---
title: "Initialize master records"
slug: "initialize-master-records"
description: "Initialize master records for existing companies with Master Data Management Studio, ensuring seamless data management across target groups."
tags: ["Task topic"]
updated: 2026-03-20T12:21:27Z
published: 2026-03-20T17:44:40Z
canonical: "docs.staedean.com/initialize-master-records"
---

> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.staedean.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Initialize master records

For a master data entity, you can initialize master records for an existing source company and existing target company or target group companies.

You can use this initialization if the master data already exists in both the source company and the target company or target group companies, but no master records exist for this data. For example, previously, you managed master data in another way than with Master Data Management Studio.

As a result, for the defined master data entity table, for the data that exists in both the source company and the target company or target group companies:

- Master records are created.
- Subscriptions for the target companies are created for the master data entity records.

> [!NOTE]
> **Note**
> 
> If you initialize master records for a target group, a separate subscription is created for each company in the target group. To each of these company subscriptions, the used target group is added for reference purposes.
- No data is pushed from the source company to the target companies.

### Steps

1. Click **Master data management - Setup**.
2. On the **Master data entities** tab, in the list, find and select the desired master data entity.
3. Click **Edit** and on the **Master data entities** page, change to the **Initialization** view.
4. Expand the **Messages** section.
5. In the list, select the desired record.
6. Click **Initialize master** **data**.
7. On the **Initialize master data** dialog, the **Parameters** are filled automatically based on the selected record settings.

Click **OK**.
8. Close the page.

> [!NOTE]
> **Notes**
> 
> If you initialize master records for a message of type **Hierarchy**, master records are created for each source and target combination in the organization hierarchy.

## Related

- [Use organization hierarchies for master data distribution](/use-organization-hierarchies-for-master-data-distribution.md)
- [Set up master data entities](/set-up-master-data-entities.md)