Data Migration Manager Vs. Data Import Wizard

Simon Phillips, 27 April 2010

Task Import Data Wizard Data Migration Manager
Bring data into more than 50 Microsoft Dynamics CRM record types Yes (All users with appropriate permissions can import data.) Yes (Only the system administrator can migrate data.)
Bring data into custom record types and attributes Yes Yes
Use multiple source files that contain related data No (You can import only one file at a time.) Yes
Assign records to multiple users No (The wizard assigns all records to one user.) Yes
Update existing records Yes No
Detect duplicates Yes No (You can run duplicate detection after migrating the records.)
Delete all records associated with one job No Yes
Automatically map data based on column headings in source file Yes No
Map drop-down list values Yes No (To map list values, you must manually edit a data map.)
Set value of Created On attribute from source data No Yes
Customize Microsoft Dynamics CRM to match data No (Customization must be performed prior to import.) Yes (Data Migration Manager can create custom record types and attributes.)
Transform data No (You must use a one-to-one mapping of attributes.) Yes (Complex data transformations (Types of mappings used to modify data before migrating it. Transformations include concatenation, split, replace, substring, assignment, and date modifications. ) are possible.)

As you can see from the table above the import wizard can do a lot of things that the data migration manager cannot. But this is also true for the data migration manager, the data migration manager is exactly what the name says it is used for, it is to migrate all your data from your old system to CRM, where as the import wizard is to import small amounts of data into CRM like leads that you have acquired.

Below you will see a table of the pros/cons of both the Data Migration Manager and the Data Import Wizard

Data Migration Manager Data Import Wizard
Pros
  • Migrate more than one entity at the same time
  • able to import and export mapping files for future use
  • More convenient then data import
  • Easy three step process
  • Easy to use
  • Easy to create new data map
  • Rerich your data
Cons
  • Only the administrator can use this tool
  • Only assigns data to the user importing

Data migration manager:

Steps to start a new data migration

  • Name migration
  • Add csv file(s)
  • Verify delimiters
  • Will validate files
  • File mapping results
  • Map of CSV file to an entities
  • File summary
  • Map columns of files to attributes on each entity
  • Column summary
  • User summary
  • Review summaries
  • Start migrating data
  • Converting data
  • Migration complete

Data Import Wizard:

Steps for a new data import

  • Tools > import data…
  • Browse to the .csv file that has you data in it
  • Define the delimiters
  • Click Next >
  • Choose the record type the data is
  • Select the data map if one is already created or create a new one
    • If no data map exists click new
    • Give the data map a name
    • Select the record type
    • And give it a description (if you want)
    • Go to the attributes section on the left pane
    • Loan sample data (the same data you added at the start)
    • Match the field headings with the attributes on the right
    • Click save and close
  • Click Next >
  • Click Next >
  • Click Import, and you're done.

So as you can see there is a need for both the Data Migration Manager and the Data Import Wizard. But they have their own strengths and weaknesses, and both come in handy in different scenarios.

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