Office 365 to Office 365 Migration

Are you willing for Office 365 to Office 365 migration but do not know an efficient and reliable method? If yes, then you are reading the correct article. In this article, we will discuss all about Office 365 migration. Various reasons initiate Office 365 to Office 365 migration. Reasons like merging of companies, migration from the tenant, shifting of data storing location, domain change et cetera.

Office 365 to Office 365 migration looks a different task from other migration tasks. Many users are even confused about where to begin the migration? Luckily, this Office 365 migration is not as complicated as it seems.

Ways to Migrate Office 365 to Office 365

Sometimes Office 365 users want to migrate their mailboxes from one Office 365 account to another Office 365 account. But due to the lack of knowledge and tools, they get failed. Like, there are some manual ways as well as professional software available to migrate Office 365 mailboxes. Here we’ll migrate Office 365 to Office 365 using PowerShell commands. 

Manual method to migrate Office 365 to Office 365

Users can perform Office 365 to Office 365 migration using the PowerShell scripts. But before using the PowerShell Scripts doer has to do some Pre &Post migration steps: 

Before I get technical; words of warning, If you are a non-technical user, skip the manual method and check the recommended and effortless way to migrate Office 365 to Office 365. 

Move single user

1. Domain Preparation:

• Firstly ensure that you have enough license for target Office 365.
• Create admin accounts in both source and target Office 365.
• Create user mailbox, resource mailbox, and distribution groups in the target tenant.
• Perform AD DS (Active Directory Domain Service) consolidation using the AD DS tool.
• Now synchronize both the source and target domains.

2. Verify Domain:

• Start the process of verifying the target domain in Office 365.
• Now add the source domain to the target domain to create the TXT record in DNS. 

(Note: Make sure the domain is using in only one tenant, and it will take 72 hours to show the changes).

3. Schedule Office 365 to Office 365 migration:

• Firstly, generate a list of user mailboxes that you want to migrate.
• Secondly, create a CSV for mapping.
• Now note down the lowest value of TTL (Time to Live) on the MX (Mail Exchange) record.
• At last, disable the synchronization of the source domain. (Disable from Admin center).

4. Migrate Office 365 to Office:

• Stop the mail flow of the source tenant by changing the MX value to an unreachable value. (The lowest value of TTL on MX record (you note in the previous step) will come in handy here).

5. Prepare Source Office 365:

• Erase all the objects from the primary domain on the source Office 365 before transferring the mailbox to another Office 365.
• In the window PowerShell, run the below command to remove all the objects from the primary email address.

(Get-Msoluser -DomainName XYZ.com -all | ? {$_.userprincipalname -match ‘@xyz\.com$’}).  

1. Prepare Target Office 365:

The last step for Office 365 to Office 365 migration, initiates this step after the one hour of performing the last-step. 

• Configure auto-discover CNAME.
• If you use ADFS (Active Directory Federation Services), configure a new domain in the target Office 365 for AD FS.
• Now activate the new users in the target Office 365 and assign new licenses.
• Now set the new primary email address using PowerShell Script given below

$newPrimaryMail = username@demofa.net

• Now decide the communicate password for the end-users.
• Once the user mailboxes get activated, change the mail routing and point the MX record to the new primary email address.
• At last, check the mail flow of the target Office 365. 

It is the end of the pre-migration task. Now use the PowerShell Command to migrate Office 365 to Office 365. 

In case you have corrupted items in the mailbox, you can move it with PowerShell but specify how many items you will allow to fail before it will cancel the move request.

1. Open PowerShell – make Right Click and Run as administrator

Ensure using PowerShell, not the Exchange Management Shell.

2. $Cred = Get-Credential

• Use Global Admin account for Office 365.

3. $Session = New-PSSession –ConfigurationName Microsoft.Exchange –ConnectionUri https://ps.outlook.com/powershell/ -Credential $Cred –Authentication Basic –AllowRedirection 

4. Import-PSSession $Session –allowclobber

5. $remotecred = Get-Credential

• Use On-Premise account

6. New-MoveRequest -Identity robbincarberry@boesscaler.nl -Remote -RemoteHostName “sourcedomain.com” -RemoteCredential $remotecred -TargetDeliveryDomain “example.argetdomain.com” -BadItemLimit 10

Move bulk users

In my opinion, moving mailboxes in bulk (in a hybrid deployment) is easiest by using theExchange 2013 Admin Center (EAC)or  Exchange 2010 Management Console (EMC). However, with some additional preparation, we can use a list of commands for the same task.

In hybrid server, install Microsoft Online Services Sign-In Assistant for IT Professionals RTW first.After that install Azure Active Directory Module for Windows PowerShell (64-bit version) and reboot the hybrid server to complete the installation process.

Next, create a list of mailbox aliases for the users you want to move in bulk. The file must be a CSV file (i.e. userlist.csv) and contain a header named ‘Alias’.

Connect to Office 365

1. From the hybrid server, using the ‘Windows Azure Active Directory Module for Windows PowerShell’ console, use the below commands to connect with Office 365.

• Set-ExecutionPolicy Unrestricted -Force

2. For the variable Office 365 credentials, Use your Office 365 global administrator credentials (i.e. admin@domainname.onmicrosoft.com).

• $O365CREDS = Get-Credential

3. For the variable $ONPREMCREDS, use your on premise credentials (i.e. DOMAINNAME\administrator).

• $ONPREMCREDS = Get-Credential
• $SESSION = New-PSSession -ConfigurationName Microsoft.Exchange -ConnectionUri https://ps.outlook.com/powershell -Credential $O365CREDS -Authentication Basic -AllowRedirection
• Import-PSSession $SESSION
• Connect-MsolService -Credential $O365CREDS

Run the Bulk Migration

Now, we’ll use the CSV file we created earlier to perform the bulk migration. Make sure the path on the CSV is local. Use this command to set the variable…

• $MAILBOXLIST = Import-CSV “C:\Userlist.csv”

Use this command to initiate and run the bulk moves…

• Foreach ($line in $MAILBOXLIST) {New-MoveRequest -Identity $line.alias -Remote -RemoteHostName sourcedomain.com -TargetDeliveryDomain example.argetdomain.com -RemoteCredential $ONPREMCREDS -BadItemLimit 1000}

Monitor Move Requests

• To monitor the mailbox moves, use this command

Get-MoveRequest | Get-MoveRequestStatistics

• To remove mailbox move requests, use this command…

Get-MoveRequest | Remove-MoveRequest

• Firstly, manual methods are complex and can’t be used without any technical knowledge and technical setup.
• Secondly, manual methods are lengthy and time-consuming. Users have to repeat the same process again and again.
• The manual method has a risk of data loss and chances of human error. Manually, a little misstep and all your Office 365 data will become inaccessible, or you’ll lose it.
• Manually, there is no guarantee of a successful migration. Doesn’t assure for Folder hierarchy and Data integrity.

To eliminate the risk of data loss and overcome the manual method drawbacks, users prefer professional third-party software.

Professional Third-Party Software

Shoviv Exchange Server Suite is a professional third-party tool. This software is one of those few software that are master in their field. There is no need for any technical knowledge and assistance to use this software. Using Shoviv software you can migrate entire mailboxes from one Office 365 to different Office 365 mailbox effortlessly.

Shoviv Exchange Server Suite

This software is one of the best software in the market. It is used and recommended by many organizations and individuals. It keeps a user-friendly and convenient GUI that makes it easy and hassle-free to use. Even a non-technical and beginner can also use this software for office 365 to Office 365 migration. It will migrate calendars, tasks, emails, contacts, and shared mailboxes. Shoviv Exchange Server Suite comes with many user-centric features, like:

• It allows users to export Office 365 mailbox to Office 365, Outlook PST format, and Live Exchange Server mailbox. Moreover, the user can export Office 365 mailbox data to popular file formats like EML, MSG, RTF, and vCal.
• The software comes with a user-friendly and convenient GUI. It makes this software easy to access for everyone. Even non-technical and beginners get high-quality results without any technical knowledge and setup.
• It comes with a preview option. By using the preview option, users can preview the data before the migration process. This utility comes handy to get assured about the selected files’ data before migration.
• This software has an e-Discovery search option. Using this utility, users can search for a specific folder. This feature is based on the attachment availability, date criteria, subject name, and sender name.
• Nowadays, every person wants to get assured about the product before investing in it. To resolve this issue, Shoviv Software offers a free demo version of the Shoviv Exchange Server suite. The free version allows the first 50 items per folder for Office 365 to Office 35 migration.

Steps to use Shoviv Exchange Server Suite:

1. Firstly, download and open Shoviv Exchange Server Suite.
2. Click on the Add Source button given on the ribbon bar.
3. Now make a click on Office 365 mailboxes option. Enter the Office 365 credentials and click on Next.
4. After that, click on the Office 365 option given on the ribbon bar.
5. Now, check and uncheck dialog box will appear. Check/ uncheck subfolders and click Next. (User can also add or remove folder using the checkbox.
6. Here, click on the Retrieve all mailboxes from Office 365 option. Enter User email and password and click Next.
7. In the next wizard, you can Map and Validate mailboxes. Choose as per requirements and make a click on the Next button.
8. Now Filter dialog box will appear. Use the filter option according to your need. Then click on the Next button. The filter utility is based on Message class and Item date.
9. Now the migration process will start. After the successful migration, users can view and save the log report.
10. At last, click on the Finish button.

Wrapping Up:

Here you get to know about Office 365 to Office 365 migration. There are also some manual methods available for this task. But, the manual way is not a recommended and efficient way. Using a manual method is like a walk on eggshells. Hence one misstep, and you will lose your Office 365’s data. Those who want safe and hassle-free migration should use Shoviv Exchange Server Suite. It is the easiest way to migrate Office 365 mailboxes to Office 365. A free trial version of Shoviv Exchange Server Suite is also available to download.