Choose a route that fits your starting point
Drupal 7 lost regular community support on 5 January 2025. The current release schedule sets Drupal 10 end of life at 9 December 2026. These dates inform urgency; the migration route depends on your environment and dependencies.
Moving from Drupal 7 to a modern version transfers content into a new Drupal installation. It is not a routine version update: themes need rebuilding and not every module has an automated migration path. We examine which features must remain, where existing components fit and how much custom work remains. The target platform and supported versions are checked again at project start.
Check current support dates in the official Drupal release schedule.
A Drupal 7 site may continue running after end of life, but no longer receives regular community security updates. Check the support lifecycle of PHP, Symfony and other dependencies too. Decide whether migration, rebuilding or a temporary transition plan is appropriate; confirm the current scope of legacy support separately.
Make the new content manageable
Migration creates an opportunity to organise sources and simplify the content model. We assign information owners and define relationships between translations, media and related content. Editors assess sample pages before all content moves, revealing whether they can perform daily tasks in the new model.
If Trusted Answers is in scope, we identify which approved content may be used as a source. AI can help with classification or draft editing, while people decide on important conditions, data loss and publication. New AI functionality is a separate part of the work to evaluate.
Align the content model with how editors build pages. A recognisable visual identity and usable templates belong in that assessment. Content migration connects technical mapping with editorial decisions.
Start with a representative trial migration
Select a limited but representative set that includes translations, media, relationships and an important integration. Take a backup first and check how it can be restored. The trial shows whether mappings, imports, editorial work and redirects work before you transfer the full volume.
Use the results to refine timing, risks and acceptance criteria. An initial cost estimate helps prepare the conversation; the inventory and trial determine the project-specific approach.
Rehearse the transition and agree acceptance
The intended output includes the agreed migration routines, mappings and trial results. We compare counts and meaning: do media, translations, relationships, permissions and key user tasks work? Content owners check substance; developers and system administrators assess processing and integrations.
Before cutover we agree a content freeze or final synchronisation, decision authority and a feasible rollback approach. The plan also covers data created during the transition. Agreed checks after launch cover errors, missing information and redirects. Ranking preservation or zero downtime is not promised without project-specific evidence.
Agree what happens after the transition
Specify who follows up on errors and missing content, which checks happen after launch and when the migration is accepted. Share mappings, migration routines, test results and known limitations with the team taking over the site.
Dropsolid can combine technical delivery, content work, UX, testing, hosting and support where these are in scope. Make maintenance and aftercare responsibilities explicit, including when your own team or partner takes over management.
