SharePoint Migration Test Plan To Choose the Right Tool

Is your organization expecting to execute a SharePoint Online migration? Get prepared to experience a smooth data transition from any cloud to SharePoint Online through strategic testing of the migration tool.

Run a Proof Of Concept (POC) of the migration tool to explore its technical capabilities and check if it can meet your business goals.

Read on to know what factors to consider in a SharePoint migration test plan during a POC execution.

User-Friendly Interface

However powerful the SharePoint Migration Tool might be, it does not fit the bill when it has a complicated User Interface (UI). It is one of the initial red flags in choosing a migration tool that deters the organization from using it.

Choose a SharePoint migration tool that has seamless and clear user navigation.

Scalability

A critical factor to consider in a Sharepoint migration test plan is the tool’s ability to scale automatically based on the business requirement. It must be able to handle the sudden surge in data volume as well as cases with fewer files to process.

Compatibility

The migration tool must be compatible with various cloud platforms and different versions of SharePoint Online. This ensures there are no technical glitches during the migration from another cloud (Box, Dropbox, Google Drive, etc.) to SharePoint Online or from one SharePoint Online tenant to another.

Source Audit & Pre-Provisioning Destination

As an essential part of the SharePoint migration test plan, you must execute a list of pre-migration tests. It includes thoroughly analyzing the source environment to study the data type, volume, data dependencies, and the file features to migrate.

If it is a SharePoint Online tenant-to-tenant migration, review the existing source tenant for the following components:

• Sites
• Site collections
• Workflows
• Groups
• Libraries
• Customizations
• Configuration settings

Once you examine the source environment, pre-provision the destination environment by creating the necessary SharePoint accounts. Also, replicate its settings as available in the source before you proceed with the data transfer.

Real-time Migration Reports

When preparing a SharePoint migration test plan, check whether the tool can generate detailed migration reports. It helps identify errors or any discrepancies and enables your team to address them as early as possible.

Incremental Migration

A straightforward migration transfers data from the source to the destination environment. However, some latest data changes might occur during or after the initial migration.

In order to reflect the most recent data changes, test whether your shortlisted SharePoint migration tool is capable of performing an incremental migration.

Complex Migration Scenarios

During a SharePoint migration test plan, you must ensure that the migration tool can easily handle complex migration scenarios. For example, the tool must overcome the limitations of migrating to SharePoint Online, including:

• Unsupported special characters in SharePoint file/folder names
• Unrecognized file/folder names
• Long file paths

Test the tool during a POC migration to find how it resolves these issues for a seamless data transfer.

Retry Mechanism

During cloud-to-cloud data migration, there is a high risk of migration roadblocks like API throttling errors. It occurs when exceeding time-based API usage limits. When testing a SharePoint Online migration tool, your internal IT team must check how it overcomes this issue.

Verify if it has a retry mechanism after a specific wait time to resume the migration without disruptions. This capability ensures the migration is resilient and can overcome the complexities that you encounter.

High Security

You cannot have data security as an afterthought during critical business migrations. None of the cutting-edge technologies score when the migration tool compromises security.

Go for a migration tool that applies high-end security protocols and complies with data security regulations. Test sample data in a POC migration to confirm its claims regarding the safety measures.

CloudFuze X-Change, a leading data migration tool, is a perfect match that meets all the above-discussed factors in a SharePoint migration test plan.

Unlock its full potential through a POC migration and get set for a secure, fast, and reliable data transfer to SharePoint Online.

Contact our data migration experts for more information.