Many content management systems (CMS) exist today, but two of the most well-known are IBM P8 (FileNet) and SharePoint. While both are excellent for document management, they have distinct strengths and weaknesses. In corporate environments, businesses often need to migrate documents between these systems for various reasons.

Why Migrate?

Open Connections has facilitated migrations for a range of reasons, including:

• Technical Performance & Scalability: SharePoint can face challenges with bulk document loading, while IBM P8 handles thousands of daily document transfers on modest hardware. Additionally, IBM P8 supports high-concurrency environments, such as call centers.
• Business Transfers: Mergers and acquisitions often require migrating large document stores, such as pension records, insurance records and range of other documents between organisations.
• System Consolidation: Businesses may choose to store project-related files in SharePoint while keeping customer-related files centrally in IBM P8.

Regardless of the reason for migration or the direction of transfer, several challenges need to be addressed.

Key Migration Challenges

At first glance, IBM P8 and SharePoint offer similar functionality—both store electronic documents with metadata, implement security, and provide version control. However, key differences can complicate migration:

• Security: Both systems may integrate with corporate Active Directory, but their security models differ significantly. Migrating security settings from IBM P8 to SharePoint may require adjustments.
• Document & Folder Naming: Naming conventions differ between the two systems, requiring careful conversion during migration to ensure compliance.
• Metadata Mapping: Metadata structures differ in character sets, data types, and versioning. IBM P8 supports version-specific metadata, whereas SharePoint does not, necessitating adjustments during migration.
• Performance Considerations: Bulk migrations involving SharePoint can be affected by throttling and network limitations, impacting efficiency.

The Solution: Open Connections & Aspire Technologies

Open Connections, in partnership with Aspire Technologies, has developed a powerful migration tool that simplifies document transfers between SharePoint and IBM P8 in either direction. This tool addresses many of the challenges outlined above, offering:

• Automated Configuration & Mapping: Reads system configurations and prepares mappings for migration.
• Scheduled Background Processing: Allows migrations to run efficiently with configurable timing and performance settings.
• Web-Based Dashboard: Provides real-time monitoring and tracking of migration progress.

Organizations with in-house expertise can manage the migration independently, supported by a standard service package for setup and guidance. Alternatively, Open Connections offers consulting services, from advisory support to fully managed migrations.

Expanding to Other ECM Systems

Beyond SharePoint and IBM P8, Open Connections frequently facilitates one-off migrations for other enterprise content management (ECM) systems. Due to customer demand, additional systems are being integrated into our automated migration solution. If you require migration services for other platforms, contact us to discuss potential support options.

Get in Touch

Interested in migrating your document management system? Contact us today to discuss how we can help streamline your migration process.