Introduction
Migrating from Oracle E-Business Suite (EBS) to Oracle Fusion Cloud is a massive opportunity — but also a massive risk if your data isn’t ready.
We’ve supported dozens of customers before, during, and after their move to Oracle Cloud. While functional and technical readiness get a lot of attention, data readiness is often underestimated — until it’s too late.
Here are 6 critical data lessons learned from real-world migrations that can save you time, cost, and cleanup downstream.
1. You Can’t Migrate What You Don’t Understand
Many companies assume their EBS data is clean — until they run the first Cloud validations.
Common issues:
- Inactive suppliers with open balances
- Duplicate customers with mismatched sites
- Item masters missing UOMs or costing setups
- GL data with missing or outdated CoA segments
Lesson:
Run full data profiling BEFORE your migration. API Wizard’s loaders can help extract and mass-update data using Excel — giving you full visibility and control.
2. Don’t Wait Until You’re Live to Clean Up
Cloud go-lives are stressful. Don’t stack data cleanup on top of it.
What often happens:
- Teams migrate messy data “just to get live”
- Clean-up is promised “post-go-live” (but rarely happens)
- Errors cause AP holds, inventory misalignment, or reporting issues
Lesson:
Use loaders to clean EBS data before migration. You can archive bad records, normalize values, and flag incomplete transactions using API Wizard.
3. Relying Solely on FBDI = Pain
FBDI may be Oracle’s default migration method — but it’s not built for usability or traceability.
Pain points include:
- Complex .zip formats and staging
- No row-level validations
- No visibility into failures
- No support for attachments or comments
Lesson:
Consider using API Wizard alongside or after FBDI to validate and adjust records quickly — especially when parallel testing or reconciling post-go-live.
4. Data Mapping Must Be Owned by the Business
IT teams often build the data map. But if the business doesn’t sign off — the outcome rarely matches reality.
Examples:
- Finance signs off GL structure late
- Procurement unaware of new supplier model
- HR confused about element entries and work structures
Lesson:
Use Excel-based templates to collaborate with business users early. API Wizard’s templates reflect actual Oracle Cloud fields and structures — making validation easy and accurate.
5. Attachments & Justifications Matter More in the Cloud
Many legacy attachments in EBS (PO terms, supplier forms, project justifications) are lost during migration — unless you plan for them.
Lesson:
Use API Wizard to re-attach documentation during or after migration, directly from Excel rows.
6. Governance Is Easier to Start Than Retrofit
Most companies think: “We’ll tighten security after the go-live.”
In reality:
- Uploads continue without controls
- Data quality erodes again
- Audits become messy
- Teams lose trust in the system
Lesson:
Start with governance — define who can load what, to which BU or ledger. API Wizard’s access controls and logs make this easy before and after migration.
Recap: Data Lessons Checklist
| Lesson | Action |
| Understand data before migrating | Profile & extract key entities early |
| Clean up in EBS | Don’t wait until post-go-live |
| Use loaders that validate | Avoid FBDI-only approach |
| Engage business users | Use Excel templates they can review |
| Plan for attachments | Use bulk upload with API Wizard |
| Enforce governance | Control by BU, module, user role |