WMUK wiki migration/strategy

This is technical migration proposal for WMUK wiki. most of this text focus on the user account migration, which is the main challenge.

Approach

The migration of the wiki could be done like following:

• Setup a Mediawiki instance similar to current one
• Migrate the data from the XML/SQL dump
• Keep data up2date (until the final switch) with a synchronisation script
• Invite users to reconfigure their account

Problem

Assuming that the WMF won't share any information about the users, the biggest problem is how to make this migration feels smooth for our users (in particular regarding their passwords). Have a look to the stats to know more about the wiki users.

Solution

• Recreate all users on the wiki with new random generated passwords
• Email the new passwords to all emailable users and invite them to login to the new instance and change their password.
• Users not emailable should be invited to add their email into the old

wiki instance, we would then send them the new account password per email (cronjob or on demand)

• The old WMUK instance should be put in readonly (except USER_TALK) and be kept available at least X months (one year?) under a special domain name like wmukold.wikimedia.org for example.

Schedule

J-3: Create uknew.wikimedia.org DNS entry J-3: Create the new WMUK Mediawiki instance J-2: Migrate the data, create and activate a script to keep data synchronized J-1: Put the old wiki in readonly (except user pages) and but a global notice J-1: Activate an email address where users can write to regarding this migration. Communicate about the migration J-1: Write an email to all emailable users with their new password J-1: Write a message to the talk page to all non-emailable users inviting them to follow the procedure to get a new password on the new wiki J: Switch the DNS, make old wiki available under a custom name J+10: Write a last email to emailable users who don't have updated J+30: Write a message on the old wiki on all emailable people who still don't have updated (message similar to the noemail people). J+365: Shutdown the old wiki. No way anymore to migrated automatically a user.

So, everything could be done within a month and would need IOM ~10 days of work.

Development work

• Write a script to keep data synchronized between the two wikis
• Write a script which will send invitation to login the new wiki to (newly) emailable users.

Stats

• 2674 registered users
• 809 have edits
• 2175 are global users
• 1772 are emailable (179 with at least 1 edit, 81 with at least 2)

See also

• IT Development/Progress meetings/18 April 2013/WMUK Migration Report