If your organization is leaving Pattern PXM, you'll want a complete copy of your product content (PIM data) and your digital assets (DAM files) before your contract ends. This article shows you what to export, how to export it, and what happens to your account and links afterward.
Everything you uploaded and created in Pattern PXM is your content. The tools below are the same export and download tools you use every day, so you can take a full copy with you without waiting on anyone. Exporting your content is your responsibility, so plan to finish before your contract end date.
Before you start
Know your contract end date. All access to Pattern PXM is removed on your contract end date. If you need more time, you can request read-only access for 60 days after your contract end date to get your content off. During that time your Pattern CSM sets you up with General Plus user access, which means you can view, export, and download, including unpublished files. You can't upload, make changes, or use the API.
Start early. Begin exporting well before your contract end date, ideally a few weeks ahead. Large catalogs can take time to download and check.
Use an admin account. You'll need permission to see all products, files, and settings you want to export. Admin or Super Admin users usually see everything; other roles may only see some products or files. See User Roles and Permissions in Pattern PXM.
Do the export yourself. Pattern doesn't offer assisted bulk exports. Getting your content off Pattern PXM is your responsibility, both before and after your contract end date. For questions, or to request the 60-day read-only access, contact your Pattern CSM.
Plan where the files will go. Have a destination ready (your new system, a shared drive, or cloud storage) with enough space for your full asset library.
What you can export
Product data and attribute values: Export Global Attributes or a Custom Export template (XLSX or CSV)
Folder (category) placement: Parent Category and Primary Parent Category columns in the attribute export (XLSX or CSV)
Channel-ready spreadsheets: Publish to Channel with a spreadsheet template and the DOWNLOAD option (your channel's template format)
Image, video, and document files: Download from search, products, or lightboxes (original files plus other available sizes)
File details (captions, labels, regions, roles): File Attribute Export (XLSX)
Image and media stack order, with links: Export Media Stack (XLSX)
Everything, programmatically: Pattern PXM Open API (JSON)
Step 1: Export your product content (PIM data)
Export all attributes for your products
Go to Products and use search or filters to show the products you want. To export your full catalog, clear all filters.
Select the products. Check the selected count before you continue.
Open the batch actions menu (•••, bottom right) and choose Export Global Attributes. On some accounts the menu item shows a > arrow first.
Set Export Format to xlsx or csv.
Leave Select Draft on Approved to export your approved content. If you keep content in a named draft, run the export again and pick that draft.
Click Export. The file usually downloads in your browser. On some accounts it's emailed instead, so check your inbox if nothing downloads.
The export has one row per product, with columns for Product, Additional Title, Additional Search Tags, Org Units, Parent Category, Primary Parent Category, and Roles, followed by one column for each attribute.
Export with a custom layout (optional)
If you want columns in a specific order, or want image links or file names included with your product data, use a custom export template.
Go to Settings > Exports, choose Custom Export, and click Create New Template.
Under Add Core Data Fields and DATA FIELDS, add the fields and attributes you want, in the order you want them.
To include image links or file names, add those fields, then use Filter Product's Media Content to choose which files are included (for example by role, org unit or published status). Run a test export to check the links or file names come out as you expect.
Click SAVE CHANGES.
Go to Products, select your products, choose Export Custom Template, pick your template, and choose XLSX or CSV.
For full details, see Custom Exports in PXM.
Note: CDN links in an export stop working 60 days after your contract end date. Download the files themselves too (see Step 2).
Export channel-ready files (optional)
If you send content to retailers with spreadsheet templates, an Admin can produce those files one last time to keep a copy:
Select the products.
Click Publish to Channel, choose the channel and template, and pick DOWNLOAD under Publish Options.
Save the resulting file.
Don't use Publish to Channel on API-connected channels to make a backup. On those channels DOWNLOAD isn't available, and the job sends your content straight to the marketplace.
Tips for product exports
Open CSV files in Google Sheets. Excel can remove leading zeros from UPCs and change special characters. See Open a CSV export into Google Sheets and Preserve Special Characters in Exports.
Export in batches if your catalog is large, for example one top-level folder at a time, and keep a list of what you've exported.
