Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX) agents provide you with more powerful conversation controls and tools than Dialogflow ES agents. If your Dialogflow ES agent handles complex conversations, you should consider migrating to Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX).
This guide describes how to migrate an agent from Dialogflow Dialogflow ES to Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX). These two agent types have many fundamental differences, so there is no straightforward way to perform this migration.
If you use this guide for a migration, please provide positive or negative feedback by clicking the Send feedback button above. We will use this feedback to improve this guide over time.
At a high level, the recommended process is an automated/manual hybrid process. You will use a tool that reads some of your Dialogflow ES agent data, writes that data to your Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX) agent, and captures a TODO list. You then re-create your complete Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX) agent using best practices, the TODO list, and the data that was migrated by the tool.
Understand Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX)
Before attempting this migration, you should have a solid understanding of how Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX) flows work. You can start here:
You should also read through additional concept documents that have features you are likely to need in your new agent. Focus on the following:
Understand Dialogflow ES/Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX) differences
This section lists the most important differences between Dialogflow Dialogflow ES and Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX). When performing manual migration steps later, you should refer to this section for guidance.
Structure and conversation path control
Dialogflow ES provides the following for structure and conversation path control:
- Intents are used as the building blocks of the agent. At any point in the conversation, an intent is matched, and in a sense, each intent is a node for the conversation.
- Context is used to control the conversation. Context is used to control which intents can be matched at any given time. Context expires after a certain number of conversational turns, so this type of control can be inaccurate for long conversations.
Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX) provides a hierarchy of structure resources and more precise controls over the conversation path:
- Pages are graph nodes for the conversation. Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX) conversations are similar to state machines. At any given point in the conversation, one page is active. Based on end-user input or events, the conversation may transition to another page. It is common for a page to remain active for multiple conversational turns.
- Flows are groups of related pages. Each flow should handle a high-level conversation topic.
- State handlers
are used to control transitions and responses.
There are three types of state handlers:
- Intent route: contains an intent that must be matched, optional responses, and optional page transition.
- Condition route: contains a condition that must be met, optional responses, and optional page transition.
- Event handler: contains an event name that must be invoked, optional responses, and optional page transition.
- Scope is used to control whether a state handler can be called. Most handlers are associated with a page or entire flow. If the associated page or flow is active, then the handler is in scope, and it can be called. A Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX) intent route in scope is similar to an Dialogflow ES intent with an input context that is active.
When designing the flows and pages of your agent, be sure to understand the advice the flow section of the agent design guide.
Form filling
Dialogflow ES uses slot filling to collect required parameters from the end-user:
- These parameters are intent parameters marked as required.
- The intent continues being matched until all required parameters are collected.
- You can define a prompt asking the end-user to provide a value.
Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX) uses form filling to collect required parameters from the end-user:
- These parameters are associated with a page and are collected while the page is active.
- You use condition routes for pages to determine that form filling is complete. These condition routes typically transition to another page.
- You can define a prompt, as well as re-prompt handlers to gracefully handle multiple attempts to collect a value.
Transitions
Dialogflow ES automatically transitions from one intent to the next when end-user input is matched to an intent. This match can only occur for intents that have no input context or intents that have an active input context.
Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX) transitions from one page to the next when a state handler in scope satisfies its requirements and provides a transition target. Using these transitions, you can reliably guide end-users through conversations. There are multiple ways to control these transitions:
- Intent matching can trigger an intent route.
- Satisfying a condition can trigger a condition route.
- Invocation of an event can trigger an event handler.
- Re-prompt handlers can cause a transition when the end-user fails to provide a value after multiple attempts.
- You can use symbolic transition targets for transition targets.
Agent responses
Dialogflow ES agent responses are sent to the end-user when an intent is matched:
- The agent can select one message for the response from a list of possible responses.
- Responses can be platform-specific, which can use rich response formats.
- Responses can be driven by webhooks.
Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX) agent responses are sent to the end-user when fulfillment is called. Unlike Dialogflow ES fulfillment, which always involves a webhook, Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX) fulfillment may or may not involve calling a webhook, depending on whether the fulfillment resource has a webhook configured. Both static and dynamic responses based on webhook responses are controlled by fulfillment. There are multiple ways to create agent responses:
- Fulfillment can be provided to any type of state handler.
