As big organizations are migrating from on-premise emailing setup to a cloud-based environment, the best way to do so has been an area of interest for experts. The fact, however, remains that there is no good or bad way. An organization needs to take the call depending upon its specific requirements that include the number of users to be migrated, the size of the on-premise environment, the basic messaging surroundings as well as the prospects revolving around coexistence.
In this article, we’ll be featuring one of the easiest ways in which all existing Exchange mailboxes can be moved to Office 365.
The simplest way to perform Exchange 2007 to Office 365 migration
For our particular case here, we need a migration technique that’s capable of working with Exchange 2007. So the Hybrid technique is out. The IMAP method also is out due to its limitations. So in effect, both the cutover and the staged migration techniques should be optimal to migrate Exchange 2007 to Office 365. And this makes the method really simple or better for more than 2000 mailboxes, the staged migration and for less than that, the cutover migration.
Herein, we’re discussing the steps to perform the cutover migration. Always, make sure to plan and test the migration before the actual implementation.
Cutover Migration
Step 1: Plan
Microsoft’s Exchange Deployment Assistant (EDA) is the best available guide for all migration scenarios to Office 365.
1. Open the EDA website.
2. Click on the ‘Cloud Only’ option.
3. Answer questions related to end state goals and existing set-up.
4. Click Next.
5. The EDA will generate a step-wise guide. Read and comprehend it
altogether.
Step 2: Test the existing setup
For this procedure to work, the Exchange 2007 structure should assist Outlook Anywhere (RPC over HTTP) and Autodiscover. Utilize the guide generated in step 1 to verify that the current set-up is correct. Then utilize the Microsoft Remote Connectivity Analyser (RCA) to confirm Outlook Anywhere (RPC over HTTP). Assign all necessary authorizations to the mailboxes that are to be migrated (lacking these steps will cause the migration to fail)
1. Open the RCA website.
2. Select the Outlook Anywhere (RPC over HTTP) test.
3. Click Next.
4. Enter all required information.
5. Type in the Verification code and then click on Perform Test.
6. If the procedure fails or gives warnings, refer the above guide and correct
any mistakes before attempting it again.
Step 3: Configure and start the migration
1. Open a browser and log in to Office 365 Admin Center
2. Open Exchange Admin Center (EAC)
3. Click Migration -> the + drop down menu -> Migrate to Exchange Online
4. Select Cutover Migration -> Next
5. Enter the on-premises account details
6. Click Next
7. Enter a name for the New Migration Batch
8. Click Next
9. Select a recipient for the migration report at the end of the process. You
may select multiple accounts here.
10. Choose ‘Automatically’ option or ‘Manually’ start the batch later depending
upon your status.
11. Click New
This will create the migration batch and set its state to syncing. The time taken to finish the task will rely on the number of mailboxes and the amount of data to be migrated.
Step 4: Finish the migration
As the process is finished and all accounts are moved from Exchange 2007 to Office 365, the selected recipient will get a report. From that point, the procedure can be finished.
1. Migrate Public Folders
2. Assign Office 365 licenses to all users
3. Ensure that all DNS records are updated and point towards Office 365 services
Note: There might be some DNS replication time included. You should continue moving the batch work for 72 hours to enable the replication to finish.
4. Configure the desktop machines to use Office 365 services.
5. When you’re sure the DNS replication has finished and all emails are moved,
stop the migration batch work.
Alternative Recommended Solution
Though the above process seems simple, it might be quite a tedious job for beginners. In addition, no migration technique is perfect; there is always a risk of losing some data during the process. In order to avoid all troubles and make the process easier, we recommend migrating your Exchange 2007 database file (EDB) into Office 365 with the help of SysTools Exchange to Office 365 Migration
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