Keep a copy of your attribute list. Your attribute columns show every attribute used on your products. You can also export your attribute list from the main Attributes section. Check that it has the settings you need (such as type and allowed values), and note anything missing so you can rebuild it elsewhere.
Step 2: Download your digital assets (DAM files)
Download files from search
Use search or advanced search and toggle to Files (top left).
Select the files. If you use Select All after filtering, double-check the selection count to make sure only the files you want are included.
Open the ••• menu (bottom right) and choose Download.
In Download Preferences, tick the sizes and formats you want. For a full backup, tick Original so you get the file exactly as it was uploaded. You can tick more than one.
Click Download.
If your selection (all chosen sizes combined) is under 500 MB, it comes straight to your browser as a zip. A single file in a single size downloads without a zip. Larger downloads are zipped and emailed to you with a download link. Pattern PXM has no download history, so the email is the only way to get a large download.
Download by product
To keep each product's files together with its product information:
Toggle to Products and select the products you want.
Open the ••• menu (bottom right) and choose Download.
In Download Preferences, tick the image, video, misc, and document variants you want. For a full backup, tick Original in each section. Under Available Data, tick Attributes to include each product's information. Then click Download.
Pattern PXM zips the download and emails it to you, whatever its size. Inside, each product has its own subfolder with its files and its product information in an Excel file.
Export file details and media stack order
Files carry details you may want to keep, such as captions and labels, and products may have a set image order.
File details: On the Files tab, select files and choose File Attribute Export from the batch actions menu. It runs as soon as you click; there are no options. You'll get an XLSX file with each file's name, caption, region, roles, and labels.
Media stack order: On the Products tab, select products and choose Export Media Stack. Media Stacks.xlsx downloads with each product's stack order and links. Downloaded files aren't saved in stack order, so keep this file if image order matters. See Creating Media Stacks.
Older file versions: Downloads include the current version of each file. If you need earlier versions, open the file's File Details page, go to File Versions, and download the versions you need.
Download in bulk from CDN links
For a large library, you can export a list of CDN links to a spreadsheet and use it to download the files in bulk outside Pattern PXM. CDN links are public, so they work without signing in until they stop 60 days after your contract end date. You can run Export Media Stack before your contract end date or during the 60-day read-only access.
Export a list of links:
Export Media Stack: On the Products tab, select products and choose Export Media Stack from the batch actions menu. In Media Stacks.xlsx, the Media column has a link to each original file and the Preview column has thumbnail links. Products without a media stack aren't included.
Custom export: If your custom export template includes your media link fields (see Custom export above), its file also lists CDN links.
Save the list as .xlsx, or open it in Excel or Google Sheets and save it as .csv if your download tool needs that. Keep the Filename column next to each link so you can name the downloaded files.
Use a bulk download tool or script of your choice to download every link in the Media column (not Preview, which is thumbnails). Pattern doesn't provide download scripts or bulk-download help.
Open a few links in a private browser window to check them, and compare the number of downloaded files with the number of rows in your list.
File Attribute Export gives each file's name, caption, regions, roles, and labels, but not its CDN links. Keep it alongside your link list if you need that data. For more about link types, see Image link types and CDN links.
Tips for asset downloads
Download from your email promptly. Check that each emailed zip opens before moving on. Emailed download links expire 60 days after your contract end date.
Check for unpublished files. Unpublished files are left out of exports by default. Publish the ones you need, or change your export settings to include unpublished files, before your contract end date. During the 60-day read-only access, your Pattern CSM sets you up with General Plus user access, so unpublished files are still visible, but you can't change settings.
Work in batches (for example, by folder or file type) so each download is a manageable size, and keep a checklist of what you've downloaded.
Download limit: you can download up to 1,000 files at a time in Pattern PXM, so split larger libraries into batches. For a very large library, you can also download from a list of CDN links (see Download in bulk from CDN links above).
Compare counts. After downloading, compare the number of files you have with the counts in Pattern PXM.
Step 3: Use the API for large catalogs (optional)
If you have a very large catalog or want to move content straight into another system, a developer can use the Pattern PXM Open API to pull products, attributes, folders, files, and media stacks.
In Pattern PXM, go to Settings > System > Integrations and click Register Application to get a Client ID and Client Secret. You'll usually need the Super Admin role.
Have your developer read products, attributes, categories, files, and media stacks with the API's GET endpoints, paging through results.
