 import is billed separately by uncompressed data processed; use the
pricing calculator for ordinary writes.
What affects import speed?
Item count and size, key distribution, table and index throughput, network conditions, retries, and configured write concurrency affect duration. Raising concurrency does not bypass DynamoDB capacity limits; inspect errors and throttling before increasing it.
What happens when an item with the same key exists?
Choose Overwrite Conflicts to replace it, Skip Conflicts to leave it unchanged, Merge (Prefer Imported Data) to favor file attributes, or Merge (Prefer Data in the Table) to favor stored attributes. These choices apply to matching primary keys; an import is not a single atomic transaction.
How should I prepare the file?
Include a header row and review the detected type for each column, especially numeric-looking IDs and empty cells. Every record must supply valid primary keys; use the preview to check conversions before writing.
