Entity Attribute Definition File

The Entity Attributes Definition file describes the attributes with their allowed values. The following table defines the elements that should be provided in the columns of the file.

Field

Description

entity_type

The core entity type for the key.

Supported Values:

  • CUSTOMER

    Attribute key associated with CUSTOMER.

  • UTILITY_ACCT

    Attribute key associated with UTILITY_ACCT.

  • SERVICE_POINT

    Attribute key associated with SERVICE_POINT.

  • PERSON

    Attribute key associated with PERSON.

  • ACCOUNT

    Attribute key associated with ACCOUNT.

  • SERVICE_AGREEMENT

    Attribute key associated with SERVICE_AGREEMENT.

  • PREMISE

    Attribute key associated PREMISE.

Type: VARCHAR

Can Be Empty?: No.

Default: Not applicable.

key

The key identifying the attribute. The key is case- insensitive (it can be in lower, upper, or any case). See Example Entity Attributes Definition File for common use cases, such as for preferred languages and low-income customers.

Type: VARCHAR

Can Be Empty?: No.

Default: Not applicable.

key_description

A description of the key and its purpose for the utility.

Type: VARCHAR.

Can Be Empty?: Yes.

Default: Not applicable.

allowed_value

A possible value for the key.

  • Be consistent with upper and lower case. For example, do not use both True and true. Choose one.
  • Must include only letters, underscores, hyphens, and periods.
  • Special characters are not accepted.

If you are not using enumerated values, then use one of the reserved keywords to define the type of value. 

Enumerated values are any fixed sets of known values. For example, for the attribute key LANGUAGE, known enumerated values could be "ENGLISH", "FRENCH".

Type: VARCHAR

Can Be Empty?: No.

Default: Not applicable.

allowed_value_description

A description of the allowed value and its purpose for the utility.

Type: VARCHAR.

Can Be Empty?: Yes.

Default: Not applicable.

allowed_min_value

The minimum value allowed for this key. This field is applicable only if the allowed_value field above is set to <NUMBER>. This field will be ignored for all other value types. Both, either, or neither of allowed_min_value and allowed_max_value can be populated.

Type: DECIMAL (15,4). See Supported Decimal Formats for details.

Can Be Empty?: Yes.

Default: Not applicable.

allowed_max_value

Maximum value allowed for this key. This field is applicable only if the allowed_value field above is set to <NUMBER>. This field will be ignored for all other value types. Both, either, or neither of allowed_min_value and allowed_max_value can be populated.

Type: DECIMAL (15,4). See Supported Decimal Formats for details.

Can Be Empty?: Yes.

Default: Not applicable.

source

Source of the key. For example, this should be UTILITY if the utility is sending the data.

Type: VARCHAR

Can Be Empty?: No.

Default: Not applicable.

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RESERVED Keywords in Definition File

Keyword

Allowed Value Details

Examples of Allowed Values

Examples of Not Allowed Values

<NUMBER>

Type: DECIMAL(15,4).

See Supported Decimal Formats for more details.
  • 123.89
  • 0.01234
  • -2147483647
  • 2147483647
  • 100000000.00
  • "123Test"
  • "stringValue"
  • "alphaNumeric data"
  • 1.234,56
  • 100000000,00
  • 100,000,000.00
  • 100.000.000,00
  • 100_000_000.00

<DATETIME>

Type: DATETIME.

See Date and Time Handling for more details.

 2007-06-05T12:30:00-America/New_York 2016-10-12 09:12:00 -7:00

<BOOLEAN>

Type: BOOLEAN.

See Supported Boolean Formats for more details.
  • TRUE
  • T
  • F
  • FALSE
  • 0
  • on
  • off
  • TR
  • ACCEPTED
  • NA
  • N/A
  • NULL
  • NONE

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