Umbraco Version Migrations
Stranded on Umbraco 7 or 8? That is a fixed-scope engagement with a known ending.
Moving from Umbraco 7 or 8 to a current version is not an upgrade. It is a rewrite.
The backend moves from .NET Framework to .NET Core. Every legacy property editor has to be replaced against a new API. The content tree has to migrate without losing history. Templates and document types need rebuilding. There is no in-place upgrade path, which is why many organizations are still running an unsupported version.
I have done this migration on a public system with real availability and accessibility requirements.
Minnesota Secretary of State
I led the full migration of Minnesota's official state website from Umbraco 7 to Umbraco 14, and from .NET Framework to .NET Core. Modernized for security, performance and long-term maintainability, on a public system with real availability requirements and accessibility obligations.
What a Migration Engagement Covers
- Assessment first. An honest inventory of what migrates cleanly, what has to be rebuilt and what should be dropped. This is where the real scope gets set, and it is worth doing as its own small engagement.
- Content migration. Document types, templates, media and the full content tree, with version history preserved where the platform allows it.
- Backend rewrite. .NET Framework to .NET Core, including custom controllers, surface controllers, services and scheduled tasks.
- Property editor replacement. Legacy grid, macro and custom editors rebuilt against the current Umbraco API, including the block-based editors that replaced the old grid.
- Integration rework. Search, forms, authentication and whatever third-party packages have no modern equivalent and need replacing.
- Accessibility. WCAG and Section 508 conformance, which usually needs attention anyway on a site this old.
- Cutover planning. Sequencing, a rollback plan, URL and redirect preservation so you do not lose search rankings, and a launch that does not take the site down.
For Agencies
If you are an agency with legacy Umbraco clients, I work white-label. You keep the relationship and the account. I do the migration under your name and hand back a site your team can maintain on a current version.
The client stays yours.
Other Umbraco Work
Migrations are the specialty, but not the only thing I do on the platform.
- New Umbraco builds, architecture and information design
- Custom property editors, dashboards and backoffice extensions
- Headless and Content Delivery API implementations
- Azure hosting, deployment pipelines and environment setup
- Performance tuning, caching and search
- Ongoing maintenance through a care plan
Recent Umbraco Projects
Minnesota Secretary of State. Umbraco 7 to 14, .NET Framework to .NET Core.
SRTR.org. Full site overhaul on Umbraco for a federal transplant registry.
Minnesota Office of the State Auditor. Legacy CMS to Umbraco, with custom document management.
Still running Umbraco 7 or 8?
Tell me what version you are on and what has been customized. I can usually describe the shape of the migration in one conversation.
Get a Migration Assessment