A set of tools to deal with granular VSTS migrations

I am in the middle of a TFS to VSTS migration, and unfortunately I cannot use the TFS Database Import Service this time around. So I put together this list of tools to use for a granular migration, together with scenarios.

It is going to be mostly on the Work Item side to be fair - if you want to move code quickly look at the last post.

TFS Integration Platform

Yes, I start from the oldest of the bunch. While unsupported and fairly old, the Integration Platform still works decently given the chance. 

There are lots of limitations though: you are limited to the Client OM, and you need some tricks to make it work, like creating fake registry entry to make it believe you actually have Team Explorer 2012 (unless you install it, of course).

I reckon the Integration Platform these days works well with a limited scope migration. The pain here is that everything needs to be sorted manually and it gets sluggish after a while, for some reason.

TfsCmdlets

Say that you want to quickly work with Areas and Iterations, or that you want to script them. This is an example where the TfsCmdlets are extremely powerful. 

In my case, I am using them extensively to prepare empty target Team Projects. It is basic PowerShell, hence you can manipulate your objects as you like and they make your life extremely easy.

You don't migrate stuff with the TfsCmdlets, but it is a really invaluable tool for all the ancillary items around the migration itself.

VSTS Work Item Migrator

The Work Item Migrator is an open source project from Microsoft that leverages the REST API layer of TFS and VSTS.

It is more of a sample of how to deal with the APIs IMHO, but it is an excellent starting point. It is based off a Work Item Query as a source, which means you can easily scope what you want. Areas and Iterations need to be created beforehand.

One note here: if the validation succeeds, it is not guaranteed that the tool will migrate everything, but that depends on many factors.

VSTS Sync Migrator

Martin Hinshelwood's VSTS Sync Migrator is a real powerhouse - it is quite complex and it has lots of features (including reconnecting commits to Work Items), it can take a little while to refine the result but it is great.

You can also do remaps with this tool, so you can easily migrate from one Process Template to another. It is easy to do because you will configure it yourself in the configuration file. What I really like about this tool is that I can have a very complex configuration but keep some of the steps in a disabled state - so I can have a nice incremental experience.

I want to move my project from TFVC on TFS to Git on VSTS, without command-line tools. Can I do it?

Many often do not realise how easy is to consume technology to make it accomplish a certain scenario. This happened just last week to me.

For example: you have a project on a Team Foundation Server, which uses TFVC. TFS is only available via the corporate LAN, while you want to move it to the new company’s VSTS account and you also want to move to Git. Throwing an extra spanner in the works, you want something easy to use which does not require any kind of command-line use.

Does it sound too complicated? It is actually a matter of a couple of clicks.

The first step is to use the Import Repository feature on your local TFS – what you will do is to convert a branch from TFVC ($/MyProject/main for example) to a new Git repository:

You can retain as much as 180 days of history, which is more than enough IMHO. If you need more, you can keep the old system around and look it out there. Why? Because of how TFVC and Git differ – it would not really make sense, and you are just adding stuff to a repository that should be as nimble as possible. Also, you are limited to 1GB per imported branch.

Once you are happy with it you can add your VSTS target repository as a remote, and push it there. Job done.

Review – Accelerate

As you know, I am not only a technology enthusiast but also very into the business side of DevOps. And as a fan of The Phoenix Project, I really could not refrain from purchasing it 😊 

Also, the focus is on High Performing Technology Organisations (HPTO from now on), which is a very broad subject intertwining technology, management, strategy. Enough to keep me interested.

I read it twice before writing this review. Yes, twice. And the conclusion is very simple: it carries a huge horizontal value. This book is not the typical technical or business book, its approach is more scientific, almost academic.

A real HPTO is a well-oiled machine that requires lots of work all across the board. And that is where it shines for business value: despite this approach, the result is that each chapter can be picked by any company as a project on its own to improve itself and go towards the required maturity to ‘be’ an HPTO.

Technical best practices? Chapter four. Infosec and the shift left on security? Chapter six. Employee empowerment through management? Chapter nine. Each chapter has enough stuff to keep you, your teams and your companies busy for months, if you actually start a project on it. And given that I do not think every reader of this book works in a HPTO, you definitely should start some projects 😊

Summarising it in a single sentence, the issue at heart is that software is the actual business engine. That is what the book underlines as well - without a good software factory you simply cannot deliver value to your users, and if you don’t deliver value…