Migrate from Tele-Support HelpDesk to Zendesk

Tele-Support HelpDesk tickets map to Zendesk tickets with subject, status, priority, assignee, and timestamps preserved. Ticket type (incident, request, problem) maps to the Zendesk ticket type field. We extract custom field values from the source ticket schema before migration and map them to Zendesk's custom_fields array, matching by field ID rather than field name. Thread ordering is preserved by created_at timestamp. Tickets without an assignee are held for default-agent assignment in Zendesk. Tickets approaching 250 comments are flagged during scoping as candidates for post-migration thread review.

Tele-Support HelpDesk customer profiles map to Zendesk End Users. Email address is the dedupe key. Name, phone, and any custom contact properties migrate as custom user fields in Zendesk. If the source customer record has a company association, we resolve the Organization lookup in Zendesk after the Companies-to-Organizations migration phase completes. Suspended customers in Zendesk are automatically unsuspended upon import; tickets without a valid requester are rejected by the Zendesk API.

Tele-Support HelpDesk Company records map to Zendesk Organizations. Domain, name, address, and custom company properties migrate as Organization fields or custom organization fields. Organizations are created before Customer import so that the Organization lookup is satisfied at the moment of End User insert. Parent-child company hierarchies in Tele-Support HelpDesk map to Zendesk's parent Organization relationship if the customer has Enterprise or Enterprise Plus plan.

Tele-Support HelpDesk agents map to Zendesk users with agent-level roles. We match by email address and require that agents have active Zendesk accounts before ticket assignment mapping can proceed. If an agent in Tele-Support HelpDesk has not accepted their Zendesk invitation, tickets assigned to that agent are held in a reconciliation queue and assigned to a default agent post-migration. Role mapping (admin, agent, light agent) is set based on the customer's Zendesk plan tier.

Tele-Support HelpDesk teams map to Zendesk Groups. Team membership, team names, and SLA associations are preserved as Group metadata in Zendesk. Ticket routing to groups migrates with the ticket so that group-based views and SLA policies function immediately after migration. If Zendesk plan limits the number of groups, we prioritize active routing groups and archive empty teams.

Tele-Support HelpDesk ticket conversations migrate as Zendesk ticket comments ordered by created_at timestamp. Public customer messages become public comments; internal notes become private comments in Zendesk. Inline images and embedded screenshots migrate as attachments linked to the parent comment. We flag tickets with more than 250 comments as a scoping note because extended threads may require post-migration review for readability in Zendesk's comment interface.

Binary file attachments migrate as Zendesk ticket attachments, preserving original filenames and MIME types. Inline images embedded in ticket replies are extracted and re-attached to the parent comment. Attachment migration significantly extends migration duration; we present a 'Skip Attachments' option during scoping for teams prioritizing speed over historical file preservation. If Zendesk plan storage limits are a concern, we recommend skipping attachments and migrating only inline images used in active threads.

Tags are flat label strings applied to tickets, customers, and companies. We migrate all tag names and re-apply them in Zendesk at the record level. Zendesk automatically generates additional tags from custom field dropdown selections; we map the customer's original Tele-Support HelpDesk tags separately from any system-generated Zendesk tags. Tag counts are preserved for reporting continuity.

Custom ticket fields in Tele-Support HelpDesk are defined per-account and can be text, numeric, dropdown, or date. We extract the full field schema from the source API before migration begins and require explicit mapping to Zendesk custom field equivalents. Text fields map to Zendesk text custom fields; numeric fields map to integer or decimal custom fields; dropdowns map to Zendesk dropdown custom fields with option values preserved; dates map to Zendesk date custom fields. The mapping document is reviewed during scoping and validated in the sandbox migration before production.

KB articles migrate to Zendesk Guide with section hierarchy, article body content, and publication status preserved. Author names and publish or update timestamps migrate as article metadata. Section categories map to Zendesk Guide sections and categories. Formatting, inline images, and cross-links between articles are preserved wherever possible. Only the default language migrates by default; multi-language translation requires a separate scoping step. The Zendesk Help Center must be activated by the account owner before article import begins.

Macros (canned responses) and workflow automations in Tele-Support HelpDesk are configuration-only records with no stable external API representation. We do not migrate them programmatically. We deliver a written inventory of every active Tele-Support HelpDesk macro and automation, including its trigger conditions, actions, and target field effects, with a recommended Zendesk equivalent (macro for canned responses, Trigger or Automation for workflow logic). The customer's Zendesk admin rebuilds these manually after migration. We do not rebuild them as part of standard migration scope.