# Imports Bring existing experiment history into an InstantML workspace without handing vendor credentials to InstantML servers. The `instantml` CLI reads source data on your machine, normalizes it into import chunks, uploads a preview first with `--dry-run`, and commits only after you review the result. > **Info:** An import job is a staged migration: the CLI uploads normalized run data, the server reports counts and warnings, and nothing lands in your project until the job commits. ## Choose an import path Each source has one command. Install the matching extra before you run it. | Source | Command | Install extra | | --- | --- | --- | | W&B, direct from the local `wandb` SDK | `instantml import wandb --entity ... --source-project ...` | `instantml[wandb]` | | W&B, transformed JSON export file | `instantml import wandb --project my-project --input wandb.json` | none | | Neptune Exporter Parquet directory | `instantml import neptune --input ./neptune-export/data` | `instantml[imports]` (pyarrow) | | MLflow, transformed JSON export file | `instantml import mlflow --input ./mlflow-export.json` | none | | TensorBoard scalar event files | `instantml sync tensorboard ./runs --project my-project` | `instantml[tensorboard]` | - [W&B migration guide](/docs/guides/wandb-import-guide.md): Migrate W&B run history directly through the local W&B SDK, with dry-run review and a low-risk rollout plan. - [W&B and Neptune export-file imports](/docs/guides/wandb-neptune-imports.md): Import W&B export files and Neptune Exporter Parquet directories step by step. ## Preview with a dry run, then commit Authenticate once with `instantml login`, then run any import with `--dry-run` to stage the job without writing runs: ```bash instantml login instantml import wandb \ --project cartpole \ --entity my-team \ --source-project old-project \ --dry-run ``` The CLI prints the job id, job status, and run, metric, and artifact counts. When they look right, rerun the same command without `--dry-run` to commit the import. > **Tip:** TensorBoard sync is safe to repeat: rerunning `instantml sync tensorboard` appends new scalar points to matching imported runs instead of replacing existing history. ## Manage import jobs over the API Import jobs are also addressable over the REST API with a bearer API key that has import/write permission. Use these routes to check on or cancel a staged job: | Action | Route | | --- | --- | | List import jobs | `GET /api/imports` | | Create an import job | `POST /api/imports/jobs` | | Upload staged chunks | `POST /api/imports/jobs/{import_id}/chunks` | | Check job status, warnings, and progress | `GET /api/imports/jobs/{import_id}` | | Commit a staged job | `POST /api/imports/jobs/{import_id}/commit` | | Cancel a staged job | `POST /api/imports/jobs/{import_id}/cancel` | | W&B transformed JSON (legacy) | `POST /api/imports/wandb` | | MLflow transformed JSON (legacy) | `POST /api/imports/mlflow` | | Neptune-shaped transformed JSON (legacy) | `POST /api/imports/neptune` | For example, check a job's status and cancel it if the preview looks wrong: ```bash curl https://api.instantml.ai/api/imports/jobs/42 \ -H "Authorization: Bearer instantml_..." curl -X POST https://api.instantml.ai/api/imports/jobs/42/cancel \ -H "Authorization: Bearer instantml_..." ``` The legacy JSON routes accept transformed JSON payloads and remain for backward compatibility. Prefer the CLI flow: it adds dry-run readiness, warning previews, chunked uploads, real Neptune Exporter Parquet support, direct W&B export, and TensorBoard sync. ## Know what importers preserve Importers carry over the experiment-tracking spine: - Projects and runs. - Config values and params. - Tags and notes when present. - Metric history and summaries. - External artifact references: declared sizes, MIME types, metadata, and metadata-only artifact catalog bundles for lineage. - Import status and diagnostics. Importers write artifact references only — they never copy source artifact bytes into InstantML-hosted storage. Imported references appear in the raw run artifact list and in the versioned Artifacts catalog, and they participate in lineage, but downloads stay unavailable until you upload the actual bytes with the SDK. ## Understand limits Imports count against the same project, run, metric-point, and metadata/operational-storage plan limits as SDK writes. Accepted chunks count as retained operational storage, and each job has a 2 GiB staged-payload ceiling, so abandoned dry-run jobs cannot consume unbounded space. Storage-heavy migrations should use Premium or custom terms before separately uploading retained artifact bytes. ## Respect