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Migrating repositories from GitHub.com to GitHub Enterprise Cloud

You can migrate repositories from GitHub.com to GitHub Enterprise Cloud, using the GitHub CLI or the GraphQL API.

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In this article

About repository migrations with GitHub Enterprise Importer

Migrations to GitHub Enterprise Cloud include migrations between accounts on GitHub.com and, if you're adopting data residency, migrations to your enterprise's subdomain of GHE.com.

You can run your migration with either the GitHub CLI or the API.

The GitHub CLI simplifies the migration process and is recommended for most customers. Advanced customers with heavy customization needs can use the API to build their own integrations with GitHub Enterprise Importer.

To see instructions for using the API, use the tool switcher at the top of the page.
To see instructions for using the GitHub CLI, use the tool switcher at the top of the page.

Prerequisites

  • We strongly recommend that you perform a trial run of your migration and complete your production migration soon after. To learn more about trial runs, see "Overview of a migration between GitHub products."
  • Ensure you understand the data that will be migrated and the known support limitations of the Importer. For more information, see "About migrations between GitHub products."
  • While not required, we recommend halting work during your production migration. The Importer doesn't support delta migrations, so any changes that happen during the migration will not migrate. If you choose not to halt work during your production migration, you'll need to manually migrate these changes.
  • In both the source and destination organization, you must be either an organization owner or be granted the migrator role. For more information, see "Managing access for a migration between GitHub products."

Step 0: Get ready to use the GitHub GraphQL API

To make GraphQL queries, you'll need to write your own scripts or use an HTTP client like Insomnia.

To learn more about getting started with the GitHub GraphQL API, including how to authenticate, see "Forming calls with GraphQL."

You will send all GraphQL queries to the destination of your migration. If you're migrating to GitHub Enterprise Cloud with data residency, make sure to send queries to the endpoint for your enterprise's subdomain of GHE.com.

Step 1: Get the ownerId for your migration destination

As an organization owner in GitHub Enterprise Cloud, use the GetOrgInfo query to return the ownerId, also called the organization ID, for the organization you want to own the migrated repositories. You'll need the ownerId to identify your migration destination.

GetOrgInfo query

query(
  $login: String!
){
  organization (login: $login)
  {
    login
    id
    name
    databaseId
  }
}
Query variableDescription
loginYour organization name.

GetOrgInfo response

{
  "data": {
    "organization": {
      "login": "Octo",
      "id": "MDEyOk9yZ2FuaXphdGlvbjU2MTA=",
      "name": "Octo-org",
      "databaseId": 5610
    }
  }
}

In this example, MDEyOk9yZ2FuaXphdGlvbjU2MTA= is the organization ID or ownerId, which we'll use in the next step.

Step 2: Identify where you're migrating from

You can set up a migration source using the createMigrationSource query. You'll need to supply the ownerId, or organization ID, gathered from the GetOrgInfo query.

Your migration source is an organization on GitHub.com.

createMigrationSource mutation

mutation createMigrationSource($name: String!, $ownerId: ID!) {
  createMigrationSource(input: {name: $name, url: "https://github.com", ownerId: $ownerId, type: GITHUB_ARCHIVE}) {
    migrationSource {
      id
      name
      url
      type
    }
  }
}

Note: Make sure to use GITHUB_ARCHIVE for type.

Query variableDescription
nameA name for your migration source. This name is for your own reference, so you can use any string.
ownerIdThe organization ID of your organization on GitHub Enterprise Cloud.

createMigrationSource response

{
  "data": {
    "createMigrationSource": {
      "migrationSource": {
        "id": "MS_kgDaACQxYmYxOWU4Yi0wNzZmLTQ3NTMtOTdkZC1hNGUzZmYxN2U2YzA",
        "name": "GitHub.com Source",
        "url": "https://github.com",
        "type": "GITHUB_SOURCE"
      }
    }
  }
}

In this example, MS_kgDaACQxYmYxOWU4Yi0wNzZmLTQ3NTMtOTdkZC1hNGUzZmYxN2U2YzA is the migration source ID, which we'll use in the next step.

Step 3: Start your repository migration

When you start a migration, a single repository and its accompanying data migrates into a brand new GitHub repository that you identify.

