Migrate Exchange to Office 365

Best method to migrate Exchange to Office 365

Native migration methods, such as cutover and staged migrations provided by Microsoft, can facilitate the transfer of Exchange server mailboxes to Microsoft 365. However, these methods come with limitations, including extensive prerequisites, complex configurations, lengthy downtime, and the risk of data loss or inconsistency during the migration process. In contrast, EdbMails Exchange to Office 365 migration tool offers a robust solution that effectively addresses these challenges. It provides a secure and seamless migration process for all attributes—emails, contacts, tasks, journals, appointments, calendars, and notes—ensuring complete data integrity throughout the migration operation.

EdbMails stands out by allowing the migration of multiple user mailboxes, public folders, shared mailboxes, and archives in a single operation, thus catering to diverse organizational needs. Unlike native methods, which often require extensive technical knowledge and the use of complex PowerShell scripts, EdbMails features an intuitive user interface that simplifies the migration process. By opting for EdbMails, individuals and organizations can confidently navigate the migration operation, mitigate risks, and ensure a smooth migration to Office 365 while fully utilizing the advantages of the Office 365 features.

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3. Exchange to Office 365 Migration Checklist

   The following checklists will help you migrate all your Exchange server data to Office 365 smoothly.

   1. Plan for the migration:
      • Identify the scope of the migration, including the number of mailboxes, public folders, and other data that needs to be migrated.
      • Determine the size of the mailbox data and number of mailboxes to migrate.
      • Assess the current environment, including hardware, software, and network configurations.
      • Prepare a complete inventory of items that you want to migrate.
      • Determine the migration schedule, including the timing and duration of the migration.
      • Identify any specific requirements or constraints that may affect the migration.
      • Communicate any changes to your end users and inform the stakeholders.
   2. Prepare the data for migration:
      • Clean up and archive any unnecessary data to reduce the amount of data that needs to be migrated.
      • Perform a test (pilot) migration to identify and resolve any issues before the full migration.
   3. Purchase and configure Office 365 licenses:
      • Purchase the necessary Office 365 licenses for all users that will be migrated.
      • Configure the Office 365 tenant, including creating and configuring users, mailboxes, public folders and other resources.
   4. Configure the domains and DNS records:
      • Prepare the domains and required Active Directory services on the target.
      • Update the DNS records to point to the Office 365 tenant, including MX records and Autodiscover.
      • Verify that the DNS changes have propagated and that email is flowing to the Office 365 tenant.
   5. Perform Exchange to Office 365 migration with EdbMails:
      • EdbMails can help you with Exchange to Office 365 migration
      • Configure the migration settings and migrate mailboxes, Public folder and Shared mailboxes.
      • Monitor the migration progress and verify the migrated items
   6. Test and validate the migration:
      • Test the migration by sending and receiving email and verifying that all data has been migrated correctly.
      • Validate the migration by checking for any missing data or issues, and troubleshoot as needed.
      • Perform a final backup of the Exchange server before decommissioning it.
   7. Post-migration tasks:
      • Update email client settings, such as Outlook, to point to the Office 365 tenant.
      • Create new Outlook profiles and check if you are receiving mails correctly.
      • Update any custom scripts or applications that access the email data to point to the Office 365 tenant.
      • Update any third-party services or integrations that access the email data to point to the Office 365 tenant.
      • Update the helpdesk and end-user documentation to reflect the new email environment.
      • Train users on the new email environment and any new features or functionality provided by Office 365.
      • Decommission the source Exchange server if you no longer plan to use it (optional).
   8. Monitor and maintain:
      • Monitor the Office 365 environment for any issues or performance problems.
      • Maintain and update the Office 365 environment as needed.
      • Continuously review and improve security, backup, and disaster recovery strategies.

4. Exchange to Office 365 Migration Planning

   • Step 1: Decide on a suitable Exchange to Microsoft 365 migration type

     The first step is to plan the Exchange mailbox migration to Office 365. Depending on your source and target environments, the following migration paths are available.

