How to migrate from Snipe-IT to a managed asset tracker (with CSV)

Snipe-IT does the job, but a self-hosted asset tracker is a long-running tax: someone has to patch it, back it up, monitor disk space, fix the cron that has stopped sending emails for the third time this quarter. When that someone is also responsible for the laptops, the calendar wins.

This guide walks through the practical steps to move from a running Snipe-IT instance to a hosted alternative without losing data, tag IDs or audit history. The example uses SimpleAMS because that is the platform we ship, but the principles port to any tracker that accepts a CSV import.

1. Export your data from Snipe-IT

Snipe-IT ships a working CSV exporter that most teams have never opened. From your Snipe-IT instance:

1. Go to Settings → CSV import / export.
2. Export Hardware first - this is the dataset that contains every other relationship as foreign keys.
3. Export Licenses, Accessories, Consumables, Users, Locations and Categories separately.

The Hardware export is the file that matters most. It includes the asset tag (your physical-label number), serial, model, category, manufacturer, location, status label, purchase date, depreciation cost, supplier, custom fields, and the user the asset is checked out to. Snipe-IT exports this as a flat CSV - exactly what an importer needs.

2. Sanity-check the CSV before importing

Two problems trip up most Snipe-IT exports:

• Empty rows for soft-deleted assets. If your team has been using Snipe-IT for years, some assets are deleted but still appear in the export with a deleted_at column populated. Filter these out in a spreadsheet before import.
• Mixed asset-tag formats. Snipe-IT does not enforce a single tag scheme. If half your tags are SO-001234 and the other half are laptop-marketing-19, decide on a convention before importing - it is easier to fix once than per-row in the new tool.

Open the CSV in a spreadsheet. Check the columns line up. Save as UTF-8 CSV (Excel sometimes silently saves as Latin-1 and breaks any non-ASCII names).

3. Set up the new workspace

Before importing, the destination tool needs to know about your categories, manufacturers, models, locations and status labels. In SimpleAMS we create these automatically as the importer encounters them, so a fresh workspace is enough.

If you have brand-specific status labels in Snipe-IT (Repair pool, Imaging queue, Lost), create them up front in the new tool so they get matched, not duplicated, by the importer.

4. Import the hardware CSV

Go to Assets → Import in the new tool and upload the Snipe-IT hardware.csv. SimpleAMS maps the Snipe-IT column names directly (asset_tag, serial, model_id, category_id and so on), so no manual column mapping is needed for a standard export. Custom fields come across as JSON in a fieldset attached to the asset's category.

The first import should be a dry run. SimpleAMS reports the row count, the new categories and locations it will create, and any rows that fail validation (typically: an asset tag is missing or a date is in the wrong format). Fix those rows, save, and re-upload.

5. Match users and re-create checkouts

Snipe-IT's hardware CSV references the user an asset is checked out to by email (sometimes by username). To preserve checkout history:

1. Import the Snipe-IT users CSV first (or sync users from Google Workspace / Jamf / Mosyle).
2. Then import hardware. The importer matches the checkout-to email to a user record.
3. If you have unmatched checkouts (the user has left), the asset comes in as available - which is usually what you wanted anyway.

6. Import licenses and accessories

Run the licenses CSV next. SimpleAMS preserves seat counts and assignments to either users or assets. Accessories follow the same pattern.

Consumables (single-use items: cables, USB sticks) are quick - usually a single sheet with name, category, quantity, manufacturer.

7. Verify, then decommission Snipe-IT

Before turning Snipe-IT off, do these checks:

• Pick five random assets in the new tool and confirm tag, serial, checkout match Snipe-IT.
• Run a count: number of assets, licenses and users should match (allowing for soft-deleted rows you skipped).
• Verify QR labels: if you used Snipe-IT's asset_tag as the QR payload, SimpleAMS uses the same, so existing physical labels keep working.

Once the team has used the new tool for two weeks without issues, archive the Snipe-IT VM and cancel the AWS instance. Keep the database dump in cold storage for one year.

What changes day-to-day

The biggest day-one differences for teams moving off Snipe-IT:

• No more upgrade Tuesdays. A hosted tracker is patched continuously.
• QR labels just work. SimpleAMS prints them in-app on standard label stock; Snipe-IT relied on an external generator for most teams.
• SSO and 2FA are built-in. Snipe-IT supports them but configuration is bespoke per setup.
• Mobile actually works. Checkout from a phone, scan-to-find, lost-and-found QR page - features that take serious config work to retrofit onto a self-hosted Snipe-IT.

Common questions

Will my QR labels stop working? No, as long as the QR encodes the asset tag (which is Snipe-IT's default). SimpleAMS resolves the same tag to the same asset.

Can I keep my custom fields? Yes. They come across as a fieldset attached to the category and are editable from Custom fields in the new tool.

What about depreciation values? Imported. Purchase date and cost are required to recompute depreciation correctly.

How do I try it without commitment? Every paid plan ships with a 14-day money-back guarantee. Run the full migration end-to-end; if it does not work for you cancel within two weeks for a full refund. Full pricing.