Merging logic
Use intelligent logic to select the master record and preserves your most valuable data during a merge.
Master record
In a group of duplicates, the master record ('Primary') is determined by several factors, including
Top-level domain
In a group of three duplicates, only one 'Primary' account can exist. Once the merge is complete, the two non-primary records will be functionally deleted.
Survivorship logic
Kernel allows the user to configure the primary approach for handling conflicting data during merges.
In the example below, the account on the left has been determined as the Primary record, but is currently unassigned. One of the duplicate records contains an active owner as defined in theActive users. A regular merge would effectively remove this account from the owner's books.
To prevent this, Kernel first transfers the active owner to the primary account before completing the merge.
Default survivorship logic
Kernel provides an opinionated configuration for account merging. The general rule is to "fill in the blanks", i.e., when Record A has empty fields and Record B has values, copy B's values to A. For example, if A has no phone number but B does, keep B's phone number in the merged record.
However, this is overwritten in several special cases, such as the following rules:
Keep the earliest Created Date: Preserve the original creation date from the oldest record in the merge group.
Keep the latest Activity Date: Use the most recent activity date to reflect the latest engagement.
Use the newest date for other date fields: Default behavior for date fields not covered by specific rules above.
Prefer active human owner: Prioritize active users over inactive/automated processes. If conflict between active owners, keep the primary record's owner.
Preserve complete addresses: When merging Record A and Record B with conflicting address data, choose the record with all 4 components: Street + City + State/Province + Postal Code. Example: Record A has "123 Main St, Austin, TX 78701" vs Record B has "Austin, TX" → keep A's complete address. If both records are equally complete/incomplete, fall back to standard "fill in the blanks" behavior.
Prevent circular references: Clear lookup fields that would create circular references (e.g., A→B when merging B into A).
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