     Migration Requirement	Ideal migration approach	Migration flow
     You want to move all of your email, calendar, and contacts from Exchange to Office 365 at once.	Exchange cutover migration	Set up your target Office 365 tenant and migrate everything to the cloud all at once. Suitable for large-scale mailbox migrations
     You prefer to transfer mailboxes from Exchange Server to Office 365 in smaller batches or on weekends.	Staged Exchange migration	Migrate your mailboxes and mail data in stages, transferring the most recent data first, followed by the others.
     You want to retain your on-premises Exchange server and prefer moving to Office 365 gradually	Hybrid migration	Move mailboxes to Office 365 in a Hybrid deployment of Exchange and Office 365.

      Use the Microsoft 365 mail migration advisor to determine which migration method is best for you.

   • Step 2: Install cumulative updates (CU) on the Exchange server

     Ensure that you have the latest updates installed on the source Exchange.

     1. Install CU for Exchange server 2010
     2. Install CU for Exchange server 2013
     3. Install CU for Exchange server 2016
     4. Install CU for Exchange server 2019
   • Step 3: Consider the network and bandwidth requirements
     1. Network requirements
        1. Understand the networking roadmap for Microsoft 365. It involves planning, deploying and managing your network.
        2. Internet Connectivity: A stable and reliable internet connection is required for migration of Exchange to Office 365. The internet connection should have sufficient bandwidth to handle the data transfer and should be free from congestion.
        3. Firewall and Port Configuration: Review and configure the firewall and port configurations to allow for the necessary data transfer to the Office 365 tenant.
        4. DNS Configuration: Review the DNS records and configure them to point to the Office 365 tenant, including MX records and Autodiscover. This task ensures that email is properly routed to the Office 365 tenant after the migration.
        5. Network Latency: Consider the Network Latency to ensure a seamless data transfer. If the Network Latency is high, it may slow down the migration process. See how Microsoft 365 networking is different.
        6. Office 365 Throttling: Microsoft limits the number of concurrent mailbox transfers to ensure service availability. Consider the Office 365 throttling policies when you migrate large mailboxes.
        7. Network Security: Review the network security to ensure that the data transfer is secure. This includes configuring any necessary encryption, authentication, and access controls.
        8. Network Load Balancing: Consider the Network Load Balancing to ensure that the data transfer is balanced across multiple networks and to avoid any bottlenecks.
     2. Bandwidth requirements

        Bandwidth requirements for Exchange to Office 365 migration can vary depending on several factors, such as the number of mailboxes, the amount of data to be migrated, and the migration method used. Use tools like Microsoft Remote Connectivity Analyzer and connectivity test tool to test your existing network.

        1. Number of mailboxes: The number of mailboxes being migrated influences the overall bandwidth requirements. The more mailboxes you plan to migrate, the more bandwidth you will need. See bandwidth requirements for Office 365 migration.
        2. Mailbox Size: The size of the mailboxes being migrated also influences the overall bandwidth requirements. Larger mailboxes will require more bandwidth to migrate.
        3. Migration Type: The type of migration you use also affects the bandwidth requirements. For example, a cutover migration, where all mailboxes are migrated at once, requires more bandwidth than a staged migration, where mailboxes are migrated in smaller groups.
        4. Migration schedule: The schedule of the migration also influences the bandwidth requirements. For example, migrating during off-hours or over a weekend when network traffic is typically lower, reduces the overall bandwidth requirements.
        5. Network infrastructure:. A network with higher bandwidth capacity can handle more data during the migration.
        6. Network Latency: Network Latency between the source and destination servers is also a factor to consider during the migration. If the Network Latency is high then a higher bandwidth is required.

       See best practices for network planning and improving migration performance.

   • Step 4: Select a suitable Microsoft 365 license plan that fits your needs

     Microsoft 365 is available as a cloud-based subscription service and offers a variety of licensing options, each tailored to a specific user needs. It is recommended that you thoroughly evaluate the Office 365 business plans and Office 365 enterprise plans to determine which one best meets the needs of your organization. You can also sign up for a 30-day free trial of Office 365 to test out the various plans before making a final decision.