- Multiple responses can be concatenated during a conversational turn via the response queue. This feature can simplify your agent design in some cases.
- Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX) does not support built-in platform-specific responses. However, it provides multiple response types, including a custom payload which can be used for platform-specific responses.
Parameters
Dialogflow ES parameters have the following characteristics:
- Defined only in intents.
- Set by end-user input, events, webhooks, and API calls.
- Referenced in responses, parameter prompts, webhook code, and
parameter values:
- Basic reference format is
$parameter-name. - References support
.original,.partial, and.recentsuffix syntax. - References can specify the active context:
#context-name.parameter-name. - References can specify event parameters:
#event-name.parameter-name.
- Basic reference format is
Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX) parameters have the following characteristics:
- Defined in intents and page forms.
- Intent and form parameters are propagated to session parameters, where they are available for referencing for the duration of the session.
- Set by end-user input, webhooks, fulfillment parameter preset, and API calls.
- Referenced in responses, parameter prompts, re-prompt handlers,
parameter presets, and webhook code:
- Reference format is
$session.params.parameter-idfor session parameters and$intent.params.parameter-idfor intent parameters. - Intent parameter references support
.originaland.resolvedsuffix syntax. Session parameters do not support this syntax.
- Reference format is
System entities
Dialogflow ES supports many system entities.
Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX) supports many of the same system entities, but there are some differences. When migrating, verify that system entities you are using in Dialogflow ES are also supported by Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX) for the same language. If not, you should create custom entities for these.
Events
Dialogflow ES events have the following characteristics:
- Can be invoked from API calls or webhooks to match an intent.
- Can set parameters.
- A small number of events are invoked by integration platforms.
Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX) events have the following characteristics:
- Can be invoked from API calls or webhooks to call an event handler.
- Cannot set parameters.
- Many built-in events can be used for handling lack of end-user input, unrecognized end-user input, parameters invalidated by a webhook, and webhook errors.
- Invocations can be controlled by the same scoping rules as other state handlers.
Built-in intents
Dialogflow ES supports the following built-in intents:
The following describes the Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX) support for built-in intents:
- Welcome intents are supported.
- Fallback intents are not provided. Use the no-match events in event handlers instead.
- For negative examples, use the default negative intent.
- Predefined follow-up intents are not provided. You must create these intents as required by your agent. For example, you will likely need to create an intent to handle negative answers to an agent question ("no", "no thanks", "no I don't", and so on). Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX) intents are reusable across your agent, so you only need to define these once. Using different intent routes for these common intents, in different scopes, gives you much better control over the conversation.
Webhooks
Dialogflow ES webhooks have the following characteristics:
- You can configure one webhook service for the agent.
- Each intent can be marked as using the webhook.
- There is no built-in support for handling webhook errors.
- Intent actions or intent names are used by webhooks to determine where in the agent it was called from.
- The console provides the inline editor.
Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX) webhooks have the following characteristics:
- You can configure multiple webhook services for the agent.
- Each fulfillment can optionally specify a webhook call.
- There is built-in support for webhook error handling.
- A Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX) fulfillment webhook contains a tag. This tag is similar to an Dialogflow ES action, but it is only used when calling webhooks. The webhook service can use these tags to determine where in the agent it was called from.
- The console does not have a built-in webhook code editor. It is common to use Cloud Functions, but there are many options.
When migrating to Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX), you will need to change your webhook code, as the request and response properties are different.
Integrations
Dialogflow ES integrations and Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX) integrations support different platforms. For platforms that are supported by both agent types, there may be differences in configuration.
If the Dialogflow ES integration you were using is not supported by Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX), you may need to switch platforms or implement the integration yourself.
More Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX)-only features
There are many other features only provided by Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX). You should consider using these features while migrating. For example:
- Advanced NLU
- Advanced speech settings (end of speech sensitivity, no speech timeout, and so on)
- Change history
- Conditional logic
- DTMF input for telephony integrations
- Environment-specific webhooks
- Experiments
- Route groups
- Search agent data
- Security settings (redaction and data retention)
- System functions for advanced responses and conditions
- Test cases
- Validation of agent data
Best practices
Before migrating, familiarize yourself with Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX) agent design best practices. Many of these Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX) best practices are similar to Dialogflow ES best practices, but some are unique to Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX).
