Prepare Source and Target Store Access
Prevent connection delays by assigning the required admin, API, hosting, file, approval, and cleanup access for both source and target environments before setup.
Prepare Source and Target Store Access
Section titled “Prepare Source and Target Store Access”Prepare the access required for the Source Platform and Target Platform before you start connection setup.
Next-Cart shows the supported setup for each platform in your selected migration path. Some platforms require admin access or API credentials. Some self-hosted platforms require hosting or server access for KitConnect. Some source platforms require exported data files.
Prerequisites
Section titled “Prerequisites”Before preparing access, confirm that:
- your Next-Cart account can open the purchased migration as the owner or through an active Delegate Access grant;
- the order and the purchased migration in My Migrations show the correct Source Platform and Target Platform; reach My Migrations by expanding Migrations in the Dashboard;
- the source store is available and not in the middle of major platform maintenance;
- the target store is created, accessible, and stable enough for validation;
- the person preparing access is authorized to create credentials, export data, or request hosting access;
- you know who can approve access changes, security changes, and migration decisions.
Access you may need
Section titled “Access you may need”| Access area | Prepare this | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Next-Cart migration access | Your own Next-Cart sign-in with access to the intended purchased migration, either as the owner or through Delegate Access. | Delegated collaborators can work on the migration without sharing the owner’s credentials. |
| Source Platform admin | Admin access to the source store. | You may need to review source data, create credentials, export data, or confirm source records. |
| Target Platform admin | Admin access to the target store. | You need to confirm target readiness, validate migrated results, and adjust target-side settings. |
| API credentials | API keys, access tokens, private app credentials, client IDs, or secrets where requested. | Next-Cart uses the supported platform setup to read or write migration data. |
| Hosting or server access | SFTP, FTP, hosting control panel, or file manager access where KitConnect is required. | KitConnect must be placed in the correct web root for supported self-hosted platforms. |
| Source export files | Complete CSV, XLS, XLSX, XML, TXT, ZIP, or platform export files where File Upload is required. | Some source platforms provide migration data through exported files rather than direct platform access. |
| Security approval | Permission to create, share, rotate, or revoke temporary access. | Migration work often requires temporary credentials that should be removed after completion. |
| Decision owner | A named person who can approve scope, mapping, Add-ons, Custom Service requirements, and validation decisions. | Setup delays often happen when no one can approve changes or clarify expected results. |
Confirm the intended stores before Connect Stores
Section titled “Confirm the intended stores before Connect Stores”Before connection setup, identify the exact Source and Target environments intended for the paid migration. After Connect Stores is saved and the migration advances to Configuration, a Source or Target Store URL can lock for later migration activity depending on the URL fields used by the active setup.
Review Store URL Locking and Store Identity before using staging, development, alternate domains, a Source setup without a URL field, or a different Lightspeed edition on a later run.
Prepare access
Section titled “Prepare access”-
Confirm the purchased migration path
Open the purchased migration from your authorized Next-Cart account and confirm that the Source Platform and Target Platform are correct.
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Identify the access owner for each environment
Name the person responsible for source store admin access, target store admin access, hosting access, billing access, and technical approvals.
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Review the setup requested by Next-Cart
In the migration interface, check the setup required for the Source Platform and Target Platform. Prepare only the setup shown for that migration path.
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Prepare source store access
Confirm that you can open the source store admin, view the data in scope, create credentials if requested, and export source files if your platform requires file upload.
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Prepare target store access
Confirm that you can open the target store admin, review migrated records, adjust target-side settings, and test storefront or admin behavior after migration.
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Prepare hosting or server access if KitConnect is required
Confirm that you can access the store’s public web root, upload the extracted KitConnect folder without renaming it, and remove it after migration and required follow-up work are complete. Use Install KitConnect for folder naming, placement, and connection verification.
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Prepare credential cleanup
Record which temporary credentials, API tokens, social connections, passwords, or server access details must be revoked, rotated, or removed after migration work is complete.
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Document access limits and blockers
Note any restrictions such as missing admin rights, expired credentials, unavailable hosting access, source export limits, blocked IP ranges, or security approval delays.
Expected result
Section titled “Expected result”After completing this task:
- the migration owner and any required delegated collaborators are identified;
- the Source Platform and Target Platform are confirmed;
- source store and target store access are ready for setup and validation;
- required credentials, files, or server access can be prepared when requested;
- the correct people can approve access, scope, mapping, and validation decisions;
- temporary access cleanup is planned before migration work begins.
Verify your access readiness
Section titled “Verify your access readiness”| Check | Pass condition |
|---|---|
| Migration access | The authorized user can open the intended purchased migration in My Migrations. |
| Migration path | The Source Platform and Target Platform match the purchased service. |
| Source admin access | You can view the source records that will be migrated. |
| Target admin access | You can open the target store and inspect migrated results when available. |
| Credential authority | You can create, copy, rotate, or revoke credentials if the platform setup requires it. |
| File export readiness | If File Upload is required, you can export complete files in the required format. |
| Hosting readiness | If KitConnect is required, you can access the web root and remove temporary files after completion. |
| Approval ownership | A named person can approve access, setup changes, scope decisions, and validation results. |
Failure handling
Section titled “Failure handling”| Issue | What to do |
|---|---|
| You cannot open the purchased migration | If you are the owner, recover your account access. If you are a collaborator, ask the owner to grant or verify Delegate Access. |
| The migration path is incorrect | Do not continue setup. Review the order and purchased migration, then contact support before entering credentials. |
| Source store access is incomplete | Ask the store owner to grant the required admin, export, or credential permissions. |
| Target store access is incomplete | Ask the target store owner to grant admin access before validation starts. |
| API credential creation is blocked | Confirm your admin role has permission to create apps, tokens, or integrations. |
| Source export files are incomplete | Re-export the full required range. Do not manually remove columns or rename fields unless instructed. |
| Hosting access is unavailable | Ask the hosting owner to provide temporary SFTP or file manager access, or assign someone who can install KitConnect. |
| Security approval is blocked | Pause setup until the access owner approves credential sharing, temporary access, and cleanup responsibilities. |
What not to do
Section titled “What not to do”Do not:
- enter credentials before confirming the migration path;
- create credentials with broader permissions than needed when a narrower permission set works;
- manually edit source export headers or delete columns unless instructed;
- use a staging target store when you intend to validate a production target store;
- leave temporary credentials, server access, or KitConnect files in place after completion;
- share the migration owner’s account credentials when another user can be granted Delegate Access instead.
A local URL must be made reachable before connection
Section titled “A local URL must be made reachable before connection”A store that exists only on localhost, a private development hostname, or an internal network cannot be reached by Next-Cart when the selected setup requires network access to that store. Make the required endpoint available through a stable, externally reachable URL and apply the access controls appropriate for the migration.
Confirm that the reachable environment represents the store intended for migration and that required API, KitConnect, or file-transfer requests can reach it. A temporary public endpoint is useful only if it remains stable for the migration activity and does not change the registered store identity after a paid migration has established a Store URL lock.
Next Steps
Section titled “Next Steps”| If your access is ready | Go to |
|---|---|
| You need to connect the platforms | Connect Your Source and Target Platforms |
| You need to define exactly what data should migrate | Define Migration Scope |
| You need expert handling for non-standard data | Prepare Custom Service Requirements |
| You need to define pass/fail criteria | Define Acceptance Criteria |
| You need help with access or setup blockers | Support Tickets |