Move to another tracker with a reversible cutover
Preserve history, map fields and control duplicate periods before switching.
Move with a documented field mapping, an explicit cutover boundary and a verified historical archive. Keep the previous accepted workflow available until the new one reconciles.
Inventory what must survive the move
List contributors, project identities, record durations, assigned dates, review states, corrections and the reports the recipient needs. Decide which historical records must be imported and which can remain in an accessible archive. More imported history is not automatically better if the new system cannot preserve its meaning. Record unsupported fields rather than silently dropping them.
Map a small fictional fixture first
Include a leading-zero contributor ID, renamed project, manual correction, overnight interval and archived person. Write expected destination values before importing. Verify units, time-zone assumptions and state mapping. If the new tool cannot represent an old state, retain an explicit mapping or companion record; do not relabel every imported row approved merely to satisfy a required field.
Control the transition period
Choose which system owns entries before and after the boundary. If both run temporarily, define which record is authoritative for each purpose. Reconcile the first new batch against known input and confirm recipient acceptance. Keep a register of import attempts so a retry does not duplicate history. Do not close the old account while unresolved records still require its context.
Practice the rollback before the final switch
Confirm you can retrieve the old accepted batch and resume the prior process if a mandatory case fails. Record which new entries would need an authorized reverse handoff; rollback is not deletion of evidence. After acceptance, archive configuration notes, mappings and the final old export in the approved location. Remove access only through the organization’s deliberate offboarding process.
Continue this work-record check
Use the linked guide for the next decision in this workflow. Keep your original records separate from experiments and record any unresolved requirement before changing a live process.
Sources and boundaries
Primary documentation supports the dated product facts. Proposed checks and fictional examples are our editorial method, not observed product results.
- DeskTime — export · checked September 23, 2026
- Microsoft — import · checked September 23, 2026