Migrate from Vision Service Desk to Zoho Desk

Vision Service Desk Tickets map directly to Zoho Desk Tickets. We extract all standard ticket fields (priority, type, status, requester, assignee, timestamps, threaded conversations) via Vision's SaaS REST API for cloud instances. For on-premises deployments, we coordinate CSV exports from the admin panel or direct database reads with customer-provided credentials. Each ticket's requester resolves to a Zoho Contact or Account lookup, and the assignee resolves to a Zoho Agent within the mapped department. Vision custom fields are discovered via explicit field manifest queries during discovery and mapped to Zoho custom fields scoped per department.

Vision Clients (end-user accounts that submit tickets via portal) map to Zoho Desk Contacts. We migrate client profiles including contact details, portal preferences, and associated ticket history. Client-side custom fields map to Zoho Contact custom fields (cf_ prefix). Email address is used as the dedupe key. Portal username and access status migrate as a Zoho Contact field with a note if portal access differs between platforms.

Vision Staff records map to Zoho Desk Agents. We extract staff roles, permissions, team assignments, and admin status. For Vision SaaS, we use the staff API endpoint; for on-premises, we apply the reverse-engineered CSV column transform (the required column sequence is not documented in the public admin guide) before import. Staff hierarchy (Super-Admins, Team Managers) maps to Zoho Desk roles and department membership. Any Vision staff without a matching Zoho user email goes to a reconciliation queue for your admin to provision before the contact import phase.

Vision Companies (organization-level groupings for clients) map to Zoho Desk Accounts. We preserve company-to-contact relationships and company-specific custom fields during migration. The Vision company tree structure with nested parent-child relationships maps to Zoho Account hierarchy where available. Account is created before any Contact import so that the Account lookup is satisfied at the moment of Contact insert.

Vision Knowledge Base articles map to Zoho Desk ASAP Articles. We migrate article content, category assignments, and article-to-topic associations. Vision's article permissions and publication status (draft, published) map to Zoho article visibility settings. Note: Zoho's assisted migration (Zwitch) explicitly excludes KB attachments; we handle attachment migration via Zoho Desk API using ContentDocument and ContentDocumentLink records. Original article creation timestamps are stored in a custom Zoho field (original_created_date__c) because Zoho sets the article creation date to the migration date by default.

Vision KB Categories (hierarchical category structure organizing articles) map to Zoho Desk Category structure. We preserve the category tree and re-map article associations to the destination category hierarchy. Category permissions from Vision map to Zoho article-level access controls. If Vision categories exceed Zoho's nesting depth, we flatten the structure and preserve the full path in a category_path__c custom field on each article.

Vision SLA Plan definitions (calendar-based response and resolution targets) migrate to Zoho Desk SLA Policies. We extract plan names, priority mappings, business hours definitions, and escalation rules. However, SLA reassignment requires manual configuration in Zoho because Zoho's SLA engine uses department-scoped policies rather than a universal plan assignment. We deliver a mapping table of Vision SLA Plan to Zoho SLA Policy with priority and business hours aligned, and the customer's Zoho admin assigns the correct SLA Policy to each department post-migration.

Vision ticket classification metadata (tags, labels, flags) migrate to Zoho Desk Tags. We preserve tag assignments per ticket as Zoho tag records. Vision label taxonomies and flag categories reconstruct as Zoho tag groups or as multi-select picklist custom fields depending on whether the customer prefers searchability or visual categorization in Zoho.

Vision custom fields for tickets, client registration forms, and user data capture extract with explicit field manifest queries during discovery because they are not returned in default API list responses. We map field types to Zoho custom field types: Vision drop-down maps to Zoho picklist, multi-select maps to Zoho multi-select, date fields map to Zoho date, and free-text maps to Zoho string. Custom fields are scoped per module (Ticket, Contact, Account) in Zoho, so Vision's cross-object custom fields may require duplication or a lookup relationship design decision during scoping.

Vision Asset records and Configuration Management Database (CMDB) relationships map to Zoho Desk Assets. We migrate asset records with their linked CI relationships, though CMDB mapping depends on the destination Zoho instance's asset schema. Vision asset-to-ticket linking (tracking which assets are affected by a ticket) migrates to Zoho's affected_assets relationship on the Ticket object. Problem Management records from Vision's Pro Service Desk tier map to Zoho Asset problem associations or to a custom field on the Asset record depending on Zoho's installed modules.

Vision Problem Management records (Pro Service Desk and Enterprise tiers) map to Zoho Asset records with a problem_related__c lookup relationship. We extract problem records, their linked incident associations, and problem status history. Note: Zoho Desk does not expose a separate Problem object equivalent to Vision's ITSM Problem Management module; we reconstruct the relationship by creating a custom Problem__c object in Zoho or by linking to an Asset with a custom status field. This is confirmed with the customer during scoping.

Vision Change Management records (Pro Service Desk and Enterprise tiers) with approval workflows and schedules map to Zoho Blueprint stages or to a custom Change_Request__c object. We extract change records, approval status history, and schedule details. Approval chain reconstruction in Zoho depends on the customer's Blueprint setup, which is a manual configuration post-migration. We deliver a written inventory of every Vision Change Management record with its approval chain for manual recreation in Zoho Blueprint.

Vision workflow rules (auto-assign round robin, auto-close, dispatch) extract as a written inventory document. Vision's trigger-condition-action automation model does not map directly to Zoho Blueprint's visual stage-process model. We deliver a structured document listing each Vision workflow with its trigger event, conditions, actions, and a recommended Zoho Blueprint equivalent. Your admin rebuilds automations in Zoho Blueprint post-migration; this is a separate configuration effort not included in the standard migration scope.

Vision time and ticket-based billing records (Pro Help Desk tier) migrate to Zoho Desk Time Entries. We extract time credits, billing rates, and time entry associations to tickets. Note: Zoho Desk's time tracking is available on Professional and Enterprise tiers and requires explicit billing configuration. We map Vision time entry hours, rates, and billable status to Zoho time_entry records linked to the migrated ticket.