Help Desk Migration Key Terms
Some terms and definitions can feel a bit heavy-jargon. To keep things clear and easy to digest, we’ve gathered all the Help Desk Migration key terms in one place—complete with links to detailed guides in our knowledge base for a deeper dive.
Attachment
Attachment is any file or document that can be uploaded and linked to a support ticket or comment. It’s not considered a record and is automatically migrated along with the ticket it’s associated with.
Automatic mapping
Automatic mapping means fields with identical names on Source and Target are automatically mapped.
Content translation
Content translation means that different language versions (translations) of the same article use the same ID. If the versions have different IDs, the Migration Wizard won't import them.
Custom field
Custom field offers the flexibility to tailor your help desk to specific workflows. Depending on your Source/Target functionality, you can map drop-downs, checkboxes, multil-level, multi-select, text, numeric, date, regex, and formula.
Custom option
Custom option is a pre-built feature that helps to add tags, skip attachments, move inline images, call recordings, etc.
Customization
Customization is an additional service that requires development to adjust the migration flow and move data according to your specific requirements, i.e., custom mapping, filtering, adding additional fields, tags, or any other needs.
Data retention period
Data retention period is the length of time that data is stored by a service before it is archived and deleted. This length depends on the selected support plan. The time starts right after your first Full Migration is completed, with no other exceptions.
Default migration
Default migration is the process of transferring data using prebuilt migration functionality.
Default value
Default value allows you to fill in a required field in the Target with a standard value when the Source doesn’t have data for that field.
Delta migration
Delta migration is performed after the Full migration is complete. It allows you to migrate updated tickets and new ones created after the Full migration starts. If you continue using the Source during the Full migration and for a few days afterward, Delta migration ensures all new data is transferred to the Target. Once the delta migration is completed, work moves to the target. It's available only for Signature support plan customers and can't be tested separately.
Demo migration
Demo migration moves a random selection of 20 tickets and 20 knowledge base articles (if chosen) along with related data to your Target, completing in about five minutes. It is free and mirrors how the Full Data Migration works. You can re-run it as many times as needed.
Failed record
Failed record is in the Demo Migration usually lack essential data, such as contact information or inactive support agents. These records may not migrate properly, but you can download a Demo report to identify and address issues, or opt for the Signature support plan for help with migrating failed records.
Field mapping
Field mapping is the process of aligning the fields from the Source and Target systems during data migration to ensure the data is consistent and accurately transferred to the Target.
Groups matching
Groups matching is the process of mapping user groups from the Source to corresponding groups in the Target to ensure the tickets will migrate to the correct groups.
Inline image
Inline image is an image embedded directly within a ticket, email, or knowledge base article rather than as an attachment, ensuring it appears in context after migration. Inline images in knowledge base articles migrate by default, while ticket inline images can be migrated as attachments using a pre-built option.
Interval migration
Interval migration is a migration approach in which you can pause data migration during the workweek and resume on weekends or at other times that align with your business requirements.
Migration label
Migration label is a name you can add to your data migration project to distinguish them quickly.
Migration sharing
Migration sharing is a feature that allows adding other users to access and monitor the migration process, typically useful for teams collaborating on a migration project.
Record
Record refers to any entity or data object eligible for migration. There are two types: Help Desk Records (Agents, Groups, Contacts, Companies, Tickets, Service Requests, Changes, Problems) and Knowledge Base Records (Articles, Categories, Folders, Macros and Triggers (currently available for Zendesk and Gorgias)). Attachments, Comments, and Notes are not considered records. During Free Data Migration, we assess all records and estimate the Full Data Migration cost, detailing the total count by type.
Remigration
Remigration is the process of running a migration again, either to fix errors, update data, or migrate additional records missed in the initial data transfer.
Required field
Required field is a field that must be mapped and populated during migration to ensure data integrity and compliance with the Target’s requirements.
Rollback Demo
Rollback Demo is a feature that allows you to revert the Demo Migration, removing test records from the Target. Not all data can be deleted, as removing certain entities may lead to misadjustments in the future. Consequently, such records are preserved on your Target.
Skip this field option
Skip this field option leaves the target field blank in all migrated tickets. It doesn’t save any data—it's used when the source lacks a field, but the target has a newly created one that should remain empty.
Skipped record
Skipped record is a data entry that was intentionally or automatically left out of the migration due to mapping settings, errors, or compatibility issues.
Support plan
Support plan is a service package that defines the level of assistance customers receive during migration, including response times, troubleshooting, and additional migration options.
System field
System field is a predefined field in a help desk platform that holds essential system-generated data, such as ticket IDs, creation dates, or statuses, which may have restrictions on editing or mapping.