LMS Migration Checklist: Step-by-Step Guide

Migration Principles

1. Nothing gets left behind by accident — audit everything first, then decide what to migrate vs. archive vs. retire
2. Test with real data, not sample data — your SCORM packages, your user roles, your edge cases
3. Communicate early and often — learners handle change well when they know what's coming
4. Plan for rollback — keep the old LMS accessible (read-only) for at least 90 days
5. Assign a migration owner — one person accountable for the end-to-end process

Phase 1: Discovery & Audit (Weeks 1–2)

Content Audit

• ☐ Export complete course list from current LMS
• ☐ Categorize each: Active, Archived, Deprecated, or Redundant
• ☐ Record format: SCORM, xAPI, native, video, PDF, HTML
• ☐ Note which courses updated in past 12 months
• ☐ Identify external dependencies (embedded links, LTI connections)
• ☐ Flag courses to rebuild vs. migrate as-is
• ☐ Document content ownership per course

User Data & Compliance Records

• ☐ Export full user list with roles and permissions
• ☐ Document provisioning method (manual, SSO, SCIM, CSV)
• ☐ Export all historical completion and certificate records
• ☐ Identify regulatory retention requirements (e.g., OSHA = 3+ years)
• ☐ Confirm new LMS can import historical completions

Integration Inventory

• ☐ List all integrated systems (SSO, HRIS, CRM, video, notifications)
• ☐ Identify native vs. custom integrations on new LMS
• ☐ Get API credentials and documentation for each
• ☐ Determine priority order (SSO first, always)

Phase 2: Planning & Setup (Weeks 2–4)

• ☐ Define scope: what migrates, what's rebuilt, what's archived
• ☐ Assign roles (migration owner, content leads, IT lead, comms lead)
• ☐ Set up new LMS instance with branding and SSO
• ☐ Configure roles, permissions, and organizational structure
• ☐ Set up sandbox/test environment
• ☐ Test importing 2-3 sample courses (simplest + most complex)
• ☐ Map old URLs → new URLs for redirects

Phase 3: Content Migration & Testing (Weeks 4–8)

• ☐ Import all SCORM/xAPI packages
• ☐ Upload or recreate native content
• ☐ Set up learning paths, prerequisites, and enrollment rules
• ☐ Configure assessments, certificates, and badges
• ☐ Test every SCORM package: launches, tracks, completes
• ☐ Verify video playback (multiple browsers, mobile)
• ☐ Test all quiz types and certificate generation
• ☐ Import and verify historical completion records (100% check for regulated training)
• ☐ Check accessibility: screen reader, keyboard navigation, contrast

Phase 4: Integration Reconnection (Weeks 5–8)

• ☐ SSO / Identity Provider — configure, test with multiple user types
• ☐ HRIS — map fields, run initial sync, set up ongoing schedule
• ☐ Video Conferencing — test creating sessions, verify attendance tracking
• ☐ Communication Tools — configure Slack/Teams notifications
• ☐ CRM — map events to fields, test bidirectional data flow
• ☐ Automation — recreate Zapier/Make workflows with new triggers

Phase 5: Communication Plan (Start Week 3)

Phase 6: Cutover & Go-Live (Week 8–10)

• ☐ Go/no-go meeting with explicit stakeholder sign-off
• ☐ Set old LMS to read-only (don't delete)
• ☐ Activate new LMS, switch DNS for custom domain
• ☐ Enable URL redirects from old paths
• ☐ Send go-live announcement
• ☐ Monitor support channels actively for first 4-8 hours
• ☐ Verify SSO working (the #1 day-one blocker)
• ☐ Smoke test: complete a course end-to-end as test learner

Common Go-Live Issues

Users can't log in: SSO misconfiguration — check IdP metadata. SCORM stuck on "incomplete": API version mismatch — re-export from authoring tool. Emails going to spam: New sender domain not authenticated — configure SPF/DKIM/DMARC. Reports show wrong numbers: Timezone or date format mismatch.

Phase 7: Post-Migration (Weeks 10–12+)

• ☐ Monitor support volume and categories daily (first week)
• ☐ Review adoption metrics: login rates, course starts, completions
• ☐ Address top 5 issues with documentation or training
• ☐ Conduct migration retrospective
• ☐ Archive old LMS (after confirming all data preserved)
• ☐ Update onboarding docs, intranet links, vendor records
• ☐ Close old LMS contract (mind cancellation terms)
• ☐ Celebrate. Migrations are hard. Your team earned it.