Backfill

Reporting > Report Helpers > Fields > Backfill

A Backfill is an update of the in-memory database (also known as Slug) Medallia Experience Cloud uses to display report information quickly.

Most often, the need for a backfill is related to an update to the calculations done by K-fields. For example, if you create a K-field with a calculation that references an E-field or Q-field that you are not using in reporting, a backfill is required to update the K-field data shown in reports. For more information about K-fields, and how to configure them for Slug updates, see K-fields.

Important: Avoid running a backfill unless it is absolutely necessary. Survey results are not stable while the backfill is running. Depending on the number of K-fields you have configured and the amount of data in Slug, backfills can take hours to complete. Experience Cloud documentation notes specifically when a backfill is required as part of configuring and maintaining your Experience Cloud instance.

Additionally, do not run a backfill while Text Analytics processing is in progress. Running a backfill and Text Analytics processing simultaneously can cause Experience Cloud downtime. For more information about Text Analytics processing, see Text Analytics processing and initialization.

A slug backfill is a large, resource-intensive process that includes other, smaller processes, such as contact backfills. If you need to backfill only contacts for Customer Profiles, do so on the Contact backfill screen.

Medallia makes backfills unavailable for instances that have so much data that a backfill will take too long to complete successfully, and for instances with complex implementations that put successful backfills at risk. For these instances, the Backfill screen does not include a BackFillSlugDataSet button, and instead displays a This company is not configured for backfill message. If your instance displays that message, contact Medallia support for a backfill. In that request, include the following information:

Your business case, explaining why a backfill is needed.
The date you need the backfill completed, and any other critical dates and times.
Reasons your company cannot wait for the next scheduled deployment.

Properties

Backfill status: If a backfill process is currently running, this table shows the status of that backfill. The status of a currently-running backfill includes a date range, indicating the range of records processed. As the backfill runs, more records are processed, and the date range updates. Experience Cloud processes records in reverse-chronological order based on the date records were modified.
Note: The date displayed in the Backfill status table is not the creation date of the record, but a sequence-ordering number based on the date the record was last modified. This sequence field (named updated in the database) is different than the last-modified date field (named e_lastupdated in the database). With most records, the sequence number matches the last-modified date of the record. However, some Experience Cloud update processes (such as with Medallia Text Analytics) update the sequence number without updating the last-modified date. Because Experience Cloud processes records in reverse-chronological order based on the sequence order, the date range displayed might show jumps in time as the backfill progresses.
Fields needing backfill: Lists the fields that have been modified since the last backfill, and which remain out-of-sync with Slug until you run a backfill. This property does not track non-field features for which changes might require a backfill, such as Lucene.
Back Fill Slug Data Set: To start a backfill, turn on the Confirm property, and then click BackFillSlugDataSet. Click the button only once. Each click starts a new backfill process.