Running a Migration

Overview

Data Migrator is a powerful tool that seamlessly copies records from one Salesforce org to another. This article guides you through the process of using a template to execute a data migration job efficiently.

Key Points About the Migration Process:

• All records in the source organization remain intact throughout the migration process.

• Migration of binary files and ContentVersion records is supported. File-based records, such as attachments, documents, and Salesforce Files, are migrated along with their actual file contents.

• Migration of Standard Pricebook Entries is supported. This ensures every product has a default (standard) price in Salesforce, so it can be used in deployments, opportunities, and dependent records without errors.

• If VEID mapping is selected and a record exists in both the source and target organizations, Data Migrator intelligently updates the target record to match the source, preventing duplicate entries and maintaining data integrity.

• A properly configured template preserves relationships between records, maintaining references and dependencies in the target organization.

Before you can begin migrating your data, create a template to define the objects and fields to be migrated. Refer to the following articles for guidance on completing these tasks.

• Creating a Template

• Adding Objects to a Template

• Adding Fields to Objects

Example Migration

This article uses the following example to illustrate how to migrate data between Salesforce organizations. This example will migrate all Contacts records associated with the "Example Company" Account. The Account object is included in the migration to preserve the relationship between Account and Contact objects. For this example, only a subset of fields is needed for each object. The diagram below shows the specific fields selected for migration and the filter criteria used to choose which records to migrate.

The screenshot below shows the template used in this example. The Account object appears as the root, with the Contact object as its child.

To maintain the relationship between Account and Contact records, you must select the Account ID field in the Contact object. The Account ID field is always selected by default for Account objects.

Run Migration

1

Run Template

1. Click Templates from the left sidebar menu.

2. Find the template to use for the migration from the list of templates.

3. Click Run.

   

2

Configure Migration

1. Enter a descriptive Name for the migration job.

   
2. Click the Source Organization dropdown menu.

3. Select the source organization. This is the organization from which the records will be copied.

   
4. Click the Target Organization dropdown menu.

5. Select the target organization. This is the organization to which the records will be copied.

   
6. Click the Select Mapping dropdown.

Record Mapping Options

Virtual External ID (VEID)

VEID is a stateful, mapping-based migration strategy that uses an internal mapping table to link source and target records. VEID is designed for repeat migrations when:

• Data Migrator is the only migration tool used.

• During the first migration, the target org doesn't contain the records being migrated.

• Long-term consistency across runs is required.

VEID provides predictable updates only for records previously migrated with our tool. Changes made outside this flow can result in duplicate records.

None

When "None" is selected, all records from the source are inserted into the target organization. This process does not match records between the source and target, which can lead to duplicates if records exist in both locations.

See the following article for more information.

• How Record Mapping Works

1. Select the record mapping method.

   

3

(Optional) Disable Automations

When running a migration, automated Salesforce processes remain active by default. To prevent these processes from triggering during your migration, use the Disable Automations feature.

1. To disable Salesforce automations for an object, click Automations.

   
2. Check any of the automations you want to disable.

3. Click Save.

   
4. When automations are disabled for an object, the Automations button will display a red dot.

   

4

Run Migration

1. Click Run migration to start the Data Migration job.

   
2. After starting the Data Migration job, it will be displayed on the History page.

   

5

Review Results

After the Data Migration job finishes, you can check the results to see the number of migrated records and any errors encountered. See the following article to learn more about the results.

• Viewing Migration Results