Preserve an unchanged original
Keep a separate backup of the source database or export before migration. The import should identify the format and version, retain stable external identifiers where possible and never require the only copy of a research archive.
Preview structure before writing
Inspect people, names, relationships, events, places, sources, citations, notes and media mappings before committing the import. Ambiguous fields should be mapped deliberately or retained as original records for later review rather than guessed into the wrong destination.
Demand an honest loss report
A useful result reports what was imported natively, preserved without conversion, skipped or blocked. Counts and warnings let the researcher compare the new workspace with the original and decide whether the migration is trustworthy enough to continue.