Magnolia CMS to Caisy Migration

MIGRATION OVERVIEW

Why teams migrate from Magnolia CMS to Caisy

The core problem

Migrating from Magnolia CMS to Caisy requires a fully custom ETL pipeline — there is no native export-import pathway between the two systems. Magnolia stores content in a hierarchical Java Content Repository (JCR) as nested mgnl:page, mgnl:area, and mgnl:component nodes, while Caisy operates on a flat model of documents and components defined by blueprints with no concept of pages, areas, or template-driven rendering. The content model must be completely redesigned in Caisy before any data moves, requiring deliberate mapping of Magnolia page types to Caisy document blueprints and area structures to connection fields. Custom work includes building extraction scripts against Magnolia's REST Delivery API v2 or JCR export tools, flattening node trees, converting CKEditor HTML to Caisy's ProseMirror-compatible JSON AST, re-mapping JCR UUIDs to new Caisy document references, and uploading assets via the tus.io protocol.

Why this matters for your migration

KEY CHALLENGES

What makes this migration complex

These are the architectural mismatches and technical hurdles specific to a Magnolia CMS to Caisy migration.

Most Critical

Hierarchical to Flat Model Restructuring

Magnolia's page → area → component node tree has no 1:1 equivalent in Caisy, requiring complete content model redesign into flat blueprints with connection fields before any data can be imported.

Blocks all downstream imports if mapped wrong

No Native Migration Pathway

There is no built-in export-import tool between Magnolia and Caisy, so teams must build a custom ETL pipeline to extract, transform, and load content programmatically.

Rich Text AST Conversion

Magnolia stores rich text as raw CKEditor HTML strings, which must be parsed and converted to Caisy's ProseMirror-compatible JSON Abstract Syntax Tree format during transformation.

Cross-Reference UUID Remapping

Internal Magnolia JCR UUIDs used for cross-workspace references (e.g., page-to-asset, component-to-component) must be resolved and remapped to new Caisy document IDs in a two-pass import process.

Blueprint API Name Freezing

Caisy generates GraphQL operations from blueprint API names, so all blueprint and field names must be finalized before production data import to avoid breaking frontend queries after migration.

Locale and i18n Model Mismatch

Magnolia stores localized content as locale-specific properties on the same JCR node, whereas Caisy uses per-locale document variants, requiring locale data to be split and restructured during extraction.

MIGRATION RISK ASSESSMENT

Every migration risk, already solved

Migration between platforms is full of edge cases. Our engineers have identified every risk from Magnolia CMS to Caisy and built proven solutions for each one.

High complexity

Page Nodes (mgnl:page)

Page nodes carry template bindings, hierarchical URL paths, and nested area/component children that must all be flattened and restructured into Caisy document blueprints with no direct equivalent.

Solved
Area Nodes (mgnl:area)

Magnolia area nodes (single, list, noComponent types) have no Caisy equivalent and must each be modeled individually as singleton fields, repeatable connection fields, or omitted if purely structural.

Solved
Rich Text Fields

CKEditor HTML stored in Magnolia richText properties must be fully parsed and converted to ProseMirror-compatible JSON AST, a lossy process for complex or non-standard HTML markup.

Solved
Cross-Workspace References

JCR UUIDs referencing nodes across workspaces (e.g., page-to-asset, content-type-to-content-type) are invalidated in Caisy and require a two-pass import to resolve and remap all relationships.

Solved

Custom engineering

Component Nodes (mgnl:component)

Components can be mapped to Caisy component blueprints, but inherited components from parent pages require explicit redesign since Caisy does not support Magnolia-style area inheritance.

Handled
DAM Assets (mgnl:asset)

Asset metadata and binaries must be extracted separately — the Delivery API returns links rather than inline binaries — and re-uploaded to Caisy via the tus.io protocol with reference remapping.

Handled
Localized Content Variants

Locale-specific property values on Magnolia nodes must be extracted per locale and restructured into separate Caisy per-locale document variants, risking data loss if locale fallback behavior is not explicitly handled.

Handled
Custom Content Type Workspaces

Each custom Magnolia content type workspace requires its own Delivery API endpoint configuration and a corresponding Caisy blueprint, multiplying the extraction and mapping effort per content type.

Handled
URL Structure and Redirects

Magnolia derives page URLs from node names and hierarchy positions, and this path history must be captured in the migration dataset and managed externally in Caisy since there is no equivalent hierarchical URL system.

Handled

Clean transfer

Scheduled Publication States

Caisy supports scheduling, but there is no automated transfer of Magnolia's scheduled publication states, requiring manual identification and re-scheduling of time-sensitive content after migration.

Clean

What Our Customers Say

Real migration stories

Direct Review

“One of the easiest migrations I've ever been through. The team took care of everything — all our data, customer interactions and macros. The process was clear, straightforward and we felt supported all the way. An absolutely seamless experience for our support team and our customers.”

Direct Review

“Fantastic at both guiding us through the process and helping us fix things as they come up and dial them in.”

Reviewed on G2

“The ease of the process and that ClonePartner was informing me what was going on at every step. If you're on the fence, do it. ClonePartner are great!”