About the migration tool
The migration tool copies the bulk of the Dialogflow ES data to your Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX) agent, and it writes to a TODO file with a list of items that must be manually migrated. The tool only copies custom entity types and intent training phrases. You should consider customizing this tool for your specific needs.
Migration tool code
Here is the code for the tool. You should review the code for this tool, so you understand what it does. You may want to change this code to handle specific situations in your agent. In steps below, you will execute this tool.
// Package main implements the ES to CX migration tool.
package main
import (
"context"
"encoding/csv"
"flag"
"fmt"
"os"
"strings"
"time"
v2 "cloud.google.com/go/dialogflow/apiv2"
proto2 "cloud.google.com/go/dialogflow/apiv2/dialogflowpb"
v3 "cloud.google.com/go/dialogflow/cx/apiv3"
proto3 "cloud.google.com/go/dialogflow/cx/apiv3/cxpb"
"google.golang.org/api/iterator"
"google.golang.org/api/option"
)
// Commandline flags
var v2Project *string = flag.String("es-project-id", "", "ES project")
var v3Project *string = flag.String("cx-project-id", "", "CX project")
var v2Region *string = flag.String("es-region-id", "", "ES region")
var v3Region *string = flag.String("cx-region-id", "", "CX region")
var v3Agent *string = flag.String("cx-agent-id", "", "CX region")
var outFile *string = flag.String("out-file", "", "Output file for CSV TODO items")
var dryRun *bool = flag.Bool("dry-run", false, "Set true to skip CX agent writes")
// Map from entity type display name to fully qualified name.
var entityTypeShortToLong = map[string]string{}
// Map from ES system entity to CX system entity
var convertSystemEntity = map[string]string{
"sys.address": "sys.address",
"sys.any": "sys.any",
"sys.cardinal": "sys.cardinal",
"sys.color": "sys.color",
"sys.currency-name": "sys.currency-name",
"sys.date": "sys.date",
"sys.date-period": "sys.date-period",
"sys.date-time": "sys.date-time",
"sys.duration": "sys.duration",
"sys.email": "sys.email",
"sys.flight-number": "sys.flight-number",
"sys.geo-city-gb": "sys.geo-city",
"sys.geo-city-us": "sys.geo-city",
"sys.geo-city": "sys.geo-city",
"sys.geo-country": "sys.geo-country",
"sys.geo-state": "sys.geo-state",
"sys.geo-state-us": "sys.geo-state",
"sys.geo-state-gb": "sys.geo-state",
"sys.given-name": "sys.given-name",
"sys.language": "sys.language",
"sys.last-name": "sys.last-name",
"sys.street-address": "sys.location",
"sys.location": "sys.location",
"sys.number": "sys.number",
"sys.number-integer": "sys.number-integer",
"sys.number-sequence": "sys.number-sequence",
"sys.ordinal": "sys.ordinal",
"sys.percentage": "sys.percentage",
"sys.person": "sys.person",
"sys.phone-number": "sys.phone-number",
"sys.temperature": "sys.temperature",
"sys.time": "sys.time",
"sys.time-period": "sys.time-period",
"sys.unit-currency": "sys.unit-currency",
"sys.url": "sys.url",
"sys.zip-code": "sys.zip-code",
}
// Issues found for the CSV output
var issues = [][]string{
{"Field", "Issue"},
}
// logIssue logs an issue for the CSV output
func logIssue(field string, issue string) {
issues = append(issues, []string{field, issue})
}
// convertEntityType converts an ES entity type to CX
func convertEntityType(et2 *proto2.EntityType) *proto3.EntityType {
var kind3 proto3.EntityType_Kind
switch kind2 := et2.Kind; kind2 {
case proto2.EntityType_KIND_MAP:
kind3 = proto3.EntityType_KIND_MAP
case proto2.EntityType_KIND_LIST:
kind3 = proto3.EntityType_KIND_LIST
case proto2.EntityType_KIND_REGEXP:
kind3 = proto3.EntityType_KIND_REGEXP
default:
kind3 = proto3.EntityType_KIND_UNSPECIFIED
}
var expansion3 proto3.EntityType_AutoExpansionMode
switch expansion2 := et2.AutoExpansionMode; expansion2 {