Keep requests within the rate limit, and wait and retry if the API returns a "too many requests" error.
API access is turned off on your contract end date. The 60-day read-only access is General Plus user access (view, export, and download) and doesn't include the API, so finish API pulls before your end date. See API Integrations in PXM and Pattern PXM Open API — Website Integration Guide.
Step 4: Request read-only access if you need more time
If you won't finish before your contract end date, request read-only access from your Pattern CSM. On request, you can have read-only access for 60 days after your contract end date to get your content off.
Your Pattern CSM sets you up with General Plus user access, which means you can view, export, and download your content, including unpublished files.
You can't upload files, make changes, or use the API.
Pattern doesn't offer assisted bulk exports, so you or your team do the exporting and downloading during this time, using the steps above.
You can't make changes during this time, so do anything that changes your account before your contract end date. For example, publish files, create custom export templates, register an API application, and change private lightboxes to shared.
Request it before your contract end date, because all access is removed on that date.
Before your contract end date: checklist
Product attributes exported (Approved, plus any drafts you need)
Custom or channel exports saved, if you use them
Original files downloaded for images, videos, and documents
File details and media stack order exported
Downloads unzipped, opened, and counts checked
Shared links, website images, and integrations switched to your new location
Any private lightboxes you need changed to shared
Your team told when Pattern PXM access will end
What happens after your contract ends
Access ends on your contract end date. All access to Pattern PXM is removed, and your users can no longer sign in. If you requested it, you'll have read-only, General Plus user access (view, export, and download) for 60 days to get your content off.
Links stop working after 60 days. CDN links, /p/ links, shareable links, and images embedded on websites or marketplaces that point to Pattern PXM stop working 60 days after your contract end date. Replace them with links from your new system before then. See Accessing Pattern PXM Files via CDN and Shareable Links.
Integrations stop. API credentials stop working when access is removed on your contract end date. Plan for channel connections to stop then too, and set up your new system's channel feeds before your end date.
Emailed download links expire. Download links in Pattern PXM emails stop working 60 days after your contract end date.
Content is deleted. Your content is deleted on day 61 after your contract end date. Plan as if it can't be restored, and download everything you need first.
Troubleshooting
My export didn't download.
Some exports are emailed instead of downloaded. Check your inbox, including spam, for an email from Pattern PXM.
My download email never arrived.
Large downloads can take a few minutes. Check spam, then try a smaller batch. If it still doesn't arrive, contact Pattern support.
Some files are missing from my export.
Check whether the files are unpublished, and whether your role can see them. Unpublished files are left out by default, and users only see files their role and org units allow.
My UPCs lost their leading zeros.
Open the CSV in Google Sheets, or import it into Excel with those columns set to Text.
My "Select All" download has more files than I expected.
Clear the selection, then select the files or folders you want and check the count before downloading.
I downloaded a PDF and got a zip file.
Some document formats download as a zip. Unzip it to get the file.
A terms popup appears when I download.
Some images are set up to require accepting usage terms. Accept them to continue, or ask your admin.
FAQ
How long do I have to export?
Until your contract end date, when all access is removed. If you need more time, request read-only, General Plus user access (view, export, and download) from your Pattern CSM for 60 days after your contract end date. Start exporting before your end date so you aren't relying on the extra time.
Can I get my content back after it's deleted?
Plan as if you can't. Your content is deleted on day 61 after your contract end date, so download everything you need before then.
Will my CDN or image links keep working?
No. CDN, /p/, and shareable links that point to Pattern PXM stop working 60 days after your contract end date. Move your images to your new host and update your websites and listings before then.
Do I need to remove my users?
All users lose access on your contract end date. If you want people to lose access sooner, an admin can deactivate them from the user's three-dot menu (they move to the Inactive tab). Before you do, change any private lightboxes you need to shared, because private lightboxes don't transfer. See User Roles and Permissions in Pattern PXM.
Can Pattern export everything for me?
No. Pattern doesn't offer assisted bulk exports. Getting your content off Pattern PXM is your responsibility, before and after your contract end date. Use the export, download, and API steps above, and start before your end date.
Who do I contact with questions?
Contact your Pattern CSM, or email pxmsupport@pattern.com.