Actinic to PrestaShop Migration - Step-by-Step Guide & Expert Services

Seamlessly Migrate Your E-commerce Store from Actinic to PrestaShop

Transitioning your online store to a new platform can be a complex undertaking, but with the right guidance, it can be a smooth and rewarding process. This comprehensive guide will walk you through every step of migrating your e-commerce store from Actinic to PrestaShop, ensuring your valuable data is transferred accurately and efficiently. PrestaShop, a robust and flexible open-source platform, offers extensive customization and scalability, making it an excellent choice for merchants looking to enhance their online presence.

Given that Actinic stores typically require data export into CSV files for migration to modern platforms, this guide will detail the process using CSV files as your source data for a successful transfer to PrestaShop.

Prerequisites for a Successful Migration

Before initiating your data transfer, it's crucial to prepare both your current Actinic store and your new PrestaShop environment. Proper preparation minimizes potential issues and ensures data integrity throughout the migration.

• Actinic (Source) Data Preparation: Since Actinic data isn't directly accessible via a connection bridge in most migration tools, you'll need to export your store's data into CSV files. Focus on exporting key entities such as products, product categories, manufacturers, customer records, orders, and reviews. Ensure your CSV files are well-organized and accurately reflect your store's information. For more details on this method, refer to our CSV.File Data Migration service.
• PrestaShop (Target) Installation: Install a fresh instance of PrestaShop on your desired hosting. While it's possible to migrate to an existing store, it's generally recommended to start with a clean installation. Ensure you have administrative access to your new PrestaShop store. Consider clearing any demo data that might be present in a fresh installation, an option often available during migration. For general preparation tips, read our How to prepare Target store for migration? guide.
• Access Credentials: You will need administrative access details for your PrestaShop store (Admin URL, login, and password). If you opt for manual bridge upload, FTP access to your PrestaShop store's root directory will also be essential. Understanding the The Short & Essential Guide to Access Credentials for Cart2Cart is beneficial.
• Backup Your Data: Always create a complete backup of your Actinic store's database and files before exporting any data. This safeguard ensures you have a recovery point if any unforeseen issues arise.

Performing the Migration: A Step-by-Step Guide

Follow these steps to migrate your e-commerce data from Actinic (via CSV) to PrestaShop.

Step 1: Start Your Migration

Begin by navigating to the migration wizard interface. This initial screen will guide you through the process of setting up your source and target stores.

Step 2: Connect Your Source Store (Actinic via CSV)

In the migration wizard, select "CSV File to Cart" as your source platform. You will then be prompted to upload the CSV files containing your Actinic store's data. These files will serve as the foundation for migrating your products, customer records, orders, and other essential entities.

The data entities typically supported via CSV include:

• Products
• Product Categories
• Product Manufacturers
• Product Reviews
• Customers
• Orders
• Invoices
• Taxes
• Stores
• Coupons
• CMS Pages
• Blogs & Blog Posts

Step 3: Connect Your Target Store (PrestaShop)

Next, select "PrestaShop" as your target platform. You will need to provide your PrestaShop Admin URL. To establish a secure connection, you have several options:

• Upload Connection Bridge: This highly recommended method involves downloading a `bridge2cart.zip` file, extracting its contents, and uploading the `bridge2cart` folder to the root directory of your PrestaShop store via FTP. This bridge acts as a secure data conduit. Refer to What is a root folder and where can I find it? for guidance.
• Install Add-on from Marketplace: Install the "Cart2Cart Universal PrestaShop Migration module" directly from the PrestaShop Marketplace via your Admin panel.
• Provide Admin Credentials: You can provide your PrestaShop admin login and password, allowing the migration tool to automatically install the necessary connection files.