case proto2.EntityType_AUTO_EXPANSION_MODE_DEFAULT:
expansion3 = proto3.EntityType_AUTO_EXPANSION_MODE_DEFAULT
default:
expansion3 = proto3.EntityType_AUTO_EXPANSION_MODE_UNSPECIFIED
}
et3 := &proto3.EntityType{
DisplayName: et2.DisplayName,
Kind: kind3,
AutoExpansionMode: expansion3,
EnableFuzzyExtraction: et2.EnableFuzzyExtraction,
}
for _, e2 := range et2.Entities {
et3.Entities = append(et3.Entities, &proto3.EntityType_Entity{
Value: e2.Value,
Synonyms: e2.Synonyms,
})
}
return et3
}
// convertParameterEntityType converts a entity type found in parameters
func convertParameterEntityType(intent string, parameter string, t2 string) string {
if len(t2) == 0 {
return ""
}
t2 = t2[1:] // remove @
if strings.HasPrefix(t2, "sys.") {
if val, ok := convertSystemEntity[t2]; ok {
t2 = val
} else {
t2 = "sys.any"
logIssue("Intent<"+intent+">.Parameter<"+parameter+">",
"This intent parameter uses a system entity not supported by CX English agents. See the migration guide for advice. System entity: "+t2)
}
return fmt.Sprintf("projects/-/locations/-/agents/-/entityTypes/%s", t2)
}
return entityTypeShortToLong[t2]
}
// convertIntent converts an ES intent to CX
func convertIntent(intent2 *proto2.Intent) *proto3.Intent {
if intent2.DisplayName == "Default Fallback Intent" ||
intent2.DisplayName == "Default Welcome Intent" {
return nil
}
intent3 := &proto3.Intent{
DisplayName: intent2.DisplayName,
}
// WebhookState
if intent2.WebhookState != proto2.Intent_WEBHOOK_STATE_UNSPECIFIED {
logIssue("Intent<"+intent2.DisplayName+">.WebhookState",
"This intent has webhook enabled. You must configure this in your CX agent.")
}
// IsFallback
if intent2.IsFallback {
logIssue("Intent<"+intent2.DisplayName+">.IsFallback",
"This intent is a fallback intent. CX does not support this. Use no-match events instead.")
}
// MlDisabled
if intent2.MlDisabled {
logIssue("Intent<"+intent2.DisplayName+">.MlDisabled",
"This intent has ML disabled. CX does not support this.")
}
// LiveAgentHandoff
if intent2.LiveAgentHandoff {
logIssue("Intent<"+intent2.DisplayName+">.LiveAgentHandoff",
"This intent uses live agent handoff. You must configure this in a fulfillment.")
}
// EndInteraction
if intent2.EndInteraction {
logIssue("Intent<"+intent2.DisplayName+">.EndInteraction",
"This intent uses end interaction. CX does not support this.")
}
// InputContextNames
if len(intent2.InputContextNames) > 0 {
logIssue("Intent<"+intent2.DisplayName+">.InputContextNames",
"This intent uses context. See the migration guide for alternatives.")
}
// Events
if len(intent2.Events) > 0 {
logIssue("Intent<"+intent2.DisplayName+">.Events",
"This intent uses events. Use event handlers instead.")
}
// TrainingPhrases
var trainingPhrases3 []*proto3.Intent_TrainingPhrase
for _, tp2 := range intent2.TrainingPhrases {
if tp2.Type == proto2.Intent_TrainingPhrase_TEMPLATE {
logIssue("Intent<"+intent2.DisplayName+">.TrainingPhrases",
"This intent has a training phrase that uses a template (@...) training phrase type. CX does not support this.")
}
var parts3 []*proto3.Intent_TrainingPhrase_Part
for _, part2 := range tp2.Parts {
parts3 = append(parts3, &proto3.Intent_TrainingPhrase_Part{
Text: part2.Text,
ParameterId: part2.Alias,
})
}
trainingPhrases3 = append(trainingPhrases3, &proto3.Intent_TrainingPhrase{
Parts: parts3,
RepeatCount: 1,
})
}
intent3.TrainingPhrases = trainingPhrases3
// Action
if len(intent2.Action) > 0 {
logIssue("Intent<"+intent2.DisplayName+">.Action",
"This intent sets the action field. Use a fulfillment webhook tag instead.")
}
// OutputContexts
if len(intent2.OutputContexts) > 0 {
logIssue("Intent<"+intent2.DisplayName+">.OutputContexts",
"This intent uses context. See the migration guide for alternatives.")
