Data migration is the transfer of data between different storage systems, formats, or computing environments. At 3-GIS, data migration refers generally to the movement of data from a customer’s existing system into the 3-GIS system. During a data migration, it may be necessary to engage in some data conversion activities (or the change of data from one form to another).
Data is not lost during migration activities but generally not modified either. Some circumstances require conversion work either to the geometry or attribution of the existing data to successfully transition from a legacy system into 3-GIS.
From other management systems to diverse file formats, 3-GIS has successfully transformed and streamlined data from a variety of sources.
Data migration at 3-GIS follows an iterative approach to ensure accuracy and efficiency. The process is scripted and designed for repeatability. After each run, we provide data outputs and fallout reports to the customer for review. Their feedback is then used to refine the process in subsequent iterations, leading to a final production run.
Each data migration project begins with a data model workshop. This collaborative session involves key stakeholders from the customer’s team—those with in-depth knowledge of the dataset, including its features, attributes, relationships, and network design—working alongside 3-GIS data specialists. During the workshop, the team identifies the features and tables to be migrated and maps them to their destinations in the 3-GIS database schema. A detailed, field-by-field mapping is created, serving as the blueprint for the migration process. This workshop also provides an opportunity for the customer to request modifications to domains and subtype values to ensure the accurate migration of the data.
The completion of the data model workshop marks the beginning of the data migration process, which progresses through a defined number of iterations. In the first iteration, a data engineer evaluates the best methods and tools for successfully migrating the source data into the 3-GIS database. They then script and automate the migration process. The timeline for processing each iteration, delivering results to the customer, and allowing time for customer review is outlined in the project scope.
Each data delivery during the migration process includes detailed reporting on any exceptions or fallouts encountered. 3-GIS provides clear exception reports to guide the customer during the review period, identifying any features or records that could not be migrated and explaining the reasons why. This collaborative review process relies on customer feedback to refine and improve the migration during each subsequent iteration.
At the beginning and end of each review period, 3-GIS meets with the customer to ensure a smooth and effective review process. The initial meeting focuses on guiding the customer through the exception report and providing general instructions on how to review the data. The follow-up session at the end of the review period allows the customer to share any issues discovered during their review directly with the 3-GIS data team. These issues are documented and addressed in subsequent iterations.
This iterative approach enables customers to resolve fallout and exceptions between runs, working toward the goal of migrating as close to 100% of features and connectivity as possible. At the same time, it allows 3-GIS to continually refine the scripted migration process for greater efficiency and accuracy, addressing any issues identified in previous deliveries. For customers integrating 3-GIS with other systems, confirming that data is delivered as expected and properly mapped is especially critical. A "one and done" approach is not effective for these types of activities.
At the end of the scoped migration iterations, 3-GIS and the customer will schedule the production run, marking the final step in moving the customer’s data into 3-GIS. A final extract of data from the customer’s existing system will be processed using the refined migration process developed during the earlier iterations. Once the data is successfully loaded into the 3-GIS database, all production work will transition exclusively to the 3-GIS system.
While we can work with almost any file format, these are the most common formats we receive:
