Transition from Classic WFM to New WFM

Verified 2026-09-05 · 21 claims · sources tier 2

Also known as Transfer from other system, transition tool.

Cisco documents a transition tool that moves agents and queue statistics from a Classic Cisco WFM installation to a new Cisco WFM installation and sets default values 19. Cisco calls the move between the 2 workforce management variants a transition rather than a migration, and the word migration is never used to describe it 2.

Transition tool operation

The transition tool is accessed in the new Cisco WFM interface by navigating to WFM, then WFM settings, then Getting started, and then Transfer from other system 8. The tool functions for both cloud and on-premises installations of Classic Cisco WFM 21. Authentication occurs by entering the base URL used to access Classic Cisco WFM alongside a Classic Cisco WFM username and password 1.

A transition run has a maximum session time of 1 hour, and Cisco advises transitioning a shorter period first for a large organisation 17. The transition can be re-run for the same period and teams; executing a re-run overwrites changes made to transitioned data while leaving changed default values alone 15.

Prerequisites

• The Classic Cisco WFM installation must run version 10.4 or later 9.
• The Classic Cisco WFM server must be accessible from the new Cisco WFM server over the network 12.
• The user must hold the Super administrator role, and the transition tool must be made available in the target installation 13.
• The Classic Cisco WFM account must hold the Administer WFM, Administer schedules, and Plan schedules permissions, along with access to all groups and teams being transitioned 10.
• At least 1 contract, contract schedule, and part time percentage must exist, and employee defaults must be configured before running the transition 11.

Scope of transitioned data

• Transitioned entities: The tool transfers agent first and last name, employment number, email, format, time zone, leaving date, site and team, a person period, roles matched by name, and queues together with queue statistics 20.
• Role mapping: Roles transition strictly by name matching, meaning an existing role in the new Cisco WFM with the same name is reused and permissions are not carried across 16.
• Non-transitioned entities: Skills, external logons, contracts, contract schedules, part time percentages, multiplicator definition sets, shift bags, schedule periods, rotations, and personal accounts are not transitioned and must be created in the new installation 14.

WarmTransfer's reading of the sources is that the transition does not produce a working configuration on its own, as the overview lists categories an administrator must create by hand afterwards 7.

Documentation and variant differences

The Classic WFM user guide never mentions New WFM, never uses the phrase Classic Cisco WFM, and does not document the transition tool, preventing Classic customers from discovering the feature within their own guide set 3. In addition, the Webex WFO guides for both variants record Calabrio, Inc. as their author in the PDF metadata 4. Neither variant's guide states that New WFM supersedes Classic WFM, and neither guide publishes an end of support date for Classic 6.

WarmTransfer's reading of the sources is that a second transition—moving from Cisco Teleopti WFM into New WFM—ships a readiness check, whereas the Classic to New transition does not include one 18. Furthermore, we infer that the product activation key enforcing New WFM licensing has no counterpart in the Classic WFM guide, and the transition topic never mentions licensing 5.

See also

See also Classic WFM and New WFM variants of Webex Workforce Optimization. See also Failure and rollback behaviour of the Classic to New WFM transition.

Applicability

Across the claims in this article, the evidence covers Cisco Webex Workforce Optimization across cloud and on-premises deployments, verified as of 2026-09-05. The transition tool requires Classic Cisco WFM version 10.4 or later 9. The transition tool supports source Classic Cisco WFM systems deployed on-premises as well as in the cloud 21.

What remains uncertain

Why a customer would move from Classic WFM to New WFM is not covered by any claim in this article. What happens to licensing across the transition is not covered by any claim in this article. Whether the 2 systems can run in parallel during a cutover is not covered by any claim in this article. Whether a transition can be rolled back is not covered by any claim in this article. The 2 different definitions of a licence consuming agent in the New WFM guide are not covered by any claim in this article. What happens when the 1 hour cap is reached mid transition is not covered by any claim in this article. The full content of the 2 WFM data transition overview tables is not covered by any claim in this article. Whether agents without a team are silently dropped is not covered by any claim in this article.

WarmTransfer. (2026, September 5). Transition from Classic WFM to New WFM. WarmTransfer. https://warmtransfer.net/knowledge/wfo-classic-to-new-migration

@misc{warmtransfer-wfo-classic-to-new-migration,
  title  = {Transition from Classic WFM to New WFM},
  author = {{WarmTransfer}},
  year   = {2026},
  url    = {https://warmtransfer.net/knowledge/wfo-classic-to-new-migration},
  note   = {Verified 2026-09-05}
}