}
// ResetContexts
if intent2.ResetContexts {
logIssue("Intent<"+intent2.DisplayName+">.ResetContexts",
"This intent uses context. See the migration guide for alternatives.")
}
// Parameters
var parameters3 []*proto3.Intent_Parameter
for _, p2 := range intent2.Parameters {
if len(p2.Value) > 0 && p2.Value != "$"+p2.DisplayName {
logIssue("Intent<"+intent2.DisplayName+">.Parameters<"+p2.DisplayName+">.Value",
"This field is not set to $parameter-name. This feature is not supported by CX. See: https://cloud.google.com/dialogflow/es/docs/intents-actions-parameters#valfield.")
}
if len(p2.DefaultValue) > 0 {
logIssue("Intent<"+intent2.DisplayName+">.Parameters<"+p2.DisplayName+">.DefaultValue",
"This intent parameter is using a default value. CX intent parameters do not support default values, but CX page form parameters do. This parameter should probably become a form parameter.")
}
if p2.Mandatory {
logIssue("Intent<"+intent2.DisplayName+">.Parameters<"+p2.DisplayName+">.Mandatory",
"This intent parameter is marked as mandatory. CX intent parameters do not support mandatory parameters, but CX page form parameters do. This parameter should probably become a form parameter.")
}
for _, prompt := range p2.Prompts {
logIssue("Intent<"+intent2.DisplayName+">.Parameters<"+p2.DisplayName+">.Prompts",
"This intent parameter has a prompt. Use page form parameter prompts instead. Prompt: "+prompt)
}
if len(p2.EntityTypeDisplayName) == 0 {
p2.EntityTypeDisplayName = "@sys.any"
logIssue("Intent<"+intent2.DisplayName+">.Parameters<"+p2.DisplayName+">.EntityTypeDisplayName",
"This intent parameter does not have an entity type. CX requires an entity type for all parameters..")
}
parameters3 = append(parameters3, &proto3.Intent_Parameter{
Id: p2.DisplayName,
EntityType: convertParameterEntityType(intent2.DisplayName, p2.DisplayName, p2.EntityTypeDisplayName),
IsList: p2.IsList,
})
//fmt.Printf("Converted parameter: %+v\n", parameters3[len(parameters3)-1])
}
intent3.Parameters = parameters3
// Messages
for _, message := range intent2.Messages {
m, ok := message.Message.(*proto2.Intent_Message_Text_)
if ok {
for _, t := range m.Text.Text {
warnings := ""
if strings.Contains(t, "#") {
warnings += " This message may contain a context parameter reference, but CX does not support this."
}
if strings.Contains(t, ".original") {
warnings += " This message may contain a parameter reference suffix of '.original', But CX only supports this for intent parameters (not session parameters)."
}
if strings.Contains(t, ".recent") {
warnings += " This message may contain a parameter reference suffix of '.recent', but CX does not support this."
}
if strings.Contains(t, ".partial") {
warnings += " This message may contain a parameter reference suffix of '.partial', but CX does not support this."
}
logIssue("Intent<"+intent2.DisplayName+">.Messages",
"This intent has a response message. Use fulfillment instead."+warnings+" Message: "+t)
}
} else {
logIssue("Intent<"+intent2.DisplayName+">.Messages",
"This intent has a non-text response message. See the rich response message information in the migration guide.")
}
if message.Platform != proto2.Intent_Message_PLATFORM_UNSPECIFIED {
logIssue("Intent<"+intent2.DisplayName+">.Platform",
"This intent has a message with a non-default platform. See the migration guide for advice.")
