Why Migrate?
SQL Server licensing costs are rising. PostgreSQL is production-grade, open-source, and runs everywhere — including Neon, Supabase, Azure Database for PostgreSQL, and AWS RDS. For many .NET teams, the migration is a significant cost and flexibility win.
The challenge is that a database migration is high-risk if done without a rigorous process. Schema differences, implicit type coercions, and EF Core provider behaviour divergences can all cause subtle bugs that only surface in production.
Our Migration Process
1. Assessment
We analyse your current schema, query patterns, stored procedures, and EF Core configuration. We produce a migration risk register with every identified incompatibility and our recommended resolution for each.
2. Schema Translation
We translate your SQL Server schema to PostgreSQL, resolving:
- Data type differences (
NVARCHAR→TEXT,DATETIME→TIMESTAMPTZ, etc.) - Identity columns vs sequences
- Computed columns and function differences
- Full-text search configurations
- JSON column handling
3. EF Core Provider Swap
We update your EF Core configuration from UseSqlServer to UseNpgsql, update migrations history, resolve any model builder incompatibilities, and validate that the resulting schema matches your expectations.
4. Data Migration & Validation
We migrate your data with row-count validation, hash-based integrity checks, and reconciliation reporting. Nothing moves to production without being verified.
5. Cutover Planning
We produce a detailed cutover runbook — including rollback procedures — and support you through the production cutover.
SQL Server 2016 End of Support
SQL Server 2016 reached end of extended support on 14 July 2026. If you're running 2016 and haven't started planning your migration, let's talk.