Server/Data Center to Cloud Migration

In this page

Migrate from Confluence Server/Data Center to Confluence Cloud

The Better Content Archiving for Confluence app is available for all three Confluence deployment types: Server (legacy), Data Center, and Cloud.

While Server and Data Center share the same app features, the Cloud version is built on a different infrastructure and REST API, which makes it work differently in key areas. This new environment required us to rebuild the app from the ground up, and we used the opportunity to make it even better by applying the knowledge and experience gained from the self-hosted versions.

This guide will help you transition the app from Confluence Server/Data Center to Confluence Cloud.

How to read this guide

We've broken the guide down into multiple sections. We recommend reading them in this order:

1. Key changes: Terminology and design changes.
2. Feature parity: A comparison of equivalent features.
3. Changes in depth: A reference guide with categorized, yet loosely related topics, focusing on even the smaller details.
4. Step-by-step instructions: A clear, executable plan for carrying out the migration process.

Key changes

Migrating from the Server/Data Center to Cloud involves more than transferring configuration and data. It requires adapting to a platform with different terminology and different features, even if the core functionality remains the same.

Terminology changes

As you transition to the Cloud version, some terms may differ from those used in the Server/Data Center versions. This section explains these changes in terminology to help you easily adapt to the Cloud app's vocabulary.

Server/Data Center term	Cloud term
Page status	Content status On the cloud, we use this broader term because pages are no longer the only supported content type.
Content lifecycle configuration / archiving configuration Content lifecycle configurations bring together all rules of lifecycle management (status calculation, notifications and archiving) into a single, compact configuration unit.	Configuration scheme (general term), which can be one of the following: Content status scheme Notification scheme Automation scheme Schemes provide greater flexibility by breaking down the loosely connected aspects of lifecycle management into more focused and reusable configuration units. Schemes can be mixed and matched freely.
Default archiving configuration You can select a default archiving configuration.	Default scheme You can select a default for each scheme type.
Archiving strategy The strategy defines what to do with contents due for archiving.	Automation action An automation specifies when, what to do on which content. It is a broader concept, in which the self-hosted "archiving strategy" roughly corresponds to the cloud automation's Action field.
Jobs can be one of the following: Analyze Content Quality Find and Archive Expired Content Persist the Content Update Journal Persist the Content View Journal (All job names are prefixed with "Better Content Archiving", which we omitted here.) One job may perform multiple tasks. (It is especially true for the "Find and Archive Expired Content" job.)	Jobs can be one of the following: Refresh content statuses Send notifications Initialize content events Execute automations There is no 1:1 mapping between self-hosted and cloud jobs, but the names describe their responsibilities well. Cloud jobs are more focused, with a single responsibility for each specific job.
Blacklisted space A space excluded from content lifecycle management.	Excluded space This term is essentially the same, with a more straightforward name.

Product changes

The following changes have been implemented to align with the Atlassian Cloud platform's architecture and APIs and to improve the overall user experience. We also used this transition as an opportunity to expand the app's capabilities and introduce new features that weren't possible in the Server/Data Center versions.

Configuration schemes

In the self-hosted versions, archiving configurations combined content status settings and notification settings into a single unit. While this was simple, it limited flexibility.

The cloud version introduces a major shift with the concept of configuration schemes. Instead of one combined setup, there are now separate schemes, each with a specific focus:

• Content status scheme — how to calculate the statuses of your content
• Notification scheme — how and when to send notification emails
• Automation scheme — how and when to archive or delete content

Note that these configuration scheme types are independent of each other. For example, two spaces may share the same content status scheme but use different notification or automation schemes.

The app provides sensible default settings for each scheme type, so you can get started quickly. You can adjust these defaults to meet your specific needs or create entirely new schemes to match your workflows.

This modern approach offers greater flexibility and customization. By separating the configuration schemes, you can mix and match them to build the ideal workflows for your team!

Build rules with CQL expressions

Another key difference in the cloud version is the use of CQL searches as the basis for all features that require flexible filtering.

Unlike the self-hosted app version, which provided only a limited set of predefined controls and boolean operators for configuring lifecycle rules, CQL is a powerful, full-featured query language integrated into Confluence. You can fully leverage its capabilities to create custom lifecycle rules!

As an important result, standard Confluence labels are no longer heavily used to control lifecycle management on cloud. They are not required — but they are still fully supported and can be used effectively, since CQL supports label-based filtering.

Moving from labels to CQL is a major improvement and unlocks new possibilities. It allows you to build advanced queries to filter and manage pages, blog posts, and other content with much greater precision than before.

Asynchronous by nature

In the cloud, many actions that were previously synchronous in the Data Center version are now handled asynchronously. This shift improves performance and scalability but may require a slight adjustment in how you interact with the app.

For example, in the self-hosted platform, content statuses were updated in real-time, ensuring they were always up-to-date. In the cloud, statuses are updated asynchronously, which may result in slight delays between content changes and status updates. To minimize delays, the app recalculates statuses every time the Content Status Indicator is displayed and ensures all statuses are refreshed within a few hours. You can also manually trigger recalculations by starting the Refresh Content Statuses background job.

This asynchronous approach balances performance with resource usage, and the app handles most of the complexity for you. Keep in mind that some delay is expected due to the nature of the cloud platform.

Feature parity

Core features are still available, though their locations and how they work may have changed. This section helps you find and use them quickly.

Server/Data Center feature	Cloud feature	Notes
Content Quality Statistics	Dashboards	Dashboards offer a much wider range of statistics and KPIs on your content in two scopes. Site Dashboard (main Apps menu → Better Content Archiving) Space Dashboard (accessible from each space's navigation bar)
Start Archiving	Execute automations	You can run the Execute Automations job in two scopes. Global app settings1 → Jobs Space app settings2 → Jobs
Global Configurations	Configuration schemes	You can configure the app on a single, easy-to-understand screen. Global app settings1 → Configuration
Custom Configurations	No direct equivalent	You can apply configuration schemes to spaces in flexible way. Global app settings1 → Configuration → choose a scheme type → click Apply to spaces
Notification Emails	Notification email templates	You can configure notification email templates together with notification schemes. Global app settings1 → Configuration → Notification configuration → Notification email templates
Content Audit Log	Job audit log	You can view the job execution results of the most recent jobs started either automatically or manually. Global app settings1 → Jobs → Job audit log Space app settings2 → Job audit log
Blacklisted Spaces	Exclude spaces	You can exclude spaces from content lifecycle management. Global app settings1 → Administration → Exclude spaces
Settings	Global settings	You can change global app settings. Global app settings1 → Administration → Global settings
Page Status Indicator	Content Status Indicator	While the location remains the same, the cloud equivalent offers enhanced functionality.
Scheduled Jobs (Built-in Confluence administration screen)	No single equivalent, see notes	The cloud version implements its own job runner, fully independent of Confluence's built-in scheduling system. You can execute jobs manually on the Jobs screen. The execution history is available in the Job audit log.

Legend:

1. Global app settings refers to Confluence Settings (cog icon "⚙" in the top right) → Apps → Better Content Archiving.
2. Space app settings refers to opening Space settings in any space, and then selecting Integrations → Better Content Archiving. This screen is not available in excluded spaces.

Questions?

Ask us any time.