Migrate to Zenifra

This plan helps you move a production app from another platform to Zenifra with minimal downtime. The idea is simple: run everything in parallel, validate on the Zenifra URL, and only then switch DNS.

Seven-step plan

Take inventory

List every service in the current app: web processes, workers, scheduled tasks, databases, cache, environment variables, domains, and external integrations. Each process becomes a project on Zenifra.

Create the organization and invite the team

Create or pick an organization and invite the people involved with the permissions they need.

Create databases and managed services

Create the databases, cache, and queues before the app. That way the connection URLs already exist when you add the variables.

Deploy the app

Use your framework guide and the equivalents table below. Copy the environment variables from the current platform, replacing database and cache URLs with the new ones.

Copy the data

Follow Migrate the database. Do a full rehearsal before switch day to measure how long it takes.

Validate on the Zenifra URL

Test the app on *.clients.zenifra.com: sign-in, main flows, email sending, webhooks, and integrations.

Switch DNS

Lower the DNS record TTL to 300 seconds a day ahead. At the agreed time, freeze writes on the old platform, run the final data copy, configure the domain on Zenifra, and update DNS. Keep the old platform running for a few days for rollback.

Platform equivalents

Heroku	Zenifra
App	Project
`web` dyno in `Procfile`	Project `start` command
`worker` dyno	Another project from the same repository with a different `start`
`release:` in `Procfile`	Prefix in `start`, such as `npm run migrate && npm start`
Config Vars	Environment variables
Heroku Postgres	Managed PostgreSQL
Heroku Redis	Managed cache or Key-Value
Buildpacks	Node.js or Python runtime, or OCI Image for other languages
Review Apps	Preview Environments
`$PORT`	Project Port field. Set `PORT` as a variable if your code depends on it

Migrate the database

PostgreSQL

Export the current database in custom format and restore it on Zenifra with the console URI, which already enforces TLS:

pg_dump --format=custom --no-owner --no-acl "$OLD_URL" > dump.pgdump

pg_restore --no-owner --no-acl --jobs=4 \
  --dbname="postgresql://user:password@host:port/db?sslmode=verify-full&sslrootcert=system" \
  dump.pgdump

Use a pg_dump version equal to or newer than the source database. --no-owner avoids permission errors with users that do not exist on Zenifra.

MariaDB and MySQL

mysqldump --single-transaction --routines --triggers -h OLD_HOST -u USER -p DATABASE > dump.sql
mariadb --ssl -h ZENIFRA_HOST -P PORT -u USER -p DATABASE < dump.sql

DNS TTL lowered in advance
App validated on the *.clients.zenifra.com URL
Variables reviewed, with no URLs from the old platform
External webhooks (payments, GitHub, email) updated to the new domain
Final data copy done and validated
Domain configured and HTTPS active
Old platform kept running for rollback

Need help migrating?

For larger migrations, email [email protected] with the inventory from step 1. See also the help center.