Restrictions and good practices when dealing with XLIFF and multi-XLIFF files in offline translation
- Damian Rozmiarkowski (Unlicensed)
- Damian Rozmiarkowski
Things to keep in mind while using XLIFF format
Only the file that was originally generated in XTM Cloud can be reuploaded. If the linguist used different source files in another external CAT tool, uploading such a file back to XTM Cloud will not be possible.
The first item comes in a pair with the fact that after offline translation the file cannot be returned to XTM Cloud in a native format used in the external tool, such as SDLXLIFF, MQXLIFF, etc. – it must be the original format, generated from XTM Cloud.
If the Linguist generated an offline translation file, and another user generated a second file for the same job, all the files will be considered valid (unless reanalysis takes place). If the first file has already been translated then it will still be possible to import it.
If the file is divided into bundles, each linguist must upload the translated XLIFF file from their own inbox ('myinbox'). In this case, when the Project Manager uploads the XLIFF file, this will affect the entire project as it will overwrite the work of Linguists assigned to other bundles.
The number of inline elements in the XLIFF file, before and after translation, must be exactly the same. If the linguist deletes an inline element while translating in an external tool, it will not be possible to upload the file back into XTM Cloud.
The structure of the imported file (e.g. the number of elements, inlines) must be the same as the structure of the exported file.
When uploading offline XLIFF files to a project, the relevant segments will be locked in XTM Workbench if any of the following attributes is used in the trans-unit node in the XLIFF file:
xtm:locked="yes",xtm:locked="true",xtm:locked="y".The file must be have a unique ID (an attribute value in the XLIFF file):
After every (re)analysis or continuous project update, the trans units of segments in a particular file are changed. The project is treated as a new one, and each segment's history is be erased. This means you will not be able to upload the previously generated XLIFF file, as the Document ID will no longer match, and the following error message is displayed:  |
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Is there a possibility to batch import XLIFF files?
IMPORTANT!
Unfortunately, in XTM Cloud, there is no option for batch XLIFF import.
If you have a project with multiple files and use the option to generate an XLIFF file for the entire project, you will receive a ZIP package with a separate XLIFF file for each source file in your project. These XLIFF files can be translated in other CAT tools and imported back to XTM Cloud. However, each XLIFF file needs to be uploaded to XTM Cloud separately as there is no way to upload the translated package for the entire project.
Multi-XLIFF file
If you generate a multi-XLIFF file, the system will then generate a single joined XLIFF file that contains all files in your project. This kind of file can be translated in other CAT tools as well and reuploaded to XTM Cloud. Using a multi-XLIFF file, you can update all files into the XTM Cloud project at once.
Furthermore, if you generate and download a multi-XLIFF file, add a new file to the project, and then try to upload the multi-XLIFF again, it will uploaded. However, it will only work for files that were added before the multi-XLIFF was generated.
IMPORTANT!
Take care to generate the correct type of file: if you previously generated an multi-XLIFF file and now want to upload a single XLIFF file back to XTM Cloud, or the other way round, it will not work.
Furthermore, the multi-XLIFF option is not available for subcontracted instances as there is no way to guarantee that all files in the project are and will be assigned to the same subcontractor all the time. The only workaround is to generate the multi-XLIFF file on the Contractor's instance and send it to a specific LSP. The translated multi-XLIFF file can be then uploaded on the Contractor’s instance.