Feature Overview and Requirements

A business may add new users to the LMS in a number of ways, including User Import, Add User, and Self Registration. If the same user is mistakenly added twice, (e.g. an administrator manually adds a new user who was already self-registered, or the same person was listed twice in a user import file under two distinct Usernames) the “User Merge” tool allows Portal Administrators to combine two active accounts into a single user record, retaining all associated profile information and training history. It is important to understand that once this process is completed, there is no way to undo the action or separate merged account data.

This document describes how to employ the User Merge tool, once the feature has been enabled in your LMS. If User Merge is not available in your LMS, please contact Latitude Support to request it.

Expected Results

If a Portal Administrator needs to consolidate more than two user accounts, it must be completed in steps. Multiple account merges can be processed in any order, keeping in mind that “Old User” usernames will be deleted from the LMS. Plan the final merge to result in the desired student Username/Password combination and primary/default profile assignments.

The “New User” always retains its original Account Effective Date and End Date, regardless of Profile Start Date and End Dates being merged. All training history will move to the New User account, even those transcripts that were created before the new Account Effective Date.

Note: Inactive profile information may be retained, lost, or overwritten depending on the following conditions:

Active Profile Information

• If a user has duplicate accounts with profiles tied to the same Organization, the resulting account will have consolidated Position and Role assignments, along with merged training history.
• Old User profiles will be stripped of any Primary or Default flags as part of the merge process. Only the profiles associated with the New User’s account will be flagged Primary or Default after merge.
• If an Old User account has a single profile tied to Location A, and the New User account contains profiles tied a Location B and Location C, the resulting account will have all three profiles A, B, and C listed with historical position and role information intact, and all training history recorded at any of those Locations.

Inactive Profile Information

• If an Old User account includes active and inactive profiles, all profile information should remain intact, assuming there is no Organization overlap with the New User assignments.
• If an Old User account includes an inactive profile that overlaps with an active profile in the New User account (same Organization assignment), inactive Position and Role information will NOT show in merged user account. Profile Start and End Dates will be updated accordingly.

Step-by-Step and Field Descriptions

Select User Accounts

1. From the Administration menu, select Users > User Merge. The User Merge page consists of two fields, each providing a user picker. Both the “Old user” and “New user” accounts must be active and assigned the “Student” role to qualify for merge.

   This feature is not designed to modify inactive or administrative accounts. However, there are workaround options. Administrative user accounts can be merged as long as they include an active “Student” role. Inactive accounts can only be merged after the user is reactivated in the system.

2. Old User: This is the account that will be deleted after the merge. Click the Select a User link to search and select the account you want to eliminate from the LMS as a duplicate.
3. New User: This is the account that will remain after the merge. Click the Select a User link to search and select the account you want in use going forward. This is the Username/Password information retained for student access.
4. Click Submit.

Confirm the Account Merge

The system will display selected user names and login IDs, prompting you to Confirm the merge before completing the process. Once confirmed, the tool will display a “Users Merged” message.

Otherwise, click Cancel and be returned to a fresh User Merge page.

After the merge is completed, the only confirmation appears on the page saying “Users merged.” At this point, the “old” user account should no longer exist.

If any problems are encountered during the merge, please copy the error message and note the usernames of the Old and New Users and report them to Latitude Support.