   • Step 5: Set up your target Office 365 Tenant for the migration
     1. Create an Office 365 Tenant: Plan for the Tenant implementation and deploy the tenant. See the tenant roadmap for Office 365.
     2. Sign in to the Microsoft 365 admin center: Microsoft 365 admin center (https://admin.microsoft.com/) and sign in with your global administrator credentials.
     3. Customize the Tenant settings: After the tenant is set up, configure and customize the settings such as email domains, language, and time zone to suit your organization's needs.
     4. Configure Azure AD Connect: Azure AD Connect is used to synchronize your on-premises Active Directory with Azure AD. This step is necessary if you want to retain your on-premises in a Hybrid environment and to enable single sign-on (SSO) for your users.
     5. Configure email clients and apps: If you want to install Office 365 apps and Outlook, see system requirements for Microsoft 365 and Office configuration support matrix. Because Office 365 is a cloud based solution, it is also important to learn where your Microsoft 365 customer data is stored.
     6. Set up Office 365 services: Besides email, you may want to set up additional services such as SharePoint, OneDrive and Teams.
     7. Establish data retention policies: With Office 365, you have the ability to retain data in accordance with compliance and legal requirements. Set up data retention policies to meet your organization's compliance needs, and if necessary configure retention policies for specific mailboxes or groups of users
   • Step 6: Add and verify the custom domain on Office 365

     If you have a custom email domain from your hosting provider to which you want to migrate and receive emails, you must add and verify the domain on Office 365. This will enable you to use your own domain name (such as example.com) for your email addresses and other Office 365 services.

      To set up your custom domain, follow these steps:

     1. Verify that you own the domain by adding a TXT record to your DNS configuration.
     2. Add a new domain to your Office 365 tenant. You can use an existing domain that you own or purchase a new one. The domain is used to access your Office 365 services. 
     3. Update your DNS records to point to Office 365. This step is required to ensure that your email is delivered to the correct mailbox. You can also update the MX records after you complete the migration.
   • Step 7: Create mailboxes and set up mail-enabled Public folders

     Before you migrate to Office 365, ensure that you create mailboxes for users in your organization and assign suitable licenses to them.

     1. Add users and assign licenses to Office 365 users
     2. Add several users at the same time to Office 365
     3. Assign Microsoft 365 licenses to user accounts

     If you want to migrate Exchange public folders to Office 365 , then create and configure Public folders and make them mail enabled on Office 365.

     1. Create Office 365 Public folder and assign mailbox user
     2. Enable In-Place Archive mailboxes in Office 365
   • Step 8: Set impersonation rights for the admin user on the source server

     If you are using the global admin account to connect your source Exchange server, ensure to set the impersonation rights.

     1. Steps to set impersonation rights in Exchange 2019, 2016, 2013, 2010
     2. Steps to set impersonation rights in Exchange 2007
   • Step 9: Verify the mailbox of the admin account

     Check to see if the admin account that has been assigned management roles has a valid and non-hidden mailbox on the Exchange server. See how to configure user mailbox properties for the users from the Exchange admin center (EAC).

   • Step 10: Configure Office 365 to send and receive large messages

     Increase the message size limit on Office 365 to 150 MB. This option enables you to bypass message size limitations during the migration.

5. Exchange to Office 365 migration steps with EdbMails

   Step 1: Download and install EdbMails software

   • Download EdbMails and install the application on any computer having Windows Operating system.
   • See the system requirements for Exchange to Office 365 migration
   • Launch the application, enter the required details and click ‘Login’ or ‘Start Your Free Trial’.

     

   • Select the migration option as ‘Live Exchange migration’

     

   Step 2: Connect to source Exchange server

   • Choose the required connection and migration option.
   • With EdbMails, you can mailboxes, public folders, and perform archive mailboxes from the source Exchange to the target server.
   • See more details on different Exchange server connection methods

     

   • Enter the details for the source Exchange server and click the ‘Login’ button.

