Dropbox transforms developer operations with a large-scale cloud migration

Dropbox partnered with Modus Create to migrate its 3,500-user Jira instance from Data Center to Jira Cloud. With hundreds of projects, complex custom integrations, and security-critical workflows, the migration demanded precision and deep platform expertise. Together, we migrated over 350 projects, resulting in improved performance, reduced infrastructure costs, and enhanced governance. By modernizing its engineering environment, Dropbox unlocked AI-enabled workflows, streamlined operations, and set a strong foundation for future growth and innovation.

Our work involved

• Jira Data Center to Jira Cloud Migration
• Security policy configuration for API access
• Atlassian Intelligence enablement

Impact

Dropbox is no stranger to the Atlassian ecosystem. After a successful migration to Confluence Cloud that brought all its 3,000+ employees into a unified, enterprise-grade collaboration space, the team set its eyes on a more ambitious goal. It decided to migrate from Jira Data Center to Jira Cloud.

A move to Jira Cloud promised significant infrastructure cost savings and access to Atlassian’s expanding suite of AI features. For a company known for its speed and scale of development, the decision aligned perfectly with Dropbox’s long-term vision.

Challenge

Balancing urgency and complexity in a high-stakes migration

Dropbox’s Jira landscape was a maze of custom workflows and scripts. Its Data Center instance stretched across 22 nodes, with separate environments for testing, staging, and development. Years of one-off integrations and home-grown scripts powered critical processes. Yet documentation was sparse, which made it challenging to map workflow dependencies.

Additionally, a sudden shift in priorities tightened the schedule. Dropbox now needed to complete the migration in just five months. To meet the new deadline, Dropbox partnered with Modus Create’s Atlassian experts to plan, manage, and complete the migration. Together, we formed a single, integrated team for the project.

Solution

A phased, collaborative approach to ensure a seamless transition

Given the migration’s scope and complexity, the team chose a phased approach instead of a single big-bang migration. This would balance speed with control while preserving clarity and security at every step.

Phase 1: Assessment and pre-emptive troubleshooting

We began with a deep dive into Dropbox’s Jira environment. The team flagged potential blockers, mapped risky customizations, and highlighted Data Center features that would not translate completely to Jira Cloud.

For example, Dropbox used a powerful Atlassian app to create custom fields and embed custom logic in workflows and automation scripts. However, many of its functions don’t work the same way on Jira Cloud.

Therefore, we cataloged each use case of the app, flagged high-risk areas, and recommended alternative approaches for Jira Cloud. This early insight allowed Dropbox to preemptively address issues that could have caused disruption later.

Phase 2: Test run with a pilot group

Next, the team launched a pilot migration involving 25 of the IT team’s most critical projects. We deliberately picked the IT team because of their ability to quickly surface usability gaps and spot broken workflows.

The pilot also let IT specialists rebuild dashboards and filters, then compare multiple migration configurations in a dedicated sandbox. By testing the variants side by side, the team isolated the cleanest, least disruptive path forward for Dropbox.

Phase 3: Complete migration with a new timeline

When Dropbox decided to aim for a shorter timeline, we had to rework the original plan. Modus and Dropbox created a tightly coordinated delivery team to accelerate the schedule without sacrificing quality. This involved removing non-essential steps, parallelizing tasks wherever possible, and shifting decision-making authority to key stakeholders to avoid delays. Milestones that were originally spread over months were compressed into weeks, with continuous check-ins to address issues in real time.

Phase 4: Securing access and eliminating shadow IT

The move to Jira Cloud gave Dropbox an opportunity to enhance how service accounts and custom integrations were managed.

As part of the migration, all API tokens were reissued with improved governance. Short-lived tokens are now the default at Dropbox, and long-term access goes through a formal review process. Custom scripts and integrations follow a structured approval workflow that aligns with Dropbox’s broader security policies.

These changes have made it easier for the security team to monitor activity, enforce access rules, and support internal developers more efficiently.

Impact

Streamlined operations and a future-ready engineering ecosystem

Dropbox now runs Jira on the cloud for more than 3,000 users across 350 projects. The migration yielded both expected and unforeseen benefits:

• Improved performance: Post-migration, all users at Dropbox reported faster load times and smoother navigation across Jira boards and backlogs.
• Lower infrastructure costs: 22 nodes and several mirrored environments were retired, lowering compute costs and cutting routine maintenance.
• Better governance: Centralized authentication policies and tighter service account controls reduced security exposure and simplified compliance.
• AI-enabled workflows: Teams now use Atlassian Intelligence and Slack-to-Jira ticket creation to reduce manual triage and move faster with less friction.

Migrating to Jira Cloud sparked a strategic overhaul that replaced fragmented systems with a more predictable and resilient foundation. By rethinking how Jira fits into its broader engineering environment, Dropbox set a higher standard for how large-scale migrations can deliver long-term value. This migration has laid a solid cornerstone for growth, enabling Dropbox to continuously evolve its engineering workflows, explore AI-driven innovation, and respond more swiftly to developer needs.