The eCommerce world is overwhelmed with a great variety of platforms that will suit every taste and budget. This fact has turned the solution switch into an ordinary online activity since merchants are in a constant search of a perfect e-cart with maximum functionality. An automated migration service aims at making the store transfer as smooth and straightforward as possible. To achieve that, users must follow some rules and recommendations. In today's post, we would like to explain how to preserve relations between the entities of your new store. Besides, you will find some useful tips on how to benefit from saving or breaking connections between database tables of an online shop.
At first, let's explain the notion of preserving relations between entities, including products, customers, orders, etc.
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Every online store has items that belong to some specific pages, sections, etc. For example, a single order has order details that are connected to the order ID, customer ID, product quantity, price, discount, etc. These simple connections create an entity-relationship diagram, that shows the business relations which apply to an organization's data.
Pros of Saving Relations Between Entities
In case you wish to save the logical structure of your store and preserve relations on a Target Cart, all the entities should be moved at once. The new order page will link to the new product pages, and customers will be able to view their orders without any modifications. Also, a store owner will have an opportunity to manage orders in a new store with no delays. However, if you've migrated products with customers at once, but orders were transferred separately, the relations will be lost.
Useful Tip. If your entities are transferred all-at-once, the relations between the data items will be preserved on a Target Store.
Pros of Breaking Relations Between Entities
Sometimes, there is no need to preserve connections between the store's data. The reasons for that are different: from launching a completely new online retailer with old customers to creating a new accounting system for a new store. As an example, a business owner may start a new store from scratch with entirely different products. That means there is no point in migrating products from the Source to the Target cart. But, at the same time, it is essential to transfer customers.
Moreover, breaking relations can help merchants save money since the price of a transfer is calculated in depending on the number of entities that you wish to move. Therefore, the fewer items you've selected - the less money you will need to pay.
Useful Tip. Using additional option called Preserve customer IDs on a Target Store can ease the post-migration store management.
To sum up, now you know how to manage the migration process and make it more budget-friendly. So, dispel all doubts that hold off your desirable switch to a new platform. Register now, and move your entities saving or breaking relations between them.
Monthly Update – September 2025
As we navigate September 2025, a key trend in eCommerce migration is the increasing emphasis on advanced data validation and pre-migration audits. With stores growing in complexity, ensuring data integrity across diverse entities like products, customers, and orders before the main transfer has become paramount. Many businesses are now leveraging specialized tools and services that perform deep analyses of source data, identifying inconsistencies or missing information that could disrupt relationships during migration.
Furthermore, cloud-to-cloud migration solutions are gaining traction, streamlining the transfer process by directly integrating with platforms and minimizing manual intervention. This approach significantly reduces the potential for human error and accelerates the overall migration timeline. These solutions often come with enhanced logging and reporting, providing clear insights into how entity relationships are maintained or transformed, which is crucial for post-migration SEO and customer experience. Proactive validation helps prevent broken links, mismatched product variants, or incomplete customer histories, ensuring a smooth transition to your new platform.
For more details, explore our FAQ section or schedule a call with a migration expert.