If you want to move multiple repositories at once from the same source organization, you can queue multiple migrations. You can run up to 5 repository migrations at the same time.

startRepositoryMigration mutation

mutation startRepositoryMigration (
  $sourceId: ID!,
  $ownerId: ID!,
  $sourceRepositoryUrl: URI!,
  $repositoryName: String!,
  $continueOnError: Boolean!,
  $accessToken: String!,
  $githubPat: String!,
  $targetRepoVisibility: String!
){
  startRepositoryMigration( input: {
    sourceId: $sourceId,
    ownerId: $ownerId,
    repositoryName: $repositoryName,
    continueOnError: $continueOnError,
    accessToken: $accessToken,
    githubPat: $githubPat,
    targetRepoVisibility: $targetRepoVisibility
    sourceRepositoryUrl: $sourceRepositoryUrl,
  }) {
    repositoryMigration {
      id
      migrationSource {
        id
        name
        type
      }
      sourceUrl
    }
  }
}
Query variableDescription
sourceIdYour migration source id returned from the createMigrationSource mutation.
ownerIdThe organization ID of your organization on GitHub Enterprise Cloud.
repositoryNameA custom unique repository name not currently used by any of your repositories owned by the organization on GitHub Enterprise Cloud. An error-logging issue will be created in this repository when your migration is complete or has stopped.
continueOnErrorMigration setting that allows the migration to continue when encountering errors that don't cause the migration to fail. Must be true or false. We highly recommend setting continueOnError to true so that your migration will continue unless the Importer can't move Git source or the Importer has lost connection and cannot reconnect to complete the migration.
githubPatThe personal access token for your destination organization on GitHub Enterprise Cloud.
accessTokenThe personal access token for your source.
targetRepoVisibilityThe visibility of the new repository. Must be private, public, or internal. If not set, your repository is migrated as private.
sourceRepositoryUrlThe URL of your source repository, using the format https://github.com/{organization}/{repository}.

For personal access token requirements, see "Managing access for a migration between GitHub products."

In the next step, you'll use the migration ID returned from the startRepositoryMigration mutation to check the migration status.

Step 4: Check the status of your migration

To detect any migration failures and ensure your migration is working, you can check your migration status using the getMigration query. You can also check the status of multiple migrations with getMigrations.

The getMigration query will return with a status to let you know if the migration is queued, in progress, failed, or completed. If your migration failed, the Importer will provide a reason for the failure.

getMigration query

query (
  $id: ID!
){
  node( id: $id ) {
    ... on Migration {
      id
      sourceUrl
      migrationSource {
        name
      }
      state
      failureReason
    }
  }
}
Query variableDescription
idThe id of your migration that the startRepositoryMigration mutation returned.

Step 5: Validate your migration and check the error log

To finish your migration, we recommend that you check the "Migration Log" issue. This issue is created on GitHub in the destination repository.

Screenshot of an issue with the title "Migration Log." The second comment in the issue includes logs for a migration.

Finally, we recommend that you review your migrated repositories for a soundness check.

Step 1: Install the GEI extension of the GitHub CLI

If this is your first migration, you'll need to install the GEI extension of the GitHub CLI. For more information about the GitHub CLI, see "About GitHub CLI."

Alternatively, you can download a standalone binary from the releases page for the github/gh-gei repository. You can run the binary directly, without the gh prefix.

  1. Install the GitHub CLI. For installation instructions for GitHub CLI, see the GitHub CLI repository.

    Note: You need version 2.4.0 or newer of GitHub CLI. You can check the version you have installed with the gh --version command.

  2. Install the GEI extension.

    Shell
    gh extension install github/gh-gei

Any time you need help with the GEI extension, you can use the --help flag with a command. For example, gh gei --help will list all the available commands, and gh gei migrate-repo --help will list all the options available for the migrate-repo command.

Step 2: Update the GEI extension of the GitHub CLI

The GEI extension is updated weekly. To make sure you're using the latest version, update the extension.

gh extension upgrade github/gh-gei

Step 3: Set environment variables

Before you can use the GEI extension to migrate to GitHub Enterprise Cloud, you must create personal access tokens that can access the source and destination organizations, then set the personal access tokens as environment variables.

  1. Create and record a personal access token (classic) that will authenticate for the destination organization on GitHub Enterprise Cloud, making sure that the token meets all requirements. For more information, see "Managing access for a migration between GitHub products."

  2. Create and record a personal access token that will authenticate for the source organization, making sure that this token also meets all of the same requirements.

  3. Set environment variables for the personal access tokens, replacing TOKEN in the commands below with the personal access tokens you recorded above. Use GH_PAT for the destination organization and GH_SOURCE_PAT for the source organization.

    • If you're using Terminal, use the export command.

      Shell
      export GH_PAT="TOKEN"
export GH_SOURCE_PAT="TOKEN"

    • If you're using PowerShell, use the $env command.