compatibility boundaries Importers do not claim full vendor parity for W&B sweeps, reports, or launch, full Neptune namespace semantics, TensorBoard media, or server-side hosted vendor credential pulls. Source credentials stay local. ## Next steps - [W&B import guide](/docs/guides/wandb-import-guide.md) — the full W&B migration walkthrough. - [W&B and Neptune imports](/docs/guides/wandb-neptune-imports.md) — step-by-step export-file imports. - [Import, export, and usage API](/docs/api/import-export-usage.md) — request and response shapes for the import routes. - [CLI login](/docs/sdk/cli-login.md) — authenticate the CLI before importing. - [Pricing, limits, and billing](/docs/guides/pricing-limits-billing.md) — the plan limits imports count against. - [Troubleshooting](/docs/troubleshooting.md) — diagnose pyarrow, Parquet, and TensorBoard import issues. ## Agent navigation - [Docs index](/llms.txt) - [Full docs bundle](/llms-full.txt) ### Get Started - [Overview](/docs/index.md) - [Quickstart](/docs/quickstart.md) - [Core Concepts](/docs/concepts/core-concepts.md) - [Pricing](/docs/pricing.md) - [Benchmarks](/docs/benchmarks.md) - [Examples](/docs/guides/examples.md) - [Troubleshooting](/docs/troubleshooting.md) ### SDK - [Installation Auth](/docs/sdk/installation-auth.md) - [Logging](/docs/sdk/logging.md) - [Tracing](/docs/sdk/tracing.md) - [Metrics Steps](/docs/sdk/metrics-steps.md) - [Config Tags Notes](/docs/sdk/config-tags-notes.md) - [Artifacts Checkpoints](/docs/sdk/artifacts-checkpoints.md) - [Rich Objects](/docs/sdk/rich-objects.md) - [Distributed Training](/docs/sdk/distributed-training.md) - [Console System Integrations](/docs/sdk/console-system-integrations.md) - [Reliability](/docs/sdk/reliability.md) - [Cli Login](/docs/sdk/cli-login.md) - [Querying Data](/docs/sdk/querying-data.md) - [Agent Mcp](/docs/sdk/agent-mcp.md) - [Examples Patterns](/docs/sdk/examples-patterns.md) ### Integrations - [Overview](/docs/integrations/overview.md) - [Pytorch Lightning](/docs/integrations/pytorch-lightning.md) - [Huggingface Transformers](/docs/integrations/huggingface-transformers.md) - [Keras](/docs/integrations/keras.md) - [Wandb](/docs/integrations/wandb.md) ### Dashboard - [Tour](/docs/dashboard/tour.md) - [Organizations Workspaces](/docs/dashboard/organizations-workspaces.md) - [Runs Workspace](/docs/dashboard/runs-workspace.md) - [Metrics Charts](/docs/dashboard/metrics-charts.md) - [Run Detail](/docs/dashboard/run-detail.md) - [Traces](/docs/dashboard/traces.md) - [Compare Runs](/docs/dashboard/compare-runs.md) - [Research Dashboards](/docs/dashboard/research-dashboards.md) - [Artifacts Files](/docs/dashboard/artifacts-files.md) - [Run Health](/docs/dashboard/alerts.md) - [Datasets](/docs/dashboard/datasets.md) - [Checkpoints](/docs/dashboard/checkpoints.md) - [Reports](/docs/dashboard/reports.md) - [Settings Api Keys](/docs/dashboard/settings-api-keys.md) - [Api Tab](/docs/dashboard/api-tab.md) - [Onboarding Team Billing](/docs/dashboard/onboarding-team-billing.md) ### Data - [Imports](/docs/guides/imports.md) (current page) - [W&B alternative](/docs/guides/wandb-alternative.md) - [InstantML vs MLflow](/docs/guides/instantml-vs-mlflow.md) - [W&B import guide](/docs/guides/wandb-import-guide.md) - [W&B and Neptune imports](/docs/guides/wandb-neptune-imports.md) - [Export Usage Limits](/docs/guides/export-usage-limits.md) - [Pricing Limits Billing](/docs/guides/pricing-limits-billing.md) - [Auth Billing Storage](/docs/guides/auth-billing-storage.md) - [Customer Owned Clickhouse](/docs/guides/customer-owned-clickhouse.md) - [Observability](/docs/guides/observability.md) ### API **Practical API guides** - [Authentication](/docs/api/authentication.md) - [Errors And Limits](/docs/api/errors-and-limits.md) - [Health Observability](/docs/api/health-observability.md) - [Projects Runs](/docs/api/projects-runs.md) - [Metrics Series](/docs/api/metrics-series.md) - [Attributes Objects](/docs/api/attributes-objects.md) - [Artifacts](/docs/api/artifacts.md) - [Reports](/docs/api/reports.md) - [Iframe Embeds](/docs/api/iframe-embeds.md) - [Import Export Usage](/docs/api/import-export-usage.md) - [Dashboard Control State](/docs/api/dashboard-control-state.md) **Architecture** - [System Overview](/docs/architecture/system-overview.md) - [Service Planes](/docs/architecture/service-planes.md) - [Storage Model](/docs/architecture/storage-model.md) - [Google Clickhouse](/docs/architecture/google-clickhouse.md) - [Auth Tenancy](/docs/architecture/auth-tenancy.md) - [Schema Reference](/docs/architecture/schema-reference.md) ### API Reference - [API Reference](/docs/api-reference.md)