Import, export, and migrate

Import and export a board archive

If you’d like to back up your board or re-use it on another team or channel workspace, you can export it as an archive file, and then import the archive file in the team or channel workspace of your choosing. Exported and imported board archives include all card content such as properties, comments, descriptions, and image attachments.

To do this, select the options menu to the left of the New button at the top of the board. Then select Export board archive. Download the archive file. Navigate to the team or channel workspace where you’d like to add the exported board. Select the Gear icon next to your profile picture, then choose Import archive. The board you exported will be added to this team or channel workspace.

From Mattermost v6.4, the archive format changed, with a new .boardarchive extension and all new exports are in this format.
From Mattermost v7.2, channel workspaces are no longer supported, and the Import archive option will import the board to your current team. Use board permissions to control access to your imported board.

Note

The previous .focalboard format will be deprecated in a future release, but will support importing until then. Currently, the import dialog looks for .boardarchive. Use Select all files to select .focalboard files to import.

Export to CSV

To export a board into a CSV file, select the options menu to the left of the New button at the top of the board. Then select Export to CSV.

Import and export from other applications

You can import data from other tools to use with Boards. Contribute code to expand this.

Import from Asana

This node app converts an Asana JSON archive into a .boardarchive file.

Log into your Asana account.
Select the drop-down menu next to the Asana board’s name. Then select Export/Print > JSON. This will create an archive file which you’ll use in Boards.
Save the file locally, e.g. to asana.json.
Open a terminal window on your local machine and clone the focalboard repository to a local directory, e.g. to focalboard:

git clone https://github.com/mattermost/focalboard focalboard

Navigate to focalboard/webapp.
Run npm install.
Change directory to focalboard/import/asana.
Run npm install.
From within the same folder, run npx ts-node importAsana.ts -i <asana.json> -o archive.boardarchive. This generates the following data:

My-MacbookPro:asana macbook$ npx ts-node importAsana.ts -i ~/Downloads/asana.json -o archive.boardarchive
Board: 1:1 Meeting Agenda Test
Card: [READ ME] Instructions for using this project
Card: [EXAMPLE TASK] Feedback on design team presentation
Card: [EXAMPLE TASK] Finalize monthly staffing plan
Card: [EXAMPLE TASK] Review Q2 launch video outline
Card: [EXAMPLE TASK] Mentor a peer

Found 5 card(s).
Exported to archive.boardarchive

In Boards, open the board you want to use for the export.
Select Settings > Import archive and select archive.boardarchive.
Select Upload.
Return to your board and confirm that your Asana data is now displaying.

If you don’t see your Asana data, an the error should be displayed. You can also check log files for errors.

Import scope

Currently, the script imports all cards from a single board, including their section (column) membership, names, and notes.

Import from Notion

This node app converts a Notion CSV and markdown export into a .boardarchive file.

From a Notion Board, open the … menu at the top right corner of the board.
Select Export and pick Markdown & CSV as the export format.
Save the generated file locally, and unzip the folder.
Open a terminal window on your local machine and clone the focalboard repository to a local directory, e.g. to focalboard:

git clone https://github.com/mattermost/focalboard focalboard

Navigate to focalboard/webapp.
Run npm install.
Change directory to focalboard/import/notion.
Run npm install.
From within the same folder, run npx ts-node importNotion.ts -i <path to the notion-export folder> -o archive.boardarchive.
In Boards, open the board you want to use for the export.
Select Settings > Import archive and select archive.boardarchive.
Select Upload.
Return to your board and confirm that your Notion data is now displaying.

Import scope

Currently, the script imports all cards from a single board, including their properties and markdown content.

The Notion export format does not preserve property types, so the script currently imports all card properties as a Select type. You can change the type after importing into Focalboard.

Import from Jira

This node app converts a Jira .XML export into a .boardarchive file.

Open Jira advanced search, and search for all the items to export.
Select Export > Export XML.
Save the generated file locally, e.g. to jira_export.xml.
Open a terminal window on your local machine and clone the focalboard repository to a local directory, e.g. to focalboard:

git clone https://github.com/mattermost/focalboard focalboard

Navigate to focalboard/webapp.
Run npm install.
Change directory to ``focalboard/import/jira`.
Run npm install.
From within the same folder, run npx ts-node importJira.ts -i <path-to-jira.xml> -o archive.boardarchive.
In Boards, open the board you want to use for the export.
Select Settings > Import archive and select archive.boardarchive.
Select Upload.
Return to your board and confirm that your Jira data is now displaying.

Import scope and known limitations

Currently, the script imports each item as a card into a single board. Note that Jira .XML export is limited to 1000 issues at a time.

Users are imported as Select properties, with the name of the user.

The following aren’t currently imported:

Custom properties
Comments
Embedded files

Import from Trello

This node app converts a Trello .json archive into a .boardarchive file.

From the Trello Board Menu, select …Show Menu.
Select More > Print and Export > Export to JSON.
Save the generated file locally, e.g. to trello.json.
Open a terminal window on your local machine and clone the focalboard repository to a local directory, e.g. to focalboard:

git clone https://github.com/mattermost/focalboard focalboard

Navigate to focalboard/webapp.
Run npm install.
Change directory to focalboard/import/trello.
Run npm install.
From within the same folder, run npx ts-node importTrello.ts -i <path-to-trello.json> -o archive.boardarchive.
In Boards, open the board you want to use for the export.
Select Settings > Import archive and select archive.boardarchive.
Select Upload.
Return to your board and confirm that your Trello data is now displaying.

Import scope

Currently, the script imports all cards from a single board, including their list (column) membership, names, and descriptions.

Import from Todoist

This node app converts a Todoist .json archive into a .boardarchive file.

Visit the open source Todoist data export service at https://darekkay.com/todoist-export/.
From the Options menu, select Export As > JSON (all data).
Uncheck the Archived option if checked.
Select Authorize and Backup. This will take you to your Todoist account. Follow the instructions on screen.
Note the name and location of the downloaded .json file.
Open a terminal window on your local machine and clone the focalboard repository to a local directory, e.g. to focalboard:

git clone https://github.com/mattermost/focalboard focalboard

Navigate to focalboard/webapp.
Run npm install.
Change directory to focalboard/import/todoist.
Run npm install.
From within the same folder, run npx ts-node importTodoist.ts -i <path-to-todoist.json> -o archive.boardarchive.
In Boards, open the board you want to use for the export.
Select Settings > Import archive and select archive.boardarchive.
Select Upload.
Return to your board and confirm that your Todoist data is now displaying.