Can You Keep Your Records When You Change Software?

Decide what you need to keep using

• Records needed for daily workCurrent customers, open jobs, upcoming appointments, stock records and outstanding balances.
• History needed for referenceCompleted jobs, old quotes and supporting documents that staff may need to look up later.

Some records need to be part of the new system because staff will keep updating them. Other information may only need a reliable place where it can be searched and read.

Ask the people using the records what they need to find. Someone answering a customer’s question may need the original quote and job notes, even if that job was completed years ago.

Agree what history to keep and for how long with the people responsible for those records. Do not treat replacing the software as a reason to discard information without reviewing it.

Ask what the old program can provide

An export is a copy of information that the program saves into a file. Ask the supplier which records can be exported, what format the files use and whether documents, photos, notes and older versions are included.

Request a sample early. A report you can read on screen may not contain everything the replacement needs, and a list of customers does not necessarily include their orders or account history.

If the program has no useful export, ask whether the supplier can provide another way to retrieve the records. Confirm any charges, access deadlines and help needed before relying on that option.

Keep the meaning and connections between records

Moving a list is only part of the job. An order needs to stay connected to the right customer, and its payments, documents and appointments need to belong to that same order.

Keep useful customer and job reference numbers where possible. Two customers can have the same name, and a single customer may have several addresses or open jobs.

Explain any abbreviations or statuses staff use. A label such as Complete might mean the work is finished, the invoice has been sent or the account has been paid. The replacement needs the intended meaning.

Agree how duplicates and missing information will be handled. Keep the original export unchanged and make corrections in a working copy so you can refer back to the source.

Try a small move and check it with staff

• Check the overall pictureCompare the number of records and important totals, allowing for any exclusions or combined duplicates you agreed on.
• Check individual examplesOpen a customer’s record and confirm the right jobs, dates, amounts, notes and documents are still connected.

Ask for a trial import before moving everything. Include ordinary records and examples with several addresses, a part payment, a changed appointment or an attached document.

Have someone who knows the work review the results. Check dates, decimal amounts and reference numbers, especially numbers that begin with a zero. Confirm that staff can search for a record and continue the next task.

A successful import message means the file was processed. The checks above tell you whether the information is useful and correct in the replacement.

Protect the copies and prove you can recover them

Moving records can create extra copies of customer and business information. Agree who needs access, how the files will be shared and where they will be stored securely.

Keep a protected backup before making changes. An export may help populate another program, while restoring the old system may require a different backup and the original software. Ask what is needed for each.

Test that the backup can actually be restored and that someone knows how to do it. The Canadian Centre for Cyber Security’s backup guidance explains why recovery checks and protected copies matter.

Plan for records that change before launch

Customers will place orders, staff will complete jobs and balances will change after the trial import. Decide how those later changes will reach the new system.

You might arrange a final export during a quiet period or use a planned process for bringing across changes. Name the person who will check that open work and important totals agree before staff begin.

If old information will remain in the original program for reference, confirm how long access will last and what it costs. Make sure the people who need that history can still find it after the switch.

Your next step

Ask for a sample export and choose a handful of records to follow into the replacement. Check one ordinary customer, one job still in progress and one record with documents or a change of plan. Use what you learn to agree on the full move.