Relational table limitations and requirements

• A maximum of 10 relational tables are available per organization. Contact support if more tables are needed.
• Multiple tables can be related to a database.
• Relational tables cannot be related to other relational tables.

  Note: Child relational table associations to parent tables are allowed.

• Relational tables have rows and each row is a record.
• Relational tables have columns where data is kept. You can have a maximum of 400 columns per table.
• Only 1000 records per request can be deleted in a Relational table.

  Note: To delete thousands of records per update, consider deleting the relational table and re-importing the fresh data as a best practice. You can also use the ImportTable API to update the records.

• Text type fields in relational tables are limited to 4000 characters.
• Relational table data can be used as criteria for dynamic content rules.
• Child relational table data cannot be used as criteria for dynamic content rules
• Relational tables require a matching column to associate them with a database.
• Relational tables that are referenced to two different databases cannot be merged.
• You cannot use relational table data in a Transact email.
• Relational tables cannot be used as a contact source.
• Relational table queries do not need to be deleted in order for a relational table to be deleted. Only regular queries reference the relational table.
• Relational table data cannot be included when building dynamic content blocks within a rule.
• The association between the relational table and the database does not need to be removed to delete the relational table.
• Relational tables with zero usage are the only tables that can be deleted.
• It is not possible to run a usage report on relational tables. Contact support to obtain usage information.
• Records within a relational table can be deleted by using the DeleteRelationalTableData API call.
• Only the JoinTable API call can be used to remove the association between the relational table and a database or a parent and child relational table.
• Currently, relational tables do not offer the ability to change field names or field types.
• Due to how relational tables are created and stored within Acoustic Campaign, it is not currently possible to delete columns from a previously created relational table. However, you can ignore or re-purpose the column. Relational tables have a 400-column limit if you decide to add a column in place of the old one.
• A relational table can have up to six unique identifiers. If you would like to change the unique identifier, you must import a new relational table.
• Relational table associations are not supported on multiple selection type database fields.
• If you use a relational table query to retrieve a URL value for use as a link in an email, the entire anchor <a> element for your link must be created using a dynamic link leader (DLL). If a DLL is not used, you cannot reference the href value for your link, for example: href="%%MY_URL_VALUE%%". If you do reference the ref without using DLL, Acoustic Campaign will rebuild and redirect the link with tracking information, and the resulting link will be incorrect in the actual email that is sent. If you format the href value in your link as href="%%MY_URL_VALUE%%" and use the personalization function to test, the correct URL value is pulled in from the relational table. You will receive a false positive where it appears to work correctly. However, after the email is sent, the link is incorrect.

Relational Table Query Export limitations

When trying to export data from Relational Tables and Relational Table Queries, the type of Query created matters.

See the Compare the query and classic query builder article for more details.

By default, Relational Table queries using the Classic Query structure do not allow system fields, like the last modified date, to be included in the export – even though the option to include some system fields is given.

The same is true when the Contact Source selected for Export is a Relational Table:

Only Queries built using the standard Query Builder allow exporting system fields like the last modified date.

The standard Query Builder feature for relational tables is available when Child relational tables are enabled in a Campaign org.

The table below shows the visual difference between the two Query Builder types.

Classic Query Builder	Standard Query Builder

If the Classic Query Builder is automatically displayed when starting a new query, then the Standard Query Builder feature may not be enabled in the Campaign Org.

If the query selected for export was created before the standard Query Builder feature was enabled, and editing the query shows it’s a Classic Query - a new query needs to be created for the Relational Table using the standard Query Builder.

If needed, an Acoustic campaign support case can be opened to confirm which Query Builder(s) are enabled for the Campaign org and request the Child Relational Table and standard Query Builder features to be enabled. You will also need to confirm if the Classic Query Builder needs to be disabled or remain enabled.

If both Query Builders are already enabled in the Campaign Org, two options are displayed for building Relational Table queries.

	The first option highlighted in yellow is the Classic Query Builder
	The second option highlighted in green is the standard Query Builder