Best way to upgrade Magento from 1.4.2 to 1.9

Question

Ok, I've got a site running on Magento 1.4.2 and need to upgrade it to 1.9.

For what I've read online an upgrade doesn't seen a good option, so I'm trying ways to migrate the data. I've tried export customers, products, stock and weight into a new Magento instal (1.9) but that doesn't seem to work.

Can anyone suggest the best approach to migrate the data (orders, customers, etc)?

I'd rather not import the database as someone pointed out on another question that would be best get the whole new site on a new db engine rather than mess around with an old one.

Answer 1

You can do a direct upgrade, you do not have to do an incremental upgrade

Here is the procedure:

Backup your database from your current 1.4 site.

Example:

mysqldump -u<user> -p -h<host> database > yourdumpfile.sql

Now restore your file to a NEW database

mysql -u<user> -p -h<host> new-db < yourdumpfile.sql

Now point your fresh version of Magento CE 1.9 at your NEW db and it will upgrade you to that version.

Depending on your file size it should not take more than 5-40 minutes. (This is dependant on the amount of orders you have.

Clear your log tables before you do your upgrade.

Now all your data is in the new version of Magento!

Answer 2

A direct upgrade from 1.4.x to 1.9.x might not be possible, but what I have found to produce good results for old database versions is an incremental upgrade to each new major version.

You can find the last release of each version : 1.5,1.6,1.7,1.8 on the Magento download page.

Test the upgrade on a dev server and start with version 1.5, extract the source code and configure it with your 1.4.2 database details.

Point your browser at the new 1.5 installation to start the normal Magento install process. Magento will then upgrade your database to the 1.5.x version. Remember to use the same encryption key from your 1.4.2 version. After each upgrade login to admin and log back out.

Delete the 1.5 source and then extract the 1.6 source and perform the same steps to upgrade the database from 1.5.x to 1.6.x. Repeat this process through each version 1.7, 1.8 until you are at the latest version (1.9.2.0).

Depending on your database size some of the upgrades steps may take much longer than others - up to 30 mins or more.

The Magento database upgrade is just one part of the upgrade process, you should take a note of all the modules installed in the 1.4.x shop and now reinstall these with the latest versions, this will then upgrade the module data in the database.

You will also probably need to install a new frontend theme or rebuild your existing theme using the new base/responsive themes.

I have found this process to work well in upgrading databases as old as v1.3.x.

Answer 3

you have to do an incremental upgrade.

Migration between 1.4 to 1.6 is not the easiest things if you are not acknowledge about magento coding structure. Please try below process at your local server.

Process :

1. Create a database dump for your 1.4 magento store at your local server.

2. Download zip for 1.6 then just extract it at your local server.

3. Now try to install by pointing to the old DB.

4. Magento will automatically migrate your current db by 1.6 structure.

5. Now go to the old server's app/code/local directory and try to locate all of the local modules and their files then just migrate it with new magento instalation. As we have alreday used old database so we don't need to take care about any tables regarding any module.

6. Then by following same concept migrate theme files from old server to new server. Same for here automatically theme will be assigned as we have taken old database.

7. Also try to follow same for community module Thanks.

You have to follow the same process until you reach magento 1.9 version. You have to step one by on