Cf Switch Backend

Switch Tracking Backend

Switch ContentForge's tracking and delivery backend between Google Sheets + Drive, Airtable, or Local filesystem. Optionally migrate existing tracking data and output files to the new backend.

When to Use

• Switching from local (default) to a cloud backend for collaboration
• Migrating from Google to Airtable (or vice versa) for simpler auth
• Downgrading to local when cloud access isn't needed
• Checking current backend status before switching

Running in Cowork? The "local" backend writes to the ephemeral sandbox filesystem — files vanish at session end. For Cowork team setups, use the Google (Drive) route and run /contentforge:cf-cowork-setup first to wire the Drive folder layout.

How to Use

/contentforge:cf-switch-backend airtable
/contentforge:cf-switch-backend google_sheets
/contentforge:cf-switch-backend local
/contentforge:cf-switch-backend --status

What This Command Does

Step 1: Identify Current Backend

Read the active brand profile's tracking.backend field.

Report current state:

Current backend: local
Records: 47 tracking records (~/.claude-marketing/{brand}/tracking/tracking.json)
Output files: 42 files in ~/.claude-marketing/{brand}/outputs/{YYYY}/{MM}/

Step 2: Validate Target Backend

If switching to Airtable:

1. Check AIRTABLE_TOKEN environment variable exists
2. If missing, guide through setup:
   • Go to airtable.com/create/tokens
   • Create a Personal Access Token with data.records:read and data.records:write scopes
   • Select the base that will hold tracking data
   • Set the environment variable: export AIRTABLE_TOKEN=patXXXXXXXX
3. Ask for the Airtable Base ID (from the base URL: airtable.com/appXXXXXXXXX/...)
4. Verify access by running:

   python {scripts_dir}/airtable-tracker.py --action init --base-id {base_id}
   

If switching to Google Sheets + Drive:

1. Check Google credentials at ~/.claude-marketing/google-credentials.json
2. If missing, guide through setup:
   • Go to Google Cloud Console > IAM & Admin > Service Accounts
   • Create a project (or use existing)
   • Enable Google Sheets API and Google Drive API
   • Create a Service Account and download the JSON key
   • Save to ~/.claude-marketing/google-credentials.json
   • Create a Google Sheet and share it with the service account email (Editor)
   • Create a Google Drive folder and share it with the service account email (Editor)
3. Ask for the Google Sheet ID and Drive folder ID
4. Verify access by running:

   python {scripts_dir}/sheets-tracker.py --action init --sheet-id {sheet_id}
   

If switching to Local:

• No setup needed — works immediately
• Run init to ensure directory exists:

  python {scripts_dir}/local-tracker.py --action init --brand "{brand}"
  

Step 3: Offer Migration

If the current backend has existing records:

You have 47 tracking records and 42 output files on 'local'.
Would you like to migrate this data to Airtable?
  1. Yes — Copy all records and files to the new backend
  2. No — Start fresh (existing data preserved but not synced)
  3. Skip — Just switch, decide on migration later

If yes, run:

python {scripts_dir}/backend-migrator.py --action migrate --brand "{brand}" --from {current} --to {target} [backend-specific args]

{current} and {target} must be one of local, airtable, google_sheets — the migrator rejects any other value.

Report migration results:

Migration complete:
  Records migrated: 47
  Files migrated: 42
  Files failed: 0
  Source data preserved at: ~/.claude-marketing/{brand}/tracking/tracking.json
                        and ~/.claude-marketing/{brand}/outputs/{YYYY}/{MM}/

Step 4: Update Brand Profile

Update the brand profile JSON:

• Set tracking.backend to the new backend value
• Fill in backend-specific config (base_id, sheet_id, folder_id, etc.)

Step 5: Confirm

Backend switched to Airtable.
  New tracking records → Airtable base appXXXXXX
  Output files → Airtable attachment fields
  Previous data preserved at: ~/.claude-marketing/{brand}/tracking/tracking.json
                          and ~/.claude-marketing/{brand}/outputs/{YYYY}/{MM}/

Run /contentforge:cf-switch-backend --status to verify anytime.

Backend Comparison

Check Status

Run with --status flag to check current backend health:

/contentforge:cf-switch-backend --status

This runs:

python {scripts_dir}/backend-migrator.py --action status --brand "{brand}" --from {current_backend}

Important Notes

• Migration is additive — source data is never deleted
• Migration is idempotent for records that carry a requirement_id — dedup is keyed on that field, so records without one are re-written on every run
• Migration is resumable on the same basis — re-running after an interruption skips whatever already landed with a matching requirement_id
• Migrating from google_sheets moves records only — downloading the linked Drive files is not implemented yet, so rows arrive without their attachments (the source Drive copies are untouched)
• You can switch back anytime — data is preserved on all backends you've used
• The pipeline uses whichever backend is set in tracking.backend — switching takes effect immediately for the next content run

Related Skills

• /contentforge:cf-style-guide — Brand setup (Step G sets initial backend)
• /contentforge:cf-cowork-setup — Wire Cowork + Drive before choosing the Google backend in Cowork
• /contentforge:cf-integrations — Check all connector status
• /contentforge:cf-connect — Set up individual connectors