A catalog CSV cannot close an order-archive handoff

Read the export's scope before accepting it as history

WooCommerce's product exporter lets an operator select product columns, product types, categories and optional custom metadata. Those selections change which product data is included. They do not turn the product schema into an order archive. A file that opens successfully and contains the expected SKUs can prove that catalog data was exported; it does not prove that support can answer an outstanding order question.

Compare the file's actual columns with the questions your unresolved cases require. A current product name or price cannot establish what a particular historical order contained. A product identifier may help link records, but the purchased items, recorded totals, order events and communications need their own evidence. Increasing the number of catalog columns does not close an order-history gap.

Trace one real open case through its records

Choose an existing unresolved case from the authorized support system. Start with its order reference and identify the order record, the relevant notes, the current support conversation and any payment or fulfillment references needed for the outstanding decision. Record the system and access owner for each. Use this as a retrieval check on a real case, not as a request to create a new order or invent a customer example.

Where a refund or dispute is involved, identify the provider record that establishes its status and the store record that refers to it. A sentence in a support conversation is evidence of what was said; it is not a substitute for the provider's event record. If the case only contains a promise with no linked action, preserve that distinction. The archive should allow the next authorized person to discover the gap instead of inheriting an apparently resolved case.

A successful check on one case proves access to those records only. Continue the coverage inventory across the actual open cases and record types required for the handoff. Mark a missing source as missing; do not infer coverage from the total size of the downloaded catalog file.

Keep the audience and sequence of order notes

WooCommerce distinguishes system notes, private notes and customer notes. Its order-page documentation describes notes recording events such as payment results and stock changes, and says customer notes are emailed. Preserve the note type and time along with any record the authorized team needs. Without the type, an internal observation can be mistaken for a statement sent to the buyer; without the time, a later correction can be mistaken for the original instruction.

Inspect existing notes without using a customer note to store an internal archive reminder, because that note is emailed. A mailbox or support system may also contain correspondence outside the order screen. Identify that separate location in the coverage record rather than assuming an order export includes it. The worksheet itself needs only references and coverage findings, not copied private messages.

Make access retirement depend on retrievable evidence

For each required record set, name the authorized owner, the retained location, the way to open it and any access dependency on the old system. Have that owner retrieve the records and follow the links needed for the open cases. A file that has merely been downloaded, or an old login nobody has checked, leaves the handoff unfinished. This establishes usable access to the selected records; it does not establish that a whole store can be restored.

Keep the access-retirement decision open where a required order, note or provider record cannot be retrieved. Identify exactly which source is absent and who must supply or authorize access to it. This page does not set retention periods or authorize deletion; retention obligations and access permissions must be determined for the actual business.

A Prism checkout consultation can discuss the store change and the unresolved operational question. Any archive or migration assistance needs a confirmed scope, responsibilities, fees and terms. Describe the website, research-only products and missing record category in the public form; do not send the archive, customer messages or credentials. Email follow-up does not itself book an appointment, purchase a service or submit a processing application.

Operational archive coverage

Use this as an internal coverage index for the actual open cases. Record locations and non-sensitive references, not customer content. A covered row requires that the designated owner can retrieve the evidence; a missing row identifies a dependency to resolve before retiring the access it needs.

Worksheet entries are not submitted by Prism’s worksheet and are not saved by the site. Use record types, availability, anonymized observations, or match/mismatch results. Do not enter government identifiers, customer names or addresses, customer messages, receipt-access links, card or bank details, passwords, or keys. Send sensitive documents only through the provider’s verified secure channel.

These are temporary notes. Leaving or reloading this page may clear them. Worksheet entries are not sent automatically. If you copy notes into the consultation message and submit the form, Prism receives them as part of your request.