Delete Records in Bulk

On This Page

• Delete Records from a Query or Search Results List
• Delete Records with the Mass Deletes Wizard
• What Is Checked First
• What Can Be Refused During the Delete
• Confirm the Result
• Things to Know
• If It Fails

A mass delete removes all selected records from one record type in one operation. Before you commit, Rhythm shows a preview of the records selected at that moment and asks you to confirm that the deletion is permanent. The application that owns each record completes the deletion, so it can still refuse individual records.

Use a mass delete when you need to remove many records at once, such as test contacts left over from a migration, applications created by mistake, or obsolete entries in a batch.

Danger

After you commit a mass delete, you cannot undo it. The preview and results spreadsheets cannot restore deleted records, so review the preview carefully before you commit.

Prerequisites

• Bulk operations must be turned on for your Rhythm account. If you do not see Bulk Changes beside your results, or Mass Deletes in the System & Security menu, contact Support.
• Know the record type you want to delete from. If you are using a list or file, you also need the Rhythm record IDs for that type. To collect IDs, run a query that includes the record ID field, such as the application ID for applications, then download the results.
• For a file, prepare a .csv, .xls, or .xlsx file with a header row and one column of record IDs. Rhythm reads only the first sheet.

Delete Records from a Query or Search Results List

If you are reporting a data problem and want Rhythm Support or Product to review a bulk cleanup, build a query that identifies the affected records first. That query-built list is usually needed before anyone can evaluate the cleanup.

1. Run a query or search so the results list includes the records you want to delete. See Design and Run a Query.
2. Select Bulk Changes beside the results, then tick the records you want to delete. The button changes to Change, followed by the number and type of selected records.
3. Open that menu and choose Mass Delete. A pop-up opens for the records you selected.
4. When the preview is ready, select Download the preview of this mass delete. Review the file and confirm it lists exactly the records you want to remove.
5. Read the warning Note that once deleted, the records cannot be recovered. The changes are permanent.
6. Tick the acknowledgement that reads I have downloaded and reviewed the preview and I'm ready to proceed. followed by I understand that these changes cannot be undone.
7. Decide whether to keep Send me an email with the results of this mass delete ticked. The Completion Email box defaults to your address.
8. Commit the deletion. When it finishes, Rhythm shows Bulk Operation Completed with Successful:, Errors:, and Total:, plus Click here to download the results.

Some customers have seen System & Security › Mass Deletes fail during preview for contact deletions, even when the query-based path worked for the same records. For example, the wizard showed an unclear error when using a file, or a not-found style error when using IDs. If the Mass Deletes wizard fails at preview for a record type it should support, try deleting the same records from a query or search results list instead.

Delete Records with the Mass Deletes Wizard

When you already have a spreadsheet of records to delete, use this wizard’s File method instead of starting from a query’s Bulk Changes menu. This path is not limited to 100 records.

1. Go to System & Security › Mass Deletes. The page is Mass Delete Records.
2. Targets. Under What types are records would you like to delete?, choose the Application: and the Service:, which is the record type. Under How do you want to select the records that should be deleted?, choose one selection method:
   • All Records — selects every record of the type. This step does not warn you, so use the preview as your check.
   • IDs — enter the record IDs under Enter Record IDs.
   • Expression — enter a condition under Expression.
   • File (selected by default) — upload the file under Upload the File:, or select Use URL.
3. Select Next.
4. Select ID Column (file only). Confirm the column under Which column in your input file contains the unique record ID?, then select Next. Rhythm skips this step for the other methods.
5. Preview. Select Download the preview of this mass delete. and review it carefully. Read the warning that the delete is permanent.
6. Tick the acknowledgement ending I understand that these changes cannot be undone. and choose whether to receive the results email.
7. Select Delete Records. No further confirmation dialog appears.
8. Complete shows the counts and the results link. The sentence above the counts still says "bulk update operation" after a delete.

What Is Checked First

Before Rhythm deletes anything, it checks that:

• the record type supports bulk operations. If it does not, the preview shows an error card saying so;
• for a file, Rhythm can read it, the extension is supported, and the file is not empty;
• a file has no repeated or blank IDs. If Rhythm finds repeated or blank IDs, it refuses the whole file, and nothing is deleted;
• each ID names a record of that type in your Rhythm account. An ID that is not found appears in the preview as <record> not found and is not deleted.

If an expression fails for a record, Rhythm leaves that record out and does not report an error. For a delete, a mistyped field name in the expression means Rhythm deletes nothing and does not report a problem, so make sure the preview lists the records you expect.

What Can Be Refused During the Delete

The application that owns each record completes the deletion, so it can refuse a record when other records depend on it. The results spreadsheet shows refused records as errors with a reason, and Rhythm still deletes the other records. Bulk delete is not supported for documents inside a file cabinet in the Documents application.

To see what depends on a record you cannot delete, look up that record’s ID on the Relationships tab in System & Security. This shows the database relationships that can block a delete. Some administrators have used System & Security › Mass Deletes to delete the dependent relationship records first, which then let them delete the original record.

Result

Deleted records no longer exist in the owning application. The results spreadsheet lists each record with the operation DELETE and its outcome, either Success or an error with its reason. It lists identifiers and names, not the contents of the deleted records.

Confirm the Result

1. Open the results spreadsheet and filter the Outcome column for errors. The reason appears after the colon.
2. Rerun your query or search. The deleted records no longer appear.
3. To see who deleted a particular record and when, look it up in the audit history. Each deleted record gets its own removal entry; the mass delete is not recorded as one action. See Audit History: What Is Recorded and How to View It. In some cases, though, Support has not been able to determine who deleted a related order, invoice, or application, or exactly when, because those records were no longer visible anywhere by the time it was investigated.

Things to Know

• The selection is worked out again when you commit. With All Records or an expression, Rhythm checks for matches again when you commit. If a matching record is created after the preview, Rhythm deletes it too.
• The preview is replaced by later previews. If you preview the same record type again on the same day, the second file replaces the first, so download the preview before you commit.
• Going back from Complete re-offers the commit in the wizard, with the acknowledgement still ticked. If you run it a second time, Rhythm normally finds nothing left to delete. Records already removed can show as not found or as errors.
• No reason is kept. Rhythm does not ask why the records were deleted.
• Deleting a record here does not by itself complete personal-data deletion in every backend system. If you need someone’s personal information fully removed, such as for a privacy request, a separate backend deletion request may still be required after you delete the record.

If It Fails

• "Unable to preview import" on the preview step. Read the message beneath it; it points to an unsupported record type, an unreadable file, or duplicate or blank IDs.
• "Unable to execute mass delete". The commit failed. Try again, or go back and adjust.
• Errors in the results. The owning application refused those records. Resolve what depends on them, then delete them again.

See A Bulk Operation Failed, Stalled, or Changed the Wrong Records.