Pre-launch checklist for migrated Discourse communities

Documentation Migrating to Discourse
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Before launching your Discourse community, we recommend taking some time to walk through this checklist. Migration projects are exciting but checking everything carefully now helps ensure a smooth experience for your members from day one.

We know there’s a lot to review, and some steps may seem repetitive, but that’s because many migration hiccups only show up when features are actively used. This list is designed to help you confidently verify that everything works as it should so you can launch with peace of mind.

Tip: Try each action as if you’re a real user or moderator (not just scanning) it’s the best way to spot hidden issues!

If you have questions or run into anything unexpected along the way, don’t hesitate to reach out. We’re here to help.

User Accounts & Permissions

  • Log in: Test logging in or impersonate as several real users, including at least one admin, moderator, and regular user.
    • Tip: Use incognito/private mode to simulate different users.
  • Check permissions: After login, try to access admin/moderator features with those accounts. Verify only correct users have these abilities.
    • Example: Confirm a regular user cannot see Admin-only or restricted areas
  • Validate migrated user data: View several user profiles (especially your most active users).
    • Look for expected email, avatar, background image, and profile fields (name, bio, website, location, badges etc.)
      Try updating profile details to ensure data is editable. You can check yours here your-forum-domain/my/preferences/account
    • Check the user stats on the summary page, your-forum-domain/my/summary. Do they match up with what is expected?

This image is a profile dashboard showing a summary of a user named Constantza, who has been active for 466 days, has read for 8 hours, created 90 topics, has 3 bookmarks, has viewed 143 topics, and has given and received 11 and 30 hearts, respectively. (Captioned by AI)
This image is a profile dashboard showing a summary of a user named Constantza, who has been active for 466 days, has read for 8 hours, created 90 topics, has 3 bookmarks, has viewed 143 topics, and has given and received 11 and 30 hearts, respectively. (Captioned by AI)2390×816 76.5 KB

  • Check trust levels/groups: Visit group and user trust-level listings.
    • Make sure memberships, roles, and privileges migrated correctly.
  • Try group-restricted actions: Post in a group-specific category, or view a group’s page, to ensure correct access.
    • You can check your-forum-domain/g to see the all groups.
  • Review banned/suspended account behavior: Attempt to log in with banned/suspended accounts.
    • Example: Suspended users should see an error or explanation.

Categories & Category Permissions

  • Browse all categories: Compare against your legacy site to ensure names, descriptions, and order/hierarchy match.
  • Test subcategories: Go one level deeper. Open subcategories and verify their parent/child relationships.
  • Attempt access to private categories: While logged in as authorized and unauthorized users, try to enter private or restricted categories.
    • Example: A non-authorized user should get a “permission denied” screen.
  • Try adding content: As various users, attempt to create topics or replies in public and private categories to confirm permissions.

Tags

  • Visit the tag browser: Go to your-forum-domain/tags and look for all expected tags.
  • Open sample topics with tags: Confirm tags are attached to the correct topics.
  • Verify tag groups and permissions: Test adding tags (if your old platform had restrictions), and attempt to apply private tags as unauthorized users.
    • Example: Tag application should be limited to the right groups.

Topics and Posts

  • Find several active topics that had replies/likes/images/attachments/polls/quotes in your old forum.
    • Test by interacting:
      • Reply to a thread and check post order and author.
      • Like/unlike posts: Confirm counts update and display as expected.
        You can see the like count at the bottom of a post.

image
image1568×350 39.3 KB

Or a summary of data at the bottom of the first post in a topic.

The image shows a display of user figures, including 92 views, 23 likes, 3 links, and 9 users, along with profile avatars. (Captioned by AI)
The image shows a display of user figures, including 92 views, 23 likes, 3 links, and 9 users, along with profile avatars. (Captioned by AI)927×106 19.8 KB


* **React with emoji**: Where enabled, add reactions.
* **Edit a post**: Verify both edit history and “last edited by” are correct.
* **Click mentions, quotes, and links**: Confirm profile pop-ups and navigation work.
* **View/download attachments**: Make sure files/images open and match originals.
* **Interact with polls, code blocks, tables, and votes**: Submit a poll response, copy/paste from code blocks, etc.
  * *Tip: Compare each element visually and functionally with the legacy forum.*
  • Check for special characters: Scan and interact with posts containing non-Latin or accented characters.
  • Check deleted/hidden posts (“Whispers”): Make sure deleted/historic/hidden posts are handled correctly and invisible or viewable only by staff as appropriate.

Private Messages

  • Read migrated PMs: Open several migrated PM threads as different participants.
  • Send and reply to PMs: Test that new replies are delivered only to correct users.
  • Validate formatting: Check images, mentions, and links within PMs.
    • Reference: “Topics and Posts” for comprehensive formatting actions.
  • Attempt unauthorized access: Ensure non-participants cannot view private messages.

Redirections & Internal/External Links

  • Test redirected URLs: Paste the path from your previous forum after your Discourse domain in your browser.
    • Confirm they redirect to the correct locations in Discourse (topics, users, tags, etc.).

Example:

Suppose your old forum link looked like: your-old-forum-domain/thread/12345-viewer-feedback

Copy just the path: /thread/12345-viewer-feedback

Then paste it after your new Discourse domain: your-forum-domain/thread/12345-viewer-feedback

You should be redirected automatically to the Discourse topic’s new URL: your-forum-domain/t/viewer-feedback/67890

  • Click migrated links in content: Inside topics, posts, and messages, click links to other migrated content.

Tip: Try both internal and external (legacy) links. See the Admin dashboard at your-forum-domain/admin/customize/permalinks for a list of active redirects.

Other Migrated Features

  • Review special objects/modules:
    • Gamification points
    • Bookmarks
    • Calendar events
    • Watched words
    • Assigns
    • Notification preferences
    • Sticky topics
    • Chat messages
  • Interact with each feature: For example, bookmark a topic, trigger a notification, post a chat message. Ensure full user interactivity.
    • Example: Check if a migrated calendar event is displayed in the calendar and can be edited or deleted if permissions allow.

Object Counts & Statistics

  • Compare object counts: Get totals of users, topics, posts, categories, tags, PMs, likes, views, replies, and uploads from your old platform and compare with the admin dashboard in Discourse (/admin/dashboard/reports).
    Check places where stats would be shown, like in user profiles, topic summaries, or topic lists, for example:

The image shows a forum page titled 'About the General category' with an icon and a summary, highlighting that it is open-source and discussing what topics to create in this category. (Captioned by AI)
The image shows a forum page titled 'About the General category' with an icon and a summary, highlighting that it is open-source and discussing what topics to create in this category. (Captioned by AI)1303×318 37.3 KB

  • Check counts for special objects where relevant (polls, bookmarks, votes, solutions, etc.).
    • Note: Minor mismatches may occur due to differences in data handling (e.g., email deduplication). Flag large discrepancies for investigation.

Spam and Security Check

Take a moment to check for any spam posts or users that may have come over during your migration. Removing these early helps keep your new community safe and prevents future issues with unwanted content. A thorough review here goes a long way toward ensuring a great experience for everyone!

Thank you for taking the time to walk through this checklist and give your community the best possible start.

Remember, the most reliable way to catch any issues is to interact with your site as your members will click, post, like, and explore. The extra effort now really pays off in smoother launches and happier users.

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