}
}
return intent3
}
// migrateEntities migrates ES entities to your CX agent
func migrateEntities(ctx context.Context) error {
var err error
// Create ES client
var client2 *v2.EntityTypesClient
options2 := []option.ClientOption{}
if len(*v2Region) > 0 {
options2 = append(options2,
option.WithEndpoint(*v2Region+"-dialogflow.googleapis.com:443"))
}
client2, err = v2.NewEntityTypesClient(ctx, options2...)
if err != nil {
return err
}
defer client2.Close()
var parent2 string
if len(*v2Region) == 0 {
parent2 = fmt.Sprintf("projects/%s/agent", *v2Project)
} else {
parent2 = fmt.Sprintf("projects/%s/locations/%s/agent", *v2Project, *v2Region)
}
// Create CX client
var client3 *v3.EntityTypesClient
options3 := []option.ClientOption{}
if len(*v3Region) > 0 {
options3 = append(options3,
option.WithEndpoint(*v3Region+"-dialogflow.googleapis.com:443"))
}
client3, err = v3.NewEntityTypesClient(ctx, options3...)
if err != nil {
return err
}
defer client3.Close()
parent3 := fmt.Sprintf("projects/%s/locations/%s/agents/%s", *v3Project, *v3Region, *v3Agent)
// Read each V2 entity type, convert, and write to V3
request2 := &proto2.ListEntityTypesRequest{
Parent: parent2,
}
it2 := client2.ListEntityTypes(ctx, request2)
for {
var et2 *proto2.EntityType
et2, err = it2.Next()
if err == iterator.Done {
break
}
if err != nil {
return err
}
fmt.Printf("Entity Type: %s\n", et2.DisplayName)
if *dryRun {
convertEntityType(et2)
continue
}
request3 := &proto3.CreateEntityTypeRequest{
Parent: parent3,
EntityType: convertEntityType(et2),
}
et3, err := client3.CreateEntityType(ctx, request3)
entityTypeShortToLong[et3.DisplayName] = et3.Name
if err != nil {
return err
}
// ES and CX each have a quota limit of 60 design-time requests per minute
time.Sleep(2 * time.Second)
}
return nil
}
// migrateIntents migrates intents to your CX agent
func migrateIntents(ctx context.Context) error {
var err error
// Create ES client
var client2 *v2.IntentsClient
options2 := []option.ClientOption{}
if len(*v2Region) > 0 {
options2 = append(options2,
option.WithEndpoint(*v2Region+"-dialogflow.googleapis.com:443"))
}
client2, err = v2.NewIntentsClient(ctx, options2...)
if err != nil {
return err
}
defer client2.Close()
var parent2 string
if len(*v2Region) == 0 {
parent2 = fmt.Sprintf("projects/%s/agent", *v2Project)
} else {
parent2 = fmt.Sprintf("projects/%s/locations/%s/agent", *v2Project, *v2Region)
}
// Create CX client
var client3 *v3.IntentsClient
options3 := []option.ClientOption{}
if len(*v3Region) > 0 {
options3 = append(options3,
option.WithEndpoint(*v3Region+"-dialogflow.googleapis.com:443"))
}
client3, err = v3.NewIntentsClient(ctx, options3...)
if err != nil {
return err
}
defer client3.Close()
parent3 := fmt.Sprintf("projects/%s/locations/%s/agents/%s", *v3Project, *v3Region, *v3Agent)
// Read each V2 entity type, convert, and write to V3
request2 := &proto2.ListIntentsRequest{
Parent: parent2,
IntentView: proto2.IntentView_INTENT_VIEW_FULL,
}
it2 := client2.ListIntents(ctx, request2)
for {
var intent2 *proto2.Intent
intent2, err = it2.Next()
if err == iterator.Done {
break
}
if err != nil {
return err
}
fmt.Printf("Intent: %s\n", intent2.DisplayName)
intent3 := convertIntent(intent2)
if intent3 == nil {
continue
}
if *dryRun {
continue
}
request3 := &proto3.CreateIntentRequest{
Parent: parent3,
Intent: intent3,
}
_, err := client3.CreateIntent(ctx, request3)
if err != nil {
return err
}
// ES and CX each have a quota limit of 60 design-time requests per minute
time.Sleep(2 * time.Second)
}
return nil
}
// checkFlags checks commandline flags
func checkFlags() error {
flag.Parse()
if len(*v2Project) == 0 {
return fmt.Errorf("Need to supply es-project-id flag")
}
if len(*v3Project) == 0 {
return fmt.Errorf("Need to supply cx-project-id flag")
}
if len(*v2Region) == 0 {
fmt.Printf("No region supplied for ES, using default\n")
}
if len(*v3Region) == 0 {
return fmt.Errorf("Need to supply cx-region-id flag")
}
if len(*v3Agent) == 0 {
return fmt.Errorf("Need to supply cx-agent-id flag")
}
if len(*outFile) == 0 {
return fmt.Errorf("Need to supply out-file flag")
}
return nil
}
// closeFile is used as a convenience for defer
func closeFile(f *os.File) {
err := f.Close()
if err != nil {
fmt.Fprintf(os.Stderr, "ERROR closing CSV file: %v\n", err)
os.Exit(1)
}
}
func main() {
if err := checkFlags(); err != nil {
fmt.Fprintf(os.Stderr, "ERROR checking flags: %v\n", err)
os.Exit(1)
}
ctx := context.Background()
if err := migrateEntities(ctx); err != nil {
fmt.Fprintf(os.Stderr, "ERROR migrating entities: %v\n", err)
os.Exit(1)
}
if err := migrateIntents(ctx); err != nil {
