3 Steps to Migrating from a Legacy CMS to Cascade Server

Making a commitment to a locally installed CMS is a substantial obligation for many organizations. Accordingly, if your CMS implementation and integration didn't go as you initially planned, it's important to note that many web content management systems allow for migration from a legacy CMS to a new one via exporting content as XML.

If your organizational legacy CMS is no longer of use and you're in search of a new one, not to worry. If your legacy CMS system allows for content to be exported as XML, it can easily be brought into Cascade Server. Exported XML files will contain every piece of data and content associated with your current site. A simple script can take the XML files and automatically import the content, metadata, and any other relevant information into Cascade Server using Hannon Hill's Web Services API.

1) Transform Templates from Legacy System into Cascade Server Template

This is a very simple process. Many CMS systems provide templates which utilize XHTML and a few application-specific tags. If this is the case, in order to transform the template for use with Cascade, essentially all that's required is to define the regions of the template where you intend to place reusable blocks of content (either statically or dynamically generated).  Because most templates use XHTML and the transformation process is fairly simple, it should take only a matter of minutes to turn a fully rendered page into a Cascade Server template.

2) Creation of Data Definitions for Relevant Pages

Cascade Server's notion of "Data Definitions" refers to structured forms and fields for entering content into a page. A data definition is a structured form interface capable of storing custom data values in a flexible and reusable XML format. Aside from use with site imports and migrations, Data Definitions are used by Cascade Server to generate form-based input fields for the creation and editing of page contet, as well as to generate XML data from the input provided by users in input fields.

3) Creation / Use of Data Import Script

After the templates and data definitions have been created, it's time to create the script that will take the XML files that have been exported from your legacy system and import the content, metadata, and system information into Cascade Server using our Web Services API. The content from your legacy system's XML is easily mapped to the different fields in the Cascade data definitions. The metadata fields from the legacy export are also mapped to the Cascade metadata fields. Some system information, such as folder location and system name will be mapped to their Cascade equivalents. Everything from your legacy system is able to be mapped into Cascade Server, leaving no pieces behind.

Creation of this import script is quite simple. Hannon Hill provides code/a script for data importing, available on the Cascade Knowledge Base. You will want to modify the script to fit your needs; for example, the script can be automatically expanded to automate the process of creating a few of the previously mentioned items, such as Data Definitions and a template. Overall, the entire process of exporting your XML files/content from your legacy system and importing this content into Cascade should be accomplished in just a few hours.