Connector Types
The 8 connector types and when to use each one.
Every connector has a type that determines its role in the data pipeline. You choose the type when creating a connector — it cannot be changed later.
Which type do I need?
| Type | Direction | Use when... |
|---|---|---|
| Data source | Inbound | You need to fetch data from a third-party system and import it into Productsup |
| Export | Outbound | You need to send all processed product data to a third-party channel every run |
| Export delta | Outbound | You need to send only the data that changed since the last run |
| Data service | Transform | You need to validate, enrich, or transform data within the pipeline |
| Download | Inbound | You need to download files via HTTP(S) to exchange storage |
| Transform | Transform | You need to parse files from exchange storage and write product data to output |
Common patterns
- Data source + Export is the most common combination — import data in, export it out
- Export delta over Export when the third-party channel supports incremental updates — it's more efficient and reduces API calls
- Download + Transform for file-based integrations — download fetches the file, transform parses it into product data
Connector types in detail
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