How do I use the Replace, Swap, and Copy options in Act!?

Question:
How do I use the Replace, Swap, and Copy options in Act!?

Product:
Product Family: Act!
Product: Act! Pro, Act! Premium, Act! Premium (access via web)*, Act! Premium Cloud
Version: 2005 and later

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Answer:

Important Note: The processes below affect the current lookup. If no active lookup is in effect, this process will perform the selected action for ALL contacts in the database, resulting in data loss. It is important to proceed with the steps below with caution if you are not able to create a backup before proceeding, as they cannot be undone without restoring a prior database backup to the server. For information on creating a database backup, refer to the following knowledgebase article:

How to Back Up and Restore an Act! Database
Answer ID How to back up and restore an Act! database


Replace

The Replace option will allow you to replace the existing value in a selected field with a value that you enter or choose. For example, if you have a group of contact records whose ID/Status needs to be changed from Prospect to Customer, you can use the Replace option to mass update these contact records, rather than having to change them individually. For instructions, follow the steps below:
 

1. Create a lookup of the contacts you wish to replace field values for
2. In the Act! menu bar, click Edit > Replace Field…
3. In the Replace contents of: drop-down, select the field which contains values you wish to replace
4. Depending on the field type, do one of the following in the Value: field:
   • Character: Enter the values which will replace the existing character values
   • Date: Click the Value drop-down and select the desired date which will replace the existing date values
   • Phone: Enter the new phone number which will replace existing phone number values
   • Yes/No: Select the value which will replace the existing Yes/No values
5. Click OK and when prompted to continue, click Yes
   

Swap

The Swap option will allow you to take two fields and swap the contents of those two fields with each other. For example, if you performed an import from a .CSV but later realized that you accidentally put data in the CSV file for the Address 2 field into the Address 1 field, and vice versa, you can use the Swap option to quickly swap the data between fields, rather than having to manually do this for each desired contact record.
 

1. Create a lookup of the contacts you wish to Swap field values for
2. In the Act! menu bar, click Edit > Swap Field…
3. In the Swap Contents of: drop-down, choose the first field which contains values you wish to swap
4. In the With contents of: drop-down, choose the second field which contains values you wish to swap
5. Click OK and, when prompted to continue, click Yes

Copy

The Copy option will allow you to take the contents of one field and copy them to another field while allowing the data in the source field to remain intact. For example, if you have two fields which need to have the same value, or if you have created a new field to take the place of a field you do not wish to use anymore, you can use the Copy option to copy the contents to another field.
 

1. Create a lookup of the contacts you wish to copy field data for
2. In the Act! menu bar, click Edit > Copy Field…
3. In the Copy contents of: drop-down, select the field which contains the data you wish to Copy
4. In the To: drop-down, select the field you wish to copy the data to
5. Click OK and, when prompted to continue, click Yes

*This feature is available in Act! Premium (access via web) in versions v17.2 and later.