Direct Review

“They were SO helpful. We had a few hiccups because our migration was in the middle of the process, but they were really flexible and did multiple delta migrations for us. We were able to map a lot of our old ticket data so it's usable for comparisons in the future.”

Direct Review

“Overall a great experience. We had to go back a few times to get everything just right, which was totally expected. The transition was smooth, and there was no data loss.”

See all customer stories →

CUSTOM MIGRATION

Fully customizable engineer-led migration

Tailor your migration from Magnolia CMS to Caisy exactly to your needs with our flexible customization options. Our experts will configure the perfect migration plan for your business.

Migration Filters

Data Types

ZERO DOWNTIME

Your timeline. Our engineers.

A dedicated engineer runs your migration, planned around your schedule and your data.

No babysitting a wizard. Avoid debugging errors yourself.

Looking for a more detailed migration timeline?

Contact our team

Speed

The migration timeline depends on both our turnaround time and yours.

We can complete a migration in under a day when the accounts are connected and the sample migration is approved promptly.

Background Sync

We also support migrating the newest records first, so you can go live faster while the rest of the data is synced in the background.

Data Volume Impact

Larger data volumes may require longer migration windows.

Continuous Operation

Weekend migrations minimize disruption to your customer service operations.

MIGRATION TIMELINE

Your Magnolia CMS to Caisy migration, step by step

See how long your migration will take from start to finish. Drag the slider to estimate based on your data volume.

How many records are you migrating?

<10K 50K 100K 250K 500K 1M 2M 5M 10M+

Checklist ~3 days

Sample 1 day

Review ~2 days

Full 2 days

Delta 1 day

Your team ClonePartner

Estimated total

~9 business days

Migration Checklist

1 day · ClonePartner ~2 days · Your team

We prepare the optimal data mapping as a shareable spreadsheet. Your team reviews, approves, and adds any customizations.

Sample Migration

1 day · ClonePartner

We run a test migration with a representative sample of your data to verify mapping accuracy and identify any potential issues before the full run.

Review & Approve

~2 days · Your team

Your team reviews the sample migration results, confirms data accuracy and mapping, and gives the go-ahead for the full migration.

Full Migration

2 days · ClonePartner

We execute the complete migration of all your data to your new Caisy, with real-time progress tracking and comprehensive logging.

Delta Migration

1 day · ClonePartner

We capture and transfer any new data that was added or updated during the main migration to ensure no data is lost. This final sync keeps everything current.

Pros and cons of different migration options

Choosing the right approach is key because migrating from Magnolia CMS to Caisy isn't just about moving data – it's about protecting your content, SEO, and reader experience.

Feature / Criteria	ClonePartner	Automated Tools	CSV Import	In-house migration
Custom Scripting for complex data	✓ Engineers build & maintain	✗ No	⚠ Manual	✓ Yes – but costly
Sandbox & Pilot Migrations	✓ Full sandbox + pilot plans	⚠ Limited	✗ No	⚠ Often Informal
Manual validation & reconciliation	✓ Automated + manual QA	✗ No	✓ Yes (Manual)	✓ Heavy manual effort
Backup & rollback plan	✓ Robust procedures	✗ No	✗ No	⚠ Often incomplete
Handles automation and integrations	✓ Full support	⚠ Partial	✗ No	⚠ Possible but fragmented
Post-migration engineer support	✓ Dedicated engineers	✗ No	✗ No	⚠ Limited support
Adaptable to API changes	✓ Proactive adaptation	✗ No	⚠ Manual fixes	⚠ Slower response
Turnaround / timeline predictability	✓ Predictable timelines	⚠ Fast but brittle	⚠ Slow and manual	⚠ Often slower
Data Security & Compliance	✓ High – enterprise grade	⚠ Medium (depends)	⚠ Low (manual)	⚠ Hidden gaps common
Pricing predictability	✓ Transparent & fixed	⚠ Low (per-job)	⚠ Low (manual hours)	⚠ High/variable OPEX
End-to-end project management	✓ Full E2E delivery & PM	✗ No	✗ No	⚠ Often partial
Business impact & opportunity cost	✓ No diversion of staff	✗ No	✗ No	⚠ Diverts engineering

What does an Engineer-led migration mean anyway?

Speed & Accuracy: Our Blended Method

We blend automation (smart scripts, bulk APIs) with human expertise for speed without risk. Our engineers manually check every mapping, validation, and exception.

You get:

Speed of automation for bulk record migration
Precision of engineers verifying integrity and business logic
Pilot migrations and sandbox testing to catch issues early
Real-time validation reports and rollback readiness

Result: 50x faster migrations than manual imports — with near-zero error rates.

Handling the Tricky Tech and API Details

The Magnolia CMS and Caisy APIs each behave differently, which is where our engineers shine. We build custom logic to handle the data quirks where generic tools typically break.

We handcraft API logic for:

Field mapping and transformation
Pagination, rate-limit handling, and throttling
Preserving content relationships, media, and revision history
Syncing custom fields, taxonomies, and templates without breaking structure

Our scripts: Natively retry failed calls, re-queue large attachments, and ensure data parity.

