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Spreadsheet Action

The Spreadsheet Action allows you to read from and write to Excel and CSV files, enabling data processing and reporting workflows.

What does this integration do?​

This action provides comprehensive spreadsheet functionality, allowing you to manipulate Excel (.xlsx) and CSV files. You can read data, write new data, update existing cells, and perform data transformations.

Typical Use Cases:

  • Report Generation: Create automated reports in Excel format
  • Data Import/Export: Process CSV files from external systems
  • Data Analysis: Read spreadsheet data for processing
  • Inventory Management: Update stock levels and product information

User Configuration​

Operation Type​

  • Read: Extract data from existing spreadsheet
  • Write: Create new spreadsheet or overwrite existing
  • Append: Add data to existing spreadsheet
  • Update: Modify specific cells or ranges

File Configuration​

File Path

  • Purpose: Location of the spreadsheet file
  • Formats: .xlsx, .xls, .csv
  • Example: /data/reports/monthly-report.xlsx

Sheet Name (Excel only)

  • Purpose: Specify which worksheet to use
  • Default: First sheet
  • Example: "Sales Data"

Data Configuration​

Cell Range (for Read/Update)

  • Purpose: Specify which cells to read or update
  • Format: Excel notation (A1:C10)
  • Example: "A1:E100"

Data Input (for Write/Append)

  • Purpose: Data to write to the spreadsheet
  • Format: JSON array of arrays or objects
  • Source: Variable from previous workflow steps

Output Variable

  • Purpose: Variable to store the read data
  • Format: JSON array structure
  • Example Variable: spreadsheetData

How it Works​

The Spreadsheet Action processes files using industry-standard libraries, maintaining formatting and data types while providing flexible data manipulation capabilities.

Workflow Integration​

Reading Data​

Configuration:

  • Operation: Read
  • File Path: /uploads/customer-data.xlsx
  • Sheet Name: "Customers"
  • Cell Range: "A1:D1000"
  • Output Variable: customerData

Result Format:

[
  ["Name", "Email", "Phone", "Company"],
  ["John Doe", "john@example.com", "555-1234", "ACME Corp"],
  ["Jane Smith", "jane@example.com", "555-5678", "Tech Inc"]
]

Writing Data​

Configuration:

  • Operation: Write
  • File Path: /reports/sales-report.xlsx
  • Sheet Name: "Q1 Sales"
  • Data Input: salesData

Input Data Format:

[
  { "Product": "Widget A", "Sales": 1250, "Revenue": 25000 },
  { "Product": "Widget B", "Sales": 890, "Revenue": 17800 }
]

Usage in Workflows​

1. HTTP Action (Get data from API)
   Output: apiData

2. Spreadsheet Action (Write)
   Data Input: apiData
   File Path: /reports/daily-import.xlsx

3. Email Action
   Attachment: /reports/daily-import.xlsx

Technical Details​

Supported Formats​

  • Excel: .xlsx, .xls (full formatting support)
  • CSV: .csv (UTF-8 encoding)

Data Types​

  • Text, Numbers, Dates, Formulas
  • Automatic type detection and conversion
  • Preservation of original formatting

Performance​

  • Optimized for large datasets
  • Streaming processing for memory efficiency
  • Progress tracking for long operations