Migration Automation

Build bespoke SharePoint migrations using visual workflows, data and your business rules.

SMART Migration Automation supports file migration to, from and between SharePoint environments. Combine file operations, data transformation and loops to select, restructure, enrich and distribute content, with tracing and BI reporting for each file.

Scope: IDE-Based SharePoint Automation

This article describes custom automation workflows configured through SMART Migration IDE for SharePoint projects. FileCopy, DataETL and ForEach are building blocks for these workflows.

The Nextcloud App workflow uses the native Nextcloud App to manage migration jobs, progress and results, together with a connected SMART Migration Server to execute the work. The custom workflow steps described here should not be read as mandatory steps for an App-based Nextcloud migration.

For the Nextcloud workflow and its requirements, see SMART Migration for Nextcloud.

FileCopy

Perform file-copy operations within the migration workflow, using the source and destination information defined for the project.

DataETL

Extract, transform and prepare the datasets that drive file selection, metadata mapping and destination assignment.

ForEach

Repeat a sequence of processing steps for each entry in a dataset, applying the relevant rules and values.

Reduce Complex and Error-Prone Scripting

Build migration workflows using configurable building blocks instead of writing separate scripts for each processing step. Connect file operations, metadata transformation and loops in a visual flow that follows your project requirements.

Use the built-in operations to restructure and enrich content and distribute files across SharePoint sites and libraries. PowerShell is an optional extension for projects that require additional custom logic.

Let Your Data Drive the Migration

A migration does not have to follow the existing folder structure. Use source data and business rules to determine which files to process, which metadata to apply and where each file should go.

DataETL prepares the datasets needed to connect files with metadata and target locations. This supports data-driven distribution across SharePoint sites and libraries, together with content restructuring and enrichment.

Workflow data sources: SQL Server, ODBC-connected sources, Excel, CSV, XML, file shares and SharePoint.

These sources supply data for file selection, metadata mapping, transformation and destination assignment. This is not a list of supported file-source systems for Nextcloud migration; those are described in the Nextcloud documentation.

The Workflow, Step by Step

Prepare the migration data
Use source datasets to define the files, metadata and destination information needed for the migration.
Apply your rules
Use DataETL to transform values, enrich metadata and prepare the datasets that determine file distribution.
Process the files
Combine FileCopy and ForEach operations to process files according to the configured workflow. Optionally include PowerShell for additional project-specific logic.
Review and document the results
Use file-level tracing and BI reporting to review processing results, investigate errors and document the migration outcome.

Built for Bespoke SharePoint Projects

High-volume projects: Build workflows for migrations involving large numbers of files and associated metadata.
Migration and data integration: Combine file processing with external data to address complex project requirements.
Content restructuring and enrichment: Transform metadata and distribute files to the appropriate SharePoint sites and libraries according to your rules.
Version history for SharePoint destinations: Include major and minor versions, or assemble multiple source files as versions of a single SharePoint document library item. With Enterprise+, the versions can be built from a data set: rows in a For-Each data set that share a document key become one document, in the order of their version column — three rows become versions 1, 2 and 3, each with its own file and metadata (name, created, modified, modified by), the last row the current version. Made for custom and legacy document management systems, where the files are kept apart from the data that describes them. This applies to SharePoint destinations only (License matrix).
File-level reporting: Use BI tracking and reporting to review the processing of each file.

Extend Workflows with PowerShell

Optional custom logic within the same automation flow

When a project requires proprietary logic or additional processing, call or embed PowerShell within the IDE-based migration workflow.

Pass input and output parameters between PowerShell and the workflow. Use try/catch control, exception reporting and error tracking to handle custom processing.

PowerShell is an optional extension for custom automation. It is not a prerequisite for running the Nextcloud App migration workflow.

See also