No Guesswork

We don't just promise smooth migrations—we measure and prove them. Every client receives a Migration Validation Report with all metrics.

Typical results across projects:

100% record-count parity between your Magnolia CMS data and Caisy
Zero downtime during staged cutovers
99.9% attachment integrity (verified via checksum)
Full automation and preservation of all business rules

Our standard: Includes full SEO and redirect preservation and 48 hours of engineer-assigned support post go-live.

We Adapt to Your Setup (Not the Other Way Around)

No two teams configure Magnolia CMS or Caisy exactly the same way—with unique content models and data. We customize every migration script to fit your exact workflow, taxonomies, and templates.

Our engineers adapt for:

Custom fields, content types, and workflows
Multi-site or multi-language setups
Historical imports and partial (date-based) migrations
Integration re-mapping for search, analytics, or forms tools

The promise: If your data doesn't fit a standard template, we build one just for you.

Enterprise-Grade Security & Compliance

Your customer data is precious. Our migration process maintains the highest standards of security and regulatory compliance.

SOC 2 Type II

Independently audited compliance with rigorous security standards

ISO 27001

Certified information security management system

GDPR

Full compliance with EU data protection regulations

HIPAA

Certified for handling protected health information

AES-256 Encryption

Bank-grade encryption for all stored credentials

Latest TLS

Secure transfer protocol for all data in transit

Role-Based Access

We follow role-based access control for every migration project

Scheduled Deletion

Automatic data purging after migration completion

FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions

Everything you need to know about migrating from Magnolia CMS to Caisy. Can't find what you're looking for? Talk to our team.

Can I export Magnolia content directly into Caisy?

No. Magnolia exports content as JCR XML, YAML, or JSON via its REST API. This data must be programmatically transformed to match Caisy's blueprint schema, rich text AST format, and asset reference structure before import.

How do Magnolia content types map to Caisy blueprints?

Magnolia page types become Caisy document blueprints. Magnolia components become Caisy component blueprints. Magnolia areas (which group components on a page) have no direct equivalent — model them as connection fields (lists of component references) on the parent document blueprint.

How do I migrate assets from Magnolia's DAM to Caisy?

Export assets from Magnolia's dam JCR workspace via XML export or HTTP download. Upload each file to Caisy using the tus.io protocol with x-caisy-token and x-caisy-project-id headers. Record the Magnolia UUID to Caisy asset ID mapping for relinking references in content documents. Only migrate original source files — not Magnolia's generated renditions.

What do I lose when migrating from Magnolia to Caisy?

You lose in-context page editing, server-side rendering (FreeMarker/JSP), publication workflows with four-eye approval, JCR-SQL2 queries, granular node-level access control, and multi-site management from a single instance. Magnolia's version history does not migrate. Caisy is headless-only, so all rendering moves to your frontend.

Should I use Caisy's External API or Internal API for migration?

Use the Internal API via the TypeScript SDK. Caisy's docs explicitly call out automatic migrations and imports/exports as a use case for the Internal API. The External API mutations are limited — they require per-blueprint enablement, and all created documents land in draft state. PutManyDocuments via the Internal API is the more performant path for bulk loads.

How long does the Magnolia CMS to Caisy migration take?

Most migrations complete within 1–5 business days, depending on data volume and complexity. We provide a detailed timeline after the initial assessment and can often complete small migrations in under 24 hours.

Will my team lose access to Magnolia CMS during the migration?

No. Your source system remains fully operational throughout the entire migration. We run the migration in the background with zero downtime to your current operations.

Will there be downtime when migrating from Magnolia CMS to Caisy?

No. Our migration process is designed for zero downtime. We use a staged approach with background sync and a fast cutover, ensuring no disruption to your live business operations.

How do I validate that everything migrated correctly?

Every client receives a Migration Validation Report with comprehensive metrics including record-count parity, attachment integrity verification via checksum, and full audit logs. We also offer unlimited sample migrations so you can verify before committing.

Do I need professional help for this migration?

While simple migrations can sometimes be handled in-house, professional help ensures zero data loss, proper field mapping, and preservation of relationships between records. Our engineer-led approach catches edge cases that automated tools miss.

Does ClonePartner provide guidance before committing?

Yes. We provide a free consultation and assessment. We'll review your data structure, discuss your requirements, and provide a detailed migration plan and fixed-price quote before you commit to anything.

Still have questions?

Book a free 30-minute consultation with our migration engineers. We'll walk you through the exact approach for your Magnolia CMS→Caisy migration.

Contact our team

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Attention to Detail

We meticulously handle every aspect of your migration, ensuring no data is lost during transfer and mapping every field correctly between platforms.

Custom Solutions

Every business is unique. We tailor your migration strategy to match your specific requirements, workflows, and data structures.

Security & Compliance

Your customer data is handled with enterprise-grade security protocols, ensuring compliance with GDPR, HIPAA, and industry standards.

Migrate from Magnolia CMS to Caisy with precision & ease

Why teams migrate from Magnolia CMS to Caisy