UUID Requirements and Format

Owned by D (Unlicensed)
Last updated: 23 Jul, 2015
1 min read

Any attribute marked "uuid" requires a valid Universally Unique Identifier conforming to version 4 (SHA1 generated, random hash) of the UUID spec. Many languages support the generation of these. It is important to use version 4 to minimise the risk of collisions.

Not sure how to generate a UUID or just want someone else to do it for you? Try out: https://www.uuidgenerator.net/version4 for examples.

A UUID will look like the following when represented as a hexadecimal string:

3a6ce610-87b6-4cc1-80f7-b63be7157355

The elements that have UUID defined are:

  • ActivityType
  • HouseholdType
  • OrganizationType
  • ParticipantType
  • PersonType
  • ProgramType
  • VoucherType

Certain elements have additional restrictions:

  • OrganizationType UUID - must be one of the values defined in the XSD,
  • ParticipantType UUID - must be one of the PersonType UUIDs,
  • ProgramType UUID - must be a valid Link2Feed program reference.

Certain elements do not require a UUID:

  • ActivityType

If a UUID is not required, this will mean that if not provided, a value will be generated by the Link2Feed system. This will prevent two-way data communication.

UUIDs if set are validated for formatting. If a UUID does not meet the expected format the data will not be imported.

DO NOT use the "nil" UUID value in your XML - even for testing. ALWAYS generate a value.