Bitrix, is it possible to change the type of a product property from a string to a switch without losing already filled data?

Question

1C-Bitrix

Good evening.
There is a site on Bitrix, it was developed initially without the need for a filter.
Then it was required to add a filter by one product property.
As I understand it, adding a Smart Filter is no longer possible after adding and filling the catalog, because. there the data of properties will not be pulled up.
The usual filter is displayed, but because all properties on the site were created with the type "String" for filtering, you need to enter a value, and not just select from the proposed ones.
Question: if you change the property type in the infoblock, then all the entered data in the product cards will be reset, right?
How can this be avoided?

Answer 1

In such situations, I usually unloaded this property using the https://marketplace.1c-bitrix.ru/solutions/esol.im... module and simply loaded the value into a new, old property, then deleted it.
It is possible to write a small code without a module according to the same logic.