fmt.Fprintf(os.Stderr, "ERROR migrating intents: %v\n", err)
os.Exit(1)
}
csvFile, err := os.Create(*outFile)
if err != nil {
fmt.Fprintf(os.Stderr, "ERROR opening output file: %v", err)
os.Exit(1)
}
defer closeFile(csvFile)
csvWriter := csv.NewWriter(csvFile)
if err := csvWriter.WriteAll(issues); err != nil {
fmt.Fprintf(os.Stderr, "ERROR writing CSV output file: %v", err)
os.Exit(1)
}
csvWriter.Flush()
}
Tool migration of entity types
Dialogflow ES entity types and Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX) entity types are very similar, so they are the easiest datatype to migrate. The tool simply copies entity types as-is.
Tool migration of intents
Dialogflow ES intents and Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX) intents are very different.
Dialogflow ES intents are used as the building blocks of the agent; and they contain training phrases, responses, context for conversation control, webhook configurations, events, actions, and slot filling parameters.
Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX) has moved most of this data to other resources. Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX) intents only have training phrases and parameters, which makes intents reusable across the agent. The tool only copies these two types of intent data to your Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX) intents.
Migration tool limitations
The migration tool does not support the following:
- Mega agents: The tool cannot read from multiple sub-agents, but you can call the tool multiple times against each sub-agent.
- Multilingual agents: You should modify the tool to create multilingual training phrases and entity entries.
- System entity verification for non-English languages: The tool creates TODO items when it finds system entities that are not supported by Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX), with an assumption that English is the default language, and that it uses a US region. System entity support varies by language and region. For other languages and regions, you should modify the tool to perform this check.
Essential migration steps
The following subsections outline migration steps to be taken. You do not need to follow these manual steps in order, and you may even need to do these steps simultaneously or in a different order. Read through the steps and begin planning your changes before you actually make changes.
After you run the migration tool, you can rebuild your Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX) agent. You will still have a fair amount of migration work to do, but the bulk of the hand entered data will be present in your Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX) agent and the TODO file.
Create your Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX) agent
If you haven't already, create your Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX) agent. Be sure to use the same default language as your Dialogflow ES agent.
Run the migration tool
Take the following steps to execute the tool:
- If you haven't already, install Go on your machine.
- Create a directory for the tool code called
migrate. - Copy the tool code above
to a file in this directory called
main.go. - Modify the code if needed for your case.
Create a Go module in this directory. For example:
go mod init migrateInstall the Dialogflow ES V2 and Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX) V3 Go client libraries:
go get cloud.google.com/go/dialogflow/apiv2 go get cloud.google.com/go/dialogflow/cx/apiv3Ensure you have set up client library authentication.
Run the tool, and save the output to file:
go run main.go -es-project-id=<ES_PROJECT_ID> -cx-project-id=<CX_PROJECT_ID> \ -cx-region-id=<CX_REGION_ID> -cx-agent-id=<CX_AGENT_ID> -out-file=out.csv
Migration tool troubleshooting
If you experience errors when running the tool, check the following:
| Error | Resolution |
|---|---|
| RPC error that a training phrase part mentions a parameter not defined for the intent. | This may happen if you previously used the Dialogflow ES API to create intent parameters in a way that was inconsistent with the training phrases. To fix this, rename the Dialogflow ES parameter from the console, check that your training phrases are using the parameter properly, then click save. This may also happen if your training phrases reference nonexistent parameters. |
After fixing errors, you will need to clear the Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX) agent of intents and entities before running the migration tool again.
