A PACS migration needs to preserve usable clinical history, not simply move files. Plan source discovery, identity mapping, transfer, validation and cutover together, with evidence that the destination can retrieve the studies and related objects your service needs.
Record study, series and instance counts, date ranges, modalities, object types and known exceptions. Identify offline storage, external priors, duplicates and any data held outside the main archive. Agree what is included and who owns unresolved gaps.
Check patient identifiers, issuers, accession numbers and local codes against the destination. Document metadata corrections, private attribute handling and any transfer syntax conversion. Preserve UIDs and references where required, and test the effect of agreed changes.
Use a representative sample covering common and unusual objects. Check storage, query, retrieval and display in the intended applications. Confirm related reports, presentation states and other referenced objects remain usable where they are in scope.
Agree how clinical teams access historical priors during migration. Plan bulk transfer, delta loads, coexistence and cutover around live work. Establish the criteria for pausing, resuming or returning to the previous operational arrangement.
Compare source and destination inventories at the levels agreed in the plan. Record failed transfers, missing content and differences requiring review. Counts alone are not enough: sample retrieval and interpretation checks should form part of acceptance.
Agree who accepts the migrated dataset, which evidence is retained and how remaining exceptions are handled. Define the conditions for retiring the old archive, including retention obligations, backup requirements and ongoing access arrangements.
The schedule depends on volume, object mix, source retrieval limits, network capacity, target ingestion and validation effort. A representative pilot is a better basis for planning than a generic transfer-rate estimate.
Bring source and destination details, inventory counts, approximate data volume, object types, network constraints, required completion dates and expectations for access to priors during the transition.
Tell us about your organisation, existing systems and the outcome you need. We’ll help map the next step.