Export all your documents from Content Central

Choose the right method

Before you begin

• Use a dedicated Content Central account with access to every catalog and document type you're exporting. The export never bypasses permissions, so a full administrator with access to everything can complete the whole export alone.
• Confirm that account can search, view, and download the documents.
• Pick a destination with enough free space for the files, the ZIPs, the manifest, and temporary files.
• Decide the scope. Both methods retrieve the current stored document.

Method 1: built-in bulk download

1. 1

   Sign in with the export account and open Search or the folder you want.

2. 2

   Limit the results to a manageable batch, then select the documents to export.

3. 3

   Choose Download.

   What you should see: Content Central prepares one ZIP file containing the selected documents.

4. 4

   Save the ZIP, extract it, and repeat until every result set is done.

Method 2: scripted, resumable export

Stage A: create the manifest

1. 1

   Go to Administration > Report Templates and create a report that covers the catalogs and document types in scope.

2. 2

   Include at least these system fields: Document ID, Catalog, Document Type, Document Filename, Document Folder, Document Version, Document Creation Date, and Document Modified Date. Add any business fields you need outside Content Central.

3. 3

   Generate the report and download it as CSV or XLS. Set Write mode: to Replace or KeepAll so the result is one complete, identifiable file.

4. 4

   Check the manifest for the counts, catalogs, and document types you expect. Keep the original unchanged; it is the control file for the rest of the export.

Stage B: retrieve each document

1. 1

   Generate a SOAP client from the WSDL. Use HTTPS, MTOM message encoding, streamed transfer, and timeouts long enough for large files.

2. 2

   Send a RequesterCredentials SOAP header containing Domain, Username, and Password. The header namespace is http://www.ademero.com/services/ContentCentral/DataContracts/2010/01/01/.

3. 3

   Call GetAuthenticatedUserId once and keep the user ID it returns.

4. 4

   For each Document ID in the manifest, call DownloadDocument with the Document ID and the user ID. Save the returned stream under the returned filename.

5. 5

   Record the result for every row: Success, NoPermission, NotFound, or the error received. Retry transient failures after a delay, and never silently skip a row.

Implementation outline

var binding = new BasicHttpBinding(BasicHttpSecurityMode.Transport) {
    MessageEncoding = WSMessageEncoding.Mtom,
    TransferMode = TransferMode.Streamed,
    MaxReceivedMessageSize = long.MaxValue,
    ReceiveTimeout = TimeSpan.FromHours(24)
};
var client = new CCTransferServiceClient(binding,
    new EndpointAddress(transferServiceUrl));

using (new OperationContextScope(client.InnerChannel)) {
    var credentials = new RequesterCredentials {
        Domain = domain, Username = username, Password = password
    };
    var header = MessageHeader.CreateHeader(
        "RequesterCredentials", credentialsNamespace, credentials);
    OperationContext.Current.OutgoingMessageHeaders.Add(header);

    Guid userId = client.GetAuthenticatedUserId(
        new GetAuthenticatedUserIdRequest()).Id;

    foreach (Guid documentId in documentIds) {
        var response = client.DownloadDocument(
            new DownloadDocumentRequest(documentId, userId));
        // Require Result == Success, then copy response.Data to a file.
        // Log the document ID, returned name, byte count, and SHA-256.
    }
}

Verify the export

• Counts match. Attempted, successful, failed, and skipped counts add up to the manifest's row count.
• Every success is logged with its Document ID, returned filename, byte length, destination path, and a SHA-256 checksum.
• Every NoPermission and NotFound is explained. Fix the account's access or confirm the document's state, then rerun only those rows.
• A sample opens. Open documents from every catalog and document type, including large files and unusual formats.
• The paperwork travels with the files. Store the original manifest, the final result log, the checksum list, and a note describing your folder naming alongside the export.

Still stuck?

Want Ademero to do it for you?