      Shell
      $env:GH_PAT="TOKEN"
$env:GH_SOURCE_PAT="TOKEN"

  4. If you're migrating to GitHub Enterprise Cloud with data residency, for convenience, set an environment variable for the base API URL for your enterprise. For example:

    Shell
    export TARGET_API_URL="https://api.octocorp.ghe.com"

    You'll use this variable with the --target-api-url option in commands you run with the GitHub CLI.

Step 4: Generate a migration script

If you want to migrate multiple repositories to GitHub Enterprise Cloud at once, use the GitHub CLI to generate a migration script. The resulting script will contain a list of migration commands, one per repository.

Note: Generating a script outputs a PowerShell script. If you're using Terminal, you will need to output the script with the .ps1 file extension and install PowerShell for either Mac or Linux to run it.

If you want to migrate a single repository, skip to the next step.

Generating a migration script

To generate a migration script, run the gh gei generate-script command.

Shell
gh gei generate-script --github-source-org SOURCE --github-target-org DESTINATION --output FILENAME

If you downloaded GEI as a standalone binary rather than as an extension for the GitHub CLI, you will need to update your generated script to run the binary instead of gh gei.

Placeholders

Replace the placeholders in the command above with the following values.

PlaceholderValue
SOURCEName of the source organization
DESTINATIONName of the destination organization
FILENAMEA filename for the resulting migration script

If you're using Terminal, use a .ps1 file extension as the generated script requires PowerShell to run. You can install PowerShell for Mac or Linux.

Additional arguments

ArgumentDescription
--target-api-url TARGET-API-URLIf you're migrating to GHE.com, add --target-api-url TARGET-API-URL, where TARGET-API-URL is the base API URL for your enterprise's subdomain. For example: https://api.octocorp.ghe.com.
--download-migration-logsDownload the migration log for each migrated repository. For more information about migration logs, see "Accessing your migration logs for GitHub Enterprise Importer."

Reviewing the migration script

After you generate the script, review the file and, optionally, edit the script.

  • If there are any repositories you don't want to migrate, delete or comment out the corresponding lines.
  • If you want any repositories to have a different name in the destination organization, update the value for the corresponding --target-repo flag.
  • If you want to change the visibility of new repository, update the value for the corresponding --target-repo-visibility flag. By default, the script sets the same visibility as the source repository.

If your repository has more than 10 GB of releases data, releases cannot be migrated. Use the --skip-releases flag to migrate the repository without releases.

If you downloaded GEI as a standalone binary rather than as an extension for the GitHub CLI, you will need to update your generated script to run the binary instead of gh gei.

Step 5: Migrate repositories

You can migrate multiple repositories with a migration script or a single repository with the gh gei migrate-repo command.

Migrate multiple repositories

To migrate multiple repositories, run the script you generated above. Replace FILENAME in the commands below with the filename you provided when generating the script.

  • If you're using Terminal, use ./.

    Shell
    ./FILENAME

  • If you're using PowerShell, use .\.

    Shell
    .\FILENAME

Migrate a single repository

To migrate a single repository, use the gh gei migrate-repo command.

Shell
gh gei migrate-repo --github-source-org SOURCE --source-repo CURRENT-NAME --github-target-org DESTINATION --target-repo NEW-NAME

Placeholders

Replace the placeholders in the command above with the following values.

PlaceholderValue
SOURCEName of the source organization
CURRENT-NAMEThe name of the repository you want to migrate
DESTINATIONName of the destination organization
NEW-NAMEThe name you want the migrated repository to have

Additional arguments

ArgumentDescription
--target-api-url TARGET-API-URLIf you're migrating to GHE.com, add --target-api-url TARGET-API-URL, where TARGET-API-URL is the base API URL for your enterprise's subdomain. For example: https://api.octocorp.ghe.com.
--skip-releasesIf your repository has more than 10 GB of releases data, releases cannot be migrated. Use the --skip-releases flag to migrate the repository without releases.
--target-repo-visibility TARGET-VISIBILITYRepositories are migrated with private visibility by default. To set the visibility, you can add the --target-repo-visibility flag, specifying private, public, or internal. If you're migrating to an enterprise with managed users, public repositories are not available.

Aborting the migration

If you want to cancel a migration, use the abort-migration command, replacing MIGRATION-ID with the ID returned from migrate-repo.

Shell
gh gei abort-migration --migration-id MIGRATION-ID

Step 6: Validate your migration and check the error log

When your migration is complete, we recommend reviewing your migration log. For more information, see "Accessing your migration logs for GitHub Enterprise Importer."

We recommend that you review your migrated repositories for a soundness check.