Moving Dialogflow ES intent data to Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX)
The tool migrates intent training phrases and parameters to Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX) intents, but there are many other Dialogflow ES intent fields to migrate manually.
An Dialogflow ES intent may need a corresponding Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX) page, a corresponding Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX) intent, or both.
If an Dialogflow ES intent match is used to transition the conversation from a particular conversation node to another, you should have two pages in your agent related to this intent:
- The original page that contains the intent route, which will transition to the next page: The intent route in the original page may have Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX) fulfillment messages similar to the Dialogflow ES intent responses. You may have many intent routes in this page. While the original page is active, these intent routes can transition the conversation to many possible paths. Many Dialogflow ES intents will share the same corresponding Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX) original page.
- The next page, which is the transition target for the intent route in the original page: The Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX) entry fulfillment for the next page may have Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX) fulfillment messages similar to the Dialogflow ES intent responses.
If an Dialogflow ES intent contains required parameters, you should create a corresponding Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX) page with the same parameters in a form.
It is common for a Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX) intent and a Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX) page to share the same parameter list, which would mean that a single Dialogflow ES intent has a corresponding Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX) page and a corresponding Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX) intent. When a Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX) intent with parameters in an intent route is matched, the conversation often transitions to a page with the same parameters. The parameters extracted from the intent match are propagated to session parameters, which are available to partially or fully fill page form parameters.
Fallback intents and predefined follow-up intents do not exist in Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX). See built-in intents.
The following table describes how to map specific intent data from Dialogflow ES to Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX) resources:
| Dialogflow ES Intent data | Corresponding Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX) data | Action required |
|---|---|---|
| Training phrases | Intent training phrases | Migrated by tool. Tool checks for system entity support, and creates TODO items for unsupported system entities. |
| Agent responses | Fulfillment response messages | See agent responses. |
| Context for conversation control | None | See Structure and conversation path control. |
| Webhook setting | Fulfillment webhook configuration | See webhooks. |
| Events | Flow-level or Page-level event handlers | See events. |
| Actions | Fulfillment webhook tags | See webhooks. |
| Parameters | Intent parameters and/or Page form parameters | Migrated to intent parameters by tool. If the parameters are required, tool creates TODO items to possibly migrate to a page. See parameters. |
| Parameter prompts | Page form parameter prompts | See form filling. |
Create flows
Create a flow for each high-level conversation topic. The topics in each flow should be distinct, so that the conversation does not frequently jump back and forth between flows.
If you were using a mega agent, each sub-agent should become one or more flows.
Start with basic conversation paths
It is best to test your agent with the simulator while iterating on changes. So, you should initially focus on the basic conversation paths early in the conversation, and test as you make changes. Once you get these working, move on to more detailed conversation paths.
Flow-level versus page-level state handlers
When creating state handlers, consider whether they should be applied at flow-level or page-level. A flow-level handler is in scope whenever the flow (and hence any page within the flow) is active. A page-level handler is only in scope when the particular page is active. Flow-level handlers are similar to Dialogflow ES intents with no input context. Page-level handlers are similar to Dialogflow ES intents with input context.
Webhook code
The webhook request and response properties are different for Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX). See the webhooks section.
Knowledge connectors
Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX) does not support knowledge connectors yet. You will need to implement these as normal intents or wait until Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX) supports knowledge connectors.
Agent settings
Review your Dialogflow ES agent settings, and adjust your Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX) agent settings as needed.
Use the TODO file
The migration tool outputs a CSV file. The items in this list are focused on particular pieces of data that may need attention. Import this file to a spreadsheet. Resolve each item in the spreadsheet, using a column for marking completion.
API usage migration
If your system uses the Dialogflow ES API for runtime or design-time calls, you will need to update this code to use the Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX) API. If you only use the detect intent calls at runtime, this update should be fairly straightforward.
Integrations
If your agent uses integrations, see the integrations section, and make changes as necessary.
Recommended migration steps
The following subsections outline recommended migration steps.
Validation
Use agent validation to check that your agent follows best practices.
Testing
While performing manual migration steps above, you should test your agent with the simulator. Once your agent appears to be working, you should compare conversations between your Dialogflow ES and Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX) agents, and verify that behavior is similar or improved.
While testing these conversations with the simulator, you should create test cases to prevent future regressions.
Environments
Review your Dialogflow ES environments and update your Conversational Agents (Dialogflow CX) environments as needed.