     

   • After successfully logging into the source Exchange server, choose the required option to load the mailboxes. You can also load the mailboxes using a CSV file.

     

   Step 3: Select the Exchange server mailboxes

   • Select the Exchange server mailboxes and folders that you wish to migrate to Office 365.
   • Click 'Migrate to Office 365' to initiate the connection with the target server.

     

      Tip : If you are using EdbMails software for migration for the first time, the process will be a full migration. The subsequent migrations from the same source to the target will be incremental. If you encounter duplicate items in your source Exchange server mailboxes, EdbMails includes a Duplicate Email Remover tool that efficiently removes duplicate emails, contacts, and calendar entries.

   Step 4: Connect to target Office 365 server

   • Choose the required registration method and click the ‘Login’ button

     

   • Learn more details about target Office 365 server connection with EdbMails.

   Step 5: Mapping source and target server mailboxes

   • Choose the required mailbox mapping option

     

   • EdbMails automatically creates mailboxes on your target Office 365 server and assigns the required licenses.
   • Know more about automatic mailbox creation in the target Office 365 server.
   • After successfully creating mailboxes on the target server, EdbMails automatically maps the mailboxes and folders between the source and target servers, which is particularly advantageous for large-scale migrations. Alternatively, you can manually map source folders and subfolders to specific target locations as needed.

     

   • EdbMails provides advanced filtering options to customize the migration process effectively. For example, the date filter allows for the migration of items based on a specified date range, enabling users to selectively transfer only those emails and data received within that time frame.

   Step 6: Start Exchange to Office 365 migration

   • Once the mailbox mapping is complete, click the ‘Continue’ button and enter a job name to start the migration process. After the migration is completed successfully, EdbMails prompts the migration completion message. Click the 'View Log' button to view the migration report. Also, it is recommended to log in to your target Office 365 server and verify that items such as emails, calendars, and contacts have been successfully migrated. You can utilize pause or resume the migration if needed.

     

6. Exchange to Office 365 post migration tasks

   • Step 1: Update MX records to route to Office 365.

     It’s necessary to update MX records to route email to the new server. Furthermore, setting up the Autodiscover record is essential for ensuring that migrated mailboxes can connect seamlessly with mail clients, such as Outlook.

   • Step 2: Set up a new Outlook profile for users in the new domain

     If users encounter issues connecting Outlook to Office 365 mailboxes, manually configure their Outlook profiles in the new domain.

   • Step 3: Uninstall and decommission the source Exchange server

     The following points provide an overview of the steps to decommission on-premise Exchange server.

     • Verify that all mailboxes have been successfully migrated to Office 365.
     • Check the status in the Exchange admin center or with the PowerShell Get-MailboxStatistics cmdlet.
     • Make sure that all Outlook clients are configured to connect to Office 365. You can use the Test-OutlookWebServices cmdlet to check the connectivity of Outlook clients.
     • Disable all mail flow on the Exchange server by removing the Receive Connector or disabling the SMTP service.
     • Ensure that all public folders have been migrated to Office 365. You can use the Get-PublicFolder cmdlet to check the status of public folders.
     • Uninstall the Exchange server software from the Control Panel.
     • Remove any remaining Exchange-related hardware or virtual machines.
     • Verify that no mailboxes or public folders remain on the Exchange server.
     • Finally, remove the server from the Active Directory and DNS.
     • Once you verify that everything is working fine, you can decommission your on-premises server.
       1. Steps to decommission Exchange 2013
       2. Steps to decommission Exchange 2010
       3. Modify or Remove Exchange 2010
       4. Remove Exchange 2007 organization
       5. Uninstall Exchange Server 2003
       6. Decommission Exchange server in a Hybrid deployment

7. Exchange to Office 365 migration trouble-shooting guide

     See the troubleshooting solutions for Exchange and Office 365 migration. For more information related to EdbMails Exchange migration, see frequently asked questions.