Making the Leap: Migrating from Web Help Desk to Service Desk
If you’ve been considering moving to SolarWinds® Service Desk and are currently using Web Help Desk but have hesitated because you don’t want to start from scratch, then I have great news for you. There are two options for importing data. The first is an import via CSV, which is great for specific, smaller data sets. But we’ve been hard at work developing a new tool to help migrate large data sets to a Service Desk instance, which I’ll share more information on here.
Plan and Prepare for Migration
Presuming you’ve done the work to ensure that moving to Service Desk is the right move for your business (don’t skip this step!), it’s now time to plan and prepare for migration. First, consider the quality of data in your Web Help Desk instance. As appealing as it is to keep everything—and I’m sure someone may have told you that’s what you need to do—it’s not always the best option. I’ve had this conversation with many stakeholders over the years regarding different types of tools, and it’s important to consider the use of that data in determining whether or not it’s important to keep and maintain the records. Are you going to get any useful information from them? Is there a need to maintain them for forensic evidence or troubleshooting? Questions like these can help you determine what you actually need to maintain and what may just add confusion for your service desk users.
There are many features in Service Desk that may appeal to your company as a reason to migrate off Web Help Desk, and several of them rely on quality data. For instance, features like related items and solutions in incidents rely on the accuracy and quality of other incidents. Consider cleaning up those things that will muddy the waters (and may already be!) before migrating your data.
Use the Migration Tool
Make sure you review and perform the prerequisites, especially backing up your database. Always complete a backup before making changes that may affect your system. You can choose to only migrate data for a specific time range, and it’s recommended that if you’re unsure if you’re ready to move to Service Desk, you migrate only one month’s worth of data in order to run your proof of concept. Take a bit of time with your actual data to really test out the different features and functionality that will be available.
Testing
Once you’ve accomplished your data migration, take the time to do QA testing before opening it up for power user testing. When you’re ready for your power user testing, ensure that you include a select group of individuals who are very familiar with the data and functionality from your Web Help Desk tool. They should be able to quickly identify any issues or inconsistencies. We also recommend you take this time to update any internal links or documentation to direct users and help desk personnel to the new tool information. We all want your end users to have the most seamless experience.
If any of this sounds good to you, check out the detailed documentation we’ve built around this migration tool. We’ll also provide a free on-demand migration demo, which offers advice, tips, and best practices for a smooth migration. Then, contact your account representative at SolarWinds to discuss this migration and get access to the tool. Happy migrating!