Step 4: Select Data Entities for Migration

At this stage, you will choose which data entities you want to transfer from your Actinic CSV files to PrestaShop. The migration wizard typically presents a checklist of all supported entities. You can select "All entities" or individually pick specific items such as:

• Products
• Product Categories
• Product Manufacturers
• Product Reviews
• Customers
• Orders
• Invoices
• Taxes
• Stores
• Coupons
• CMS Pages
• Blogs & Blog Posts

Step 5: Configure Data Mapping

Data mapping is a crucial step to ensure consistency between your old Actinic data structure and your new PrestaShop store. You will match customer groups and order statuses from your source CSV files to their corresponding fields in PrestaShop. For example, you might map an Actinic customer group to a "Customer" role in PrestaShop, or an Actinic order status like "Pending" to PrestaShop's "Awaiting check payment" or "Payment accepted."

Step 6: Choose Additional Migration Options

This step allows you to customize your data transfer with various optional features. These options help preserve vital SEO rankings, maintain customer data, and streamline your new store's setup:

• Clear Target Store Data: The "Clear Target" option allows you to erase all existing data on your PrestaShop store before the migration, ensuring a clean slate. Learn more about Clear current data on Target store before migration option.
• Preserve Product, Order, and Customer IDs: Maintaining original IDs is vital for external integrations and record-keeping. Explore How Preserve IDs options can be used?.
• SEO URLs & 301 Redirects: These options are critical for preserving your SEO rankings and link equity. Implementing 301 redirects ensures that old Actinic URLs are automatically forwarded to their new PrestaShop counterparts, preventing broken links and maintaining search engine visibility.
• Password Migration: Migrate customer passwords securely, allowing your existing customer base to log into their new PrestaShop accounts without needing to reset their passwords.
• Migrate Invoices: Transfer invoice data to ensure complete historical records are available in your new PrestaShop store.
• Skip Custom Attributes: If you have custom attributes from Actinic that are not compatible or desired in PrestaShop, you can choose to skip their migration.
• Multi-Tax Allowed: PrestaShop supports multi-tax configurations, which can be configured during or after migration if your Actinic setup had complex tax rules.

Step 7: Perform Demo or Full Migration

It's highly recommended to perform a free demo migration first. This allows you to transfer a limited number of entities (e.g., 10 products, 10 customers, 10 orders) to your PrestaShop store, letting you verify data accuracy and functionality before committing to a full migration. Once satisfied with the demo results, you can proceed with the full data transfer.

During the full migration setup, you may also consider a Migration Insurance Service, which offers additional remigrations for a set period. Read How Migration Insurance works? to understand its benefits.

Post-Migration Steps

Once your data has been successfully transferred to PrestaShop, there are several crucial post-migration tasks to complete to ensure your new store is fully operational and optimized.

• Thorough Testing: Manually verify all migrated data. Check product listings (SKUs, variants, images, descriptions), product categories, customer accounts, order history, and reviews. Perform test purchases to ensure the checkout process, payment gateways, and shipping calculations are working correctly.
• Configure Store Settings: Adjust general store settings, shipping methods, payment gateways, and tax rules to match your business requirements.
• Install Theme and Modules: Install and configure your chosen PrestaShop theme. Reinstall any necessary modules or apps that provide functionalities from your previous Actinic store. Remember that "Cart2Cart Universal PrestaShop Migration module" is required for seamless operation.
• SEO Verification: Although 301 redirects preserve link equity, it's wise to review your new PrestaShop store's SEO. Check meta titles, descriptions, and canonical tags. Be aware of "SEO options excluded for blogs" as a limitation for PrestaShop, meaning blog SEO might require manual review and optimization post-migration.
• Update DNS: Once you are completely satisfied with your new PrestaShop store, update your domain's DNS settings to point to your new PrestaShop hosting. This will make your new store live to the public.
• Ongoing Monitoring: Continuously monitor your store for any issues or anomalies post-launch. Tools like Google Analytics and Google Search Console can help identify potential problems.
• Consider Additional Services: For any new orders or customer data accumulated on your Actinic store during the migration period, consider using a Recent Data Migration Service to transfer them. If you have unique requirements or encounter complex challenges, a Migration Customization Service can provide tailored solutions.

By following this detailed guide, your transition from Actinic to PrestaShop will be efficient and successful, allowing you to leverage PrestaShop's capabilities for your growing e-commerce business.