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Store, protect and care for digital records >Migrate digital records
Migrate digital records
Migration is a commonly used approach for preserving digital records and refreshing storage
media.

You may need to migrate records if you are replacing or decommissioning a recordkeeping or
business system.

The main types of migration are system migration, version migration, and format migration.

Repeated migrations can compromise the integrity, reliability, usability and authenticity of
records, particularly those that are required to be retained for long periods of time. Minimise the
need for record migrations by:

having a good understanding of ICT infrastructure

knowing the value of your records
understanding how applications are used or will be used before procurement and
implementation
choosing appropriate record format(s) that take into account the retention periods and the
record types.

Regardless of the type of migration, records must continue to be complete and reliable records
during and after the migration, and the source records must be lawfully destroyed. You will need
to work with your agency’s IT team to ensure the migration is successful.

Find out how to plan for and manage records during a system migration.

Note: The following information is mainly for a system migration, but can be used to plan for and
manage both version and format migrations.

Note: See dispose of source records for information on disposing of the digital source records
after migration.

1. Risk to records
During the migration process, there is an increased risk of records (or parts of) being lost or
corrupted, and their integrity and authenticity being compromised.

Careful planning and rigorous testing will help reduce risks and ensure that records are authentic
and accessible in the new system.

2. Plan for migration

Consider and include recordkeeping obligations, risks, standards and activities when planning for
a migration.

The migration should not be irreversible. Establish and test a roll-back strategy in case problems
arise. This allows records to remain protected and business processes can be resumed with the old
system until another migration is attempted

3. Perform the migration

The migration should be performed by the IT team wherever possible.

Minimise the amount of time and intervention required during a migration. This will help maintain
an unbroken chain of custody for any records and ensure their authenticity and reliability.

4. Post-migration
Test the migration
You will need to carry out the same checks post-migration (in the live system) as you did pre-
migration in the test environment.

Check records and ensure quality

5. Document the migration

Metadata about the migration, including the date, must be captured to provide evidence of the
migration.

You need to document and get sign-off for the migration process, including nal sign-off at the
end to con rm the process was successful, reliable, and produced accurate and authentic records.
Sign off will depend on your agency’s requirements this may need to be done by your CEO

Last updated: 10 February 2020

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 Source records disposal

See the source records disposal guideline for information on the disposal of digital source records after they've
been migrated.

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