Cloud migration methods for Jira

Depending on your needs, you may need to use one or more of the following methods to migrate to Jira Cloud. Read Choose a Cloud migration method for advice on how to choose the migration method that meets your needs.

Jira Cloud Migration Assistant (recommended)

Prevent migration failure by upgrading to Jira Cloud Migration Assistant 1.7.3 or higher

We are ending support for all older versions of Jira Cloud Migration Assistant.

You won’t be able to use the following versions:

Jira Cloud Migration Assistant 1.7.1 and lower

We are improving our migration tooling and expanding their existing capabilities. For a smoother and more stable migration experience, we recommend upgrading to the latest version of Jira Cloud Migration assistant within six weeks of it release.

Learn more about this announcement and how to upgrade.

For any further details or technical concerns, contact us.

The Jira Cloud Migration Assistant is a free Atlassian app that can be installed on your Jira Server or Data Center instance. The migration assistant is the easiest and most reliable way to move from Server or Data Center to Jira Cloud.

Use this method to migrate:

some projects to Cloud
everything to a new Cloud site
to a new or existing Cloud site
your data all at once or in phases

Learn more about what's migrated with the Jira Cloud Migration Assistant

Benefits	Limitations
Assess and migrate your apps The assistant will not overwrite existing data in your Cloud site Choose what projects you want to migrate Choose to migrate only users and groups. You can also migrate users managed by external directories. Choose to migrate only users related to the projects you want to migrate Migrate Jira Service Management customer accounts Migrate Advanced Roadmaps Be guided through the migration with an easy-to-use interface Identify any problems with your data before you migrate Migrate in phases if needed Download pre- and post-migration reports	You need to be on a supported self-managed version of Jira

Benefits

Limitations

Assess and migrate your apps
The assistant will not overwrite existing data in your Cloud site
Choose what projects you want to migrate
Choose to migrate only users and groups. You can also migrate users managed by external directories.
Choose to migrate only users related to the projects you want to migrate
Migrate Jira Service Management customer accounts
Migrate Advanced Roadmaps
Be guided through the migration with an easy-to-use interface
Identify any problems with your data before you migrate
Migrate in phases if needed
Download pre- and post-migration reports

You need to be on a supported self-managed version of Jira

Jira Cloud Site Import

Site Import for server-to-cloud migrations will be discontinued

In November 2023, we’ll discontinue Site Import for server-to-cloud migrations.

We recommend that all customers use the Jira Cloud Migration Assistant. The Migration Assistant includes options to migrate project-by-project or migrate all data at once.

The new option to migrate all data at once will migrate the same data types as Site Import with a more seamless experience and higher reliability. Learn about the Migration Assistant

We've already discontinued server-to-cloud migrations using Site Import if you’re looking to migrate 1-1000 users. If you’re looking to migrate more than 1000 users, Site Import will be available until it is discontinued in November 2023.

To view the number of licensed Jira Server or Data Center users, see the Viewing your licensed user count section on the Licensing your Jira applications page. For more information on this announcement, read our community post.

For any technical concerns with these changes, contact us.

Using Jira Site Import to migrate from Server to Cloud involves using a Jira Server or Cloud XML backup to import everything from one site into Cloud. This method will overwrite any existing data in your Cloud site, so is only recommended when you’re moving to a new Cloud site.

Learn how to use Jira Site Import

Benefits	Limitations
Migrate Advanced Roadmaps	App data won’t be migrated The migration will overwrite any existing data in your Cloud site (except users and groups) You may need to import users separately Users from external directories won’t be migrated You need to be on a supported self-managed version of Jira You can’t choose what you do and don’t want to migrate (for example, selecting specific projects to migrate) Attachments need to be split into 2-5 GB chunks to avoid timeout errors This method is all or nothing, so large amounts of data can result in longer downtimes

Benefits

Limitations

Migrate Advanced Roadmaps

App data won’t be migrated
The migration will overwrite any existing data in your Cloud site (except users and groups)
You may need to import users separately
Users from external directories won’t be migrated
You need to be on a supported self-managed version of Jira
You can’t choose what you do and don’t want to migrate (for example, selecting specific projects to migrate)
Attachments need to be split into 2-5 GB chunks to avoid timeout errors
This method is all or nothing, so large amounts of data can result in longer downtimes

Jira Cloud CSV import

This isn’t a recommended migration method due to its limitations. Only use it when Jira Cloud Migration Assistant or Jira Site Import are not options for your needs.

This method allows you to import issues from Jira Server or Cloud into a Cloud site. Learn more about using CSV import

Merge in Jira Server

If you manage multiple Server or Data Center instances, merging them might be a prerequisite step to your migration to Cloud. However, you may be able to skip this step depending on which migration method you choose. For example, if you’re using the Jira Cloud Migration Assistant, you don’t need to consolidate Server instances before importing issues to Cloud.

Learn more about merging instances in Jira Server

Use this method when you need to:

merge multiple Jira Cloud sites
merge multiple Jira Server instances
import only specific projects from one Cloud site to another

Benefits	Limitations
Jira Service Management (formerly Jira Service Desk) can be migrated	Apps and app data won’t be migrated. This means you'll need to reinstall apps, and you’ll lose data from apps that were installed in the source site. Learn more about assessing apps Users won’t be migrated. Learn about options for user migration Knowledge of how to install and set up a server application is required Merging sites usually takes time to complete, especially for large sites

More information and support

We have a number of channels available to help you with your migration.

For migration planning information, visit the Atlassian Migration Program website.
For technical issues or support with strategy and best practices, get in touch with our support team.
For peer advice, ask the Atlassian Community.
For expert guidance, work with an Atlassian Partner.
For more help, check out the Cloud migration guide or register for our Cloud migration demos with live chat Q&A.

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