When a business undergoes data migration processes, many changes take place which are challenging to adjust to. Around 80% of the data migrations fail during the process due to not enough knowledge. However, you will only succeed in the data migration if you are prepared well.
Before seeing things to know before starting the data migration process, you should know about data migration and why it is essential to plan it.
What Happens in Data Migration?
Data migration involves transferring data among different formats, storage types, and computer systems. This transfer is essential if you want to upgrade and consolidate your system.
When Should You Plan a Data Migration?
Usually, during mergers and acquisitions, data migration becomes essential. Moreover, a data migration takes place if there is a need to purchase a new system or manage regulatory changes.
Issues That May Arise
Here are some issues that can arise during the data migration process.
- Security concerns: there can be a loss of data, or some of the data can get exposed.
- Prolonged downtime. Data transfer can take a lot of time and slow down the organization’s workforce.
- Corruption of sensitive data. Despite moving all the data files, some can still crash or get lost during migration.
Is Data Migration Costly?
Data migration will be a one-time expense if you plan strategically using the proper techniques. However, due to delays and security issues, you might incur extra charges.
5 Things to Know Before Starting the Data Migration Process
To achieve a successful migration, you must know these 5 things before starting.
1. The Importance of Pre-Migration Evaluation
You need to identify your organization’s current status before starting the migration process. Evaluating the current health of your organization will assist you in successfully executing the migration process.
For this, you need to analyze data processes and the pain points that can appear before starting the migration. The pre-migration evaluation will help you evaluate why you should go for migration and what you are looking for.
2. Set Clear Goals
You must ensure the clarity of your goals and what you want to get from data migration. Knowing your budget, the team’s capability, and the timeframe is essential before the execution of the data migration process.
3. Consider Different Data Systems
There are many options and many things to consider when choosing a data system. The right system for you depends on many variables, including the system you are currently using, cost considerations, and your goals. For example, enterprise vault migration may be easier when transferring to Office 365, making Office 365 the best choice for your new data system.
4. Understand Your Team’s Limitation
Before the migration process, you need to see whether your team can handle the data migration process and the update. For this, gather the team members who are suitable for this task. Make sure your team has:
- all stakeholders who depend on the data
- A project manager who will manage stakeholders, the budget, and the time taken for the daily migration.
- The management group as data migration is crucial to the business. The management team needs to be updated constantly to make wise decisions when required during the data migration process.
5. Research Data Mapping
Before the process starts, ensure how data mapping will be done from one destination to another system. Let’s review the types of mappings.
Object Mapping
Object mapping makes use of various structures to create correspondence. Such mapping helps in planning a successful migration.
Field Mapping
Every type of object has a different field pertaining to it. Field mapping shows how a field maps to the platform. It also includes data on how to connect the field to the data of a relevant object. The organization that gets direction and input from the migrator will recognize the area mappings to the end field from the source fields.
Revision Mapping
This type of mapping answers questions about whether the destination system and source system have the same revision patterns, whether both systems come with revisions, or are the revisions assigned only when the object is released. This is important to know for smooth data migration.
Conclusion
If you are one of the many organizations planning a data migration, ensure you have a well-established plan that will make you aware of the budget, the tools needed, and the staff members required for the data migration. As data is the most valuable asset of your organization, don’t show negligence to the process and keep these six things in mind before starting the data migration process.