How to migrate your project to the MenuBuilderBot platform

You already have a project created on one of the bot constructors in Telegram and you want to migrate it to the @MenuBuilderBot platform. This article will show you some of the right ways to do it.

First of all, you must answer yourself, a few questions:
1. Do I need to save the address of my old project (bot) in Telegram?
3. Do I need to save existing users in the bot and invite them to the new bot?
3. Do I need to save and transfer these users' data?

Let's look at the answers to these questions one by one.

1. Bot transfer without saving the address.

This is probably one of the easiest options for moving your project to the @MenuBuilderBot platform. In fact, you can work on creating a copy of your Bot in parallel with the existence of your current project on the old platform. When all the menus and necessary functionality on the @MenuBuilderBot platform are created, you can simply send out a mailing to all users of your old bot with a request to join your bot at a new address created on the @MenuBuilderBot platform.

On the constructor's platform, it is possible to import the menus and messages from your old bot to your new one. Therefore, to make it easier for you to copy menus, you can contact @MenuBuilderSupportBot. When copying menus from other constructors, it is possible to save only what is available to a regular bot's user, that is, buttons and their messages. In this case, internal functions will not be copied; later, you will need to add them yourself. Despite this, such imports for large bots (like catalogs) can be useful, speed up the work of creating a bot on a new platform, and save you a lot of time.

Since the import is run and configured manually by @MenuBuilderBot administrators, there is a fee for this procedure.

2. Transfer of the bot with the preservation of the old address and users.

This way of changing the platform is a little more complicated, it requires a better understanding of the mechanics of how bots interact with Telegram itself. In this case, in the process of creating a new bot, you will have to switch Webhooks from your old project to the new one and back from time to time.

You can read about what Webhooks are and, in general, about the mechanics of how bots work in Telegram in a separate article. After reading the material, it will be easier for you to understand how to make the transition to a new platform while maintaining the address of the bot.

When working on creating functionality while saving the bot address, you will need to switch the Webhook from your old project to the new one through the @MenuBuilderBot platform for the duration of the work. If your bot is actively used during the day, then it is better to work on its new menu at night, when user activity is lower. That is, in the evening you switch the Webhook, carry out the necessary work to create the functionality, after which the Webhook returns back to its old project - so that your users can use the existing functions on the old platform during the day.

You can work on your project during the day, however, after the transfer of the Webhook, you will need to enable "Maintenance Mode" in your new bot. How to do this is written in the Basic Functions Guide. When this mode is enabled, even if some user gets into your new bot, he will not be able to use it, because he will receive a message that technical work is underway. After the work is completed and the Webhook returns to the old project, users will again be able to see the functionality of your old bot.

Just like for the first option - "Without saving the address", in this option you can use the Menu Import service: in this case, as in the first case, only the menu and its messages that are available to a regular user, can be copied. All other internal functionality you will need to add manually.

Once you've completed all the functionality on the new @MenuBuilderBot platform, you'll also need to create a mailing asking all your users to press the command /start - that you'll put in the post, at a specific time. After you make sure that all users have received this message and the mailing through the old project is over, you finally switch the Webhook to the new project.

After you make sure that everything works in the new bot and most of your users have joined the new bot, we recommend that you change the Token in @BotFather so that the two projects: old and new do not conflict with each other. Some projects, in case of detecting the loss of the Webhook, try to resume it, in this case the old menu returns and will be shown to users. If you change the Token (without deleting the bot itself of course), your old project will not be able to authorize to return the Webhook. The bot itself on the old constructor can also be deleted.

3. User data transfer.

For some projects, it is important to save and transfer users data, such as: the state of balances, some settings saved in variables, possibly other collected personal data. In order for the transfer to be possible, first you need to make sure that your old project supports Export Database to File.

If the Export of Database option is not supported, then further consideration of the issue of data transfer does not make sense.

If your old service supports database export, then you can contact the @MenuBuilderBot project team (via the @MenuBuilderSupportBot support bot) to import user data into your new @MenuBuilderBot project.

To do this, you will need to provide a fragment of the Database you have exported, so that we can determine if it is possible to import the data in the form that you have it in the file.

If the data is in an acceptable state (format) and its import is possible, then you will need to provide the entire file with the exported Database. After that, the @MenuBuilderBot team will prepare the import of this data into the Database of your new project.

Since this process, as well as Menu Import, requires active human participation, a certain fee will be charged for such actions.

So, we have described all three options for a possible development of cases. All of them, of course, can be combined in various combinations. We hope that this article will help you to carry out the planned transfer of your project.