Hey everyone, I’ve got a script that pulls data from my SQL database into Google Sheets. It works fine, but there’s a small issue. Right now, it overwrites all the data every time it runs. I’m wondering if there’s a way to make it only grab the new stuff and add it to the bottom of what’s already in the sheet.
Here’s a simplified version of what I’m using:
function fetchNewData() {
const dbConnection = connectToDatabase('myserver', 'mydb', 'myuser', 'mypass');
const query = 'SELECT customer_id, name FROM customers ORDER BY customer_id DESC LIMIT 10';
const results = runQuery(dbConnection, query);
const sheet = SpreadsheetApp.getActiveSpreadsheet().getSheetByName('CustomerData');
const lastRow = sheet.getLastRow();
results.forEach(row => {
sheet.appendRow([row.customer_id, row.name]);
});
sheet.autoResizeColumns(1, 2);
}
// Set up a trigger to run every 3 hours
ScriptApp.newTrigger('fetchNewData').timeBased().everyHours(3).create();
Any ideas on how to tweak this to only fetch and add new records? Thanks in advance!
I’ve faced a similar challenge with syncing database records to Google Sheets. Here’s an approach that worked well for me:
Instead of fetching all records each time, modify your SQL query to only retrieve new entries. You can do this by tracking the last processed customer_id in your sheet.
At the start of your function, get the highest customer_id from your sheet. Then, update your SQL query to only fetch records with a higher ID. Something like:
SELECT customer_id, name FROM customers WHERE customer_id > [last_processed_id] ORDER BY customer_id ASC
This way, you’re only appending new records. You might also want to add error handling and logging to track any issues during the sync process.
Remember to test thoroughly, especially if you’re dealing with sensitive customer data. Good luck with your implementation!
hey jess, i’ve done something similar before. you could try adding a ‘last_synced’ column in your sheet to track the latest customer_id. then update your query like this:
SELECT customer_id, name FROM customers WHERE customer_id > (SELECT MAX(customer_id) FROM sheet_data)
this way, you’ll only grab new records. just remember to update the ‘last_synced’ value after each run. hope this helps!
I’ve implemented a similar system for a client’s project. One effective approach is to use a timestamp column in your database table. Modify your SQL query to include a ‘last_updated’ field and filter based on that.
Your query could look like this:
SELECT customer_id, name, last_updated FROM customers WHERE last_updated > ‘[last_sync_time]’ ORDER BY last_updated ASC
Store the last sync time in your Google Sheet, perhaps in a separate ‘Config’ sheet. Update this timestamp after each successful sync. This method allows you to capture both new entries and updates to existing records.
Also, consider implementing some form of error handling and logging. It’s crucial for maintaining data integrity and troubleshooting any issues that may arise during the sync process.