Overview of Templates
Overview
OverviewIn Data Migrator, templates are the foundation of your data migration strategy. They define which objects to migrate, preserve relationships between records, specify which fields to include or exclude, and apply filters to control which data is transferred.
Templates are created using a visual Template Designer that helps you quickly build data migrations. Before creating a template, understand how objects connect to each other. This ensures your migrated records don't miss critical data. See the Object Connections section below for details.
To build your first template, follow the instructions in the articles listed below.
Once your template is completed, you can begin migrating data by following the instructions in the article below.
Object Connections
In a Template, objects define which records are transferred between Salesforce orgs during a migration. This section explains how objects in a template connect to one another.
Parent-Child Connection
When migrating data between Salesforce orgs, understanding the parent-child relationship between objects is crucial for maintaining data integrity. In a Data Migrator Template, this relationship is visualized as connections between objects, enabling a structured data-mapping process. Proper visualization of these connections helps ensure that related records are migrated without errors.
Parent -> Child connections run from the bottom of the parent object to the left side of the child object.
Child -> Parent connections run from the right side of the child object to the top of the parent object.
The screenshot below displays a template with multiple objects. For each object, the parent-child relationships with other objects are outlined.
Master-Detail Relationship 
The Master-Detail icon indicates a Master-Detail relationship in which the child object is tightly coupled to and completely dependent on the parent object. In this relationship, the parent record controls certain behaviors of the child record. If a Master record is deleted, all related Detail records are automatically deleted. During data migration, you must migrate parent records before or at the same time as child records to maintain data integrity.
For example, if the Customer Meetings object has a Master-Detail relationship with the Account object, you should migrate both Account and Customer Meetings records together. This ensures no Customer Meetings records are deleted if Account records are removed from the source org.
Salesforce - Object Relationships Overview
Lookup Relationship 
The Lookup icon indicates a Lookup relationship, where the child object references but is not dependent on the parent object. Unlike Master-Detail relationships, Lookup relationships are more loosely coupled. A child record can reference a parent record or exist independently without a parent reference. When a parent record is deleted, the related child records are not automatically deleted.
For example, if the Case object has a Lookup relationship with the Account object, Case records can exist with or without an associated Account record. If the related Account record is deleted, the Case records persist and are not removed.
Salesforce - Object Relationships Overview
Relationship Field
The Relationship Field is the field a child record uses to reference its parent record. It appears below each child object, with a line connecting it to its corresponding parent. In the screenshot below, the Customer Meetings object has two Relationship Fields.
CreatedById: Connects the Customer Meetings object to the User object in a Lookup relationship.
Account__c: Connects the Customer Meetings object to the Account object in a Master-Detail relationship.
Perserving Relationships
To preserve the link between parent and child records during migration, migrated child records must include the Relationship Field that connects them to their parent. This applies to both Master-Detail and Lookup relationships. To learn more about this, see the following article.
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