Failed Data Migration Recovery: Salvaging Data After a Botched Migration
Your CRM or ERP cutover failed mid-flight. Half the records moved, fields are corrupted, staff are dual-entering, and "start over" looks like the only option. It usually is not.
We run forensic triage, repair the damage, and get you back to one system of truth.
Sound Familiar?
These are the exact issues sponsors face after a botched migration fix is delayed:
- Cutover aborted mid-flight: half the records sit in the new CRM, half remain in the old one, and nobody trusts either copy
- Corrupted fields, truncated text, and broken lookups mean sales cannot find accounts they closed last week
- Staff are dual-entering deals into both systems while leadership argues whether to roll back or start over
- The original vendor has gone quiet after the go-live weekend failed, leaving your team holding two systems of truth
- Finance cannot close the month because invoices, contacts, and open opportunities no longer match across platforms
Go-live weekend failures and vendor walkaways are urgency triggers, not reasons to write the project off. Industry cases show extended parallel runs abort roughly 30% of the time once dual-system labour hits the books. Expert data salvage usually costs less than months of dual entry plus a full restart.
What Failed Migration Recovery Actually Does
Triage → salvage → reconcile → one system of truth. No more dual entry and no blind restart.
Forensic Triage
We inventory source, target, and corruption patterns so leadership knows what is salvageable
Repair Corrupted Records
Fields, lookups, and half-moved rows are repaired against the best available source
Reconcile Dual Systems
Unique-to-source and unique-to-target records merge into one validated master set
Complete or Roll Back
Controlled cutover completion or clean rollback, then dual-running ends
Everything You Need for Migration Repair
Forensic Migration Triage
We map what moved, what stalled, and what corrupted. Source vs target diffs give you a clear salvage plan instead of a weekend of guesswork.
Corrupted Record Repair
Truncated fields, bad encodings, broken lookups, and orphaned child records are repaired against the best available source of truth.
Dual-System Reconciliation
We reconcile the old and new systems record by record so you stop dual-entering and can retire one platform with confidence.
Safe Completion or Rollback
Where salvage is cheaper than restart, we finish the cutover under control. Where rollback is safer, we restore a single trusted system first.
Validation and Sign-Off Packs
Row counts, sample audits, and exception lists your CEO and CTO can sign off before staff are told which system is live.
Controlled Re-Cutover
Once data is clean, we run a short, monitored cutover window with rollback criteria so the next go-live does not become another crisis.
Platforms We've Salvaged After Failed Cutovers
From Dual Systems to One Source of Truth in 18 Days
How a 45-person services firm recovered after a HubSpot cutover aborted mid-weekend, with staff stuck dual-entering for three weeks.
The Botched Cutover
- Go-live weekend moved ~60% of contacts; deals and activities stalled mid-import
- Corrupted phone and company fields made outbound dialling unreliable
- Sales dual-entered every won deal into old CRM and HubSpot for three weeks
- Original migration partner stopped responding after the failed cutover
- Leadership debated a full restart while dual-run labour burned cash
The Salvage Path
- Forensic triage mapped half-moved, unique, and corrupted record sets in 48 hours
- Corrupted fields repaired from source exports and validated sample audits
- Dual systems reconciled into one HubSpot master; old CRM archived read-only
- Staff told which system was live with a clear exception list for edge cases
- Controlled re-cutover of remaining history completed without another weekend crisis
Before vs After Migration Repair
How It Works
From first emergency call to a single system of truth in 2–4 weeks for most mid-market cutovers.
Emergency Intake
What failed, when, which systems are live, and what backups or exports you still trust.
Free Triage Call
30-minute call with your CEO, CTO, or project sponsor to decide salvage vs restart and set an honest timeline.
Salvage and Repair
We repair corrupted records, reconcile dual systems, and produce a validated single source of truth.
Complete or Roll Back
Controlled cutover completion or clean rollback, then monitoring until dual-running stops for good.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it cheaper to start the migration over than to salvage it?
Often no. Industry research shows fixing a botched migration typically costs 30–70% of a clean migration on top of what you already spent, while a full restart throws away that sunk cost and restarts dual-running. We compare salvage vs restart on your actual record counts and corruption profile before you commit either way.
How long does failed migration recovery usually take?
Focused triage and repair for a mid-market CRM or ERP cutover often lands in 2–4 weeks. Simple incomplete imports can be salvageable in under two weeks. Large dual-system estates with months of divergent edits take longer. We give you a timeline after the first forensic pass, not a vague promise.
Which systems do you recover after a botched cutover?
We regularly salvage Salesforce, HubSpot, Dynamics 365, Pipedrive, Zoho CRM, Sage and Pastel-linked estates, and custom CRM or ERP platforms. The same triage applies to accounting and operations systems when the cutover left two systems of truth.
Will we lose records that only exist in one system?
That is exactly what triage is for. We identify records unique to the source, unique to the target, and corrupted in both, then repair or merge them before you retire either platform. You get an exception list for anything that still needs a human decision.
Can you help if the original migration vendor has walked away?
Yes. Many recovery engagements start after a go-live weekend failure or a vendor that stopped responding. We work from exports, backups, and whatever access you still have, and we do not need the original migration scripts to be intact.
How much does failed data migration recovery cost?
Emergency triage and a focused salvage typically start around R45,000. Complex dual-system reconciliation, corrupted-record repair, and a controlled re-cutover usually land between R75,000 and R180,000. Against dual-running labour that industry cases put near R450,000 per month, most mid-market teams recover the fee inside a few weeks of ending dual entry.
Stop Paying for Two Systems of Truth
If your migration failed mid-cutover, every week of dual entry and corrupted records costs more than expert salvage. Starting over is rarely the cheapest path.
Tell us which platforms are involved, what failed on go-live weekend, and whether the original vendor is still reachable. We will show you a triage plan for failed migration recovery within one call.