---
title: Run Your First Import
description: Bring a folder of photos or documents into Preservated and watch them become browsable artifacts.
section: getting-started
order: 3
updated: 2026-07-06
verified: 2026-07-10
related: [guides/importing-photos, reference/supported-file-formats]
features: [import-sessions]
---

# Run Your First Import

You'll import a handful of photos or documents, watch them process, and end up with browsable artifacts in your collection.

## Start an import session

1. Go to **Admin → Operations → Import** and choose **New Import**.
2. On the **Source** step, choose **Upload files or folder** or **Paste source URL**. For a first run, a metadata-file upload (CSV/JSON) is simplest; you can also paste a URL from a supported archive such as the New York Public Library's digital collections.
3. Select **Analyze source**. Preservated detects the format and shows what it found, then walks you through **Map Fields → Import Options → Review**.
4. On **Review**, name the session and select **Create import session**.

Preservated creates an **import session** that tracks every item: pending, queued, processing, completed, or failed. You can leave the page and come back — imports run in a background job queue on the server, not in your browser tab.

Every source uses this same wizard. Once the first import feels familiar, the full [importing guide](/docs/en-US/guides/importing-photos) covers field mapping, duplicate handling, uploading local files and folders, per-import numbering, and large migrations.

## What to expect while it runs

The session page shows live progress and separates record import from the background work that follows it. Each item goes through the same pipeline:

1. The original file is uploaded to durable storage as the master.
2. Technical metadata is extracted (dimensions, EXIF dates, GPS, duration).
3. Derivatives are generated — thumbnails, web-size images, and deep-zoom tiles for large scans.
4. An artifact record is created and linked to the new asset.

Records can show as complete while viewer tiles and AI enrichment are still finishing in the background — the page says so, and shows a recalculating time estimate while the import is active.

:::info
A status indicator at the top of the import page tells you whether the background worker is running. If it shows an error, no items will process — see the message for details before retrying.
:::

## If something fails

Failed items stay in the session's item table with an error message. Common causes are unsupported file types and truncated files. You can retry individual items — or all failed items at once — from the session page once the cause is fixed.

## After the import

Your new artifacts appear under **Admin → Artifacts** with whatever metadata could be extracted automatically. From here, two good next steps:

- [Run AI analysis](/docs/en-US/guides/ai-analysis) to draft titles, descriptions, and dates for the new arrivals.
- Organize the artifacts into collections so visitors can browse them meaningfully.

For all sources, options, and larger migrations, see the full [importing guide](/docs/en-US/guides/importing-photos).