Exchange Online how-tos
8 step-by-step Exchange Online jobs with official downloads, exact clicks and checks.
At the end you will have the ExchangeOnlineManagement module installed on your Windows or Mac admin computer, be connected to your tenant with Connect-ExchangeOnline, and know how to disconnect cleanly.
10 stepsExchange OnlineConvert a user mailbox to a shared mailboxAt the end the mailbox will be a shared mailbox that the right people can open, its sign-in will be blocked, and you will know whether you can remove its licence and how to turn it back into a user mailbox.
9 stepsExchange OnlineCreate, start, monitor and complete a migration batchAt the end you will have moved a group of mailboxes into Exchange Online with a migration batch, checked each user's progress and finalised (or cleaned up) the batch.
7 stepsExchange OnlineCreate a migration endpoint in Exchange OnlineAt the end you will have a migration endpoint in Exchange Online that holds the connection settings your migration batches use to reach the source mail system.
7 stepsExchange OnlineExport an Exchange Online mailbox to PSTAt the end you will have a PST copy of one or more mailboxes, made either centrally by an admin through Microsoft Purview eDiscovery or on a user's PC with Outlook for Windows.
8 stepsExchange OnlineImport PST files to Microsoft 365 with network uploadAt the end you will have uploaded PST files to Microsoft's storage with AzCopy and imported them into user mailboxes or archives with a Microsoft Purview import job.
8 stepsExchange OnlineReset an Outlook profile after a mailbox migrationAt the end Outlook will open a new, clean profile connected to the user's new Exchange Online mailbox, and you will have checked that Autodiscover points to the right place.
8 stepsExchange OnlineSet up mail forwarding during a migrationAt the end, mail sent to a user arrives in whichever mailbox they actually use during the migration: forwarded from the old system to Microsoft 365 before the MX change, or from Exchange Online back to the old system for people not yet moved, with automatic external forwarding allowed only where you need it.
11 stepsExchange OnlinePlaybooks that use these how-tos
Move mailboxes from a cPanel web host into Exchange Online with Microsoft's built-in IMAP migration, carry calendars and contacts across by hand, and switch MX without losing mail.
17 min readHow to cut over email DNS without losing mailEvery email migration ends with the same DNS changes. This runbook puts them in a safe order, with TTL planning, record-by-record checks and the rules that stop mail bouncing or landing in junk.
15 min readHow to migrate from Exchange Server to Exchange OnlinePick the right method for your Exchange version and mailbox count, set up hybrid or a cutover batch, move mailboxes and public folders, then switch MX and Autodiscover to Exchange Online.
24 min readChecklistHow to migrate Gmail to Exchange OnlineMove Google Workspace mail, calendars, contacts and filters into Exchange Online with Microsoft's built-in Google Workspace migration, keep mail flowing both ways while you work, and change MX only when every batch is done.
19 min readHow to move Microsoft 365 from GoDaddy to a tenant you controlIf you bought Microsoft 365 through GoDaddy, there are two ways to end up with a tenant you manage directly or through another partner. This guide follows what Microsoft and GoDaddy actually document, and says plainly where the documentation stops.
16 min readHow to migrate between two Google Workspace accountsConsolidate Google Workspace accounts after a merger, acquisition or rebrand: choose between copying data, Google-run Domain Transfer and moving the domain yourself.
13 min readHow to migrate from Google Workspace to Microsoft 365Move Gmail, Calendar, Contacts, Drive and shared drives into Exchange Online, OneDrive and SharePoint with Microsoft's own tools, then cut over mail without losing a message.
17 min readChecklistHow to migrate IMAP email to Microsoft 365Move mailboxes from a web host, cPanel server, Zoho Mail or any IMAP service into Exchange Online using Microsoft's built-in IMAP migration, then switch MX without losing mail.
13 min readHow to migrate Microsoft 365 Groups and Planner plans to another tenantMicrosoft has no native tool that moves a Microsoft 365 group or its Planner plans between tenants. This guide shows how to inventory them, recreate each group with its owners, members and settings, and rebuild plans with the Microsoft Graph Planner API.
15 min readCommon Exchange Online errors and fixes
All errors →TooManyBadItemsPermanentExceptionThe mailbox move stopped because it found more corrupt or missing items than the move request allows.
Exchange OnlineStalledDueToTarget_ProcessorA hybrid move from Exchange Server stalls and the move report shows MapiFxProxyTransientException: the data export was cancelled due to a timeout.
Exchange OnlineMigrationPermanentException: Cannot find a recipient that has mailbox GUIDMoving a cloud mailbox back on-premises fails because the on-premises remote mailbox does not have the matching ExchangeGUID.
Exchange OnlineMigrationPermanentException: Target user already has a primary mailboxOffboarding a mailbox from Exchange Online to on-premises fails because the on-premises user still has mailbox attributes set.
Exchange OnlineDataConsistencyScore Investigate (skipped items need approval)The migration found some data loss and will not complete until an admin reviews and approves the skipped items.
Exchange OnlineLargeItemLimit: migration fails on large itemsThe migration request fails or skips messages that are bigger than the maximum message size allowed in the target mailbox.
Exchange OnlineWe weren't able to connect to the remote server. Please verify that the migration endpoint settings are correctA cutover migration cannot create its Outlook Anywhere migration endpoint, often with Error 0x6ba (The RPC server is unavailable).
Exchange OnlineCrossTenantMigrationWithoutLicensePermanentExceptionA cross-tenant mailbox move fails because the user does not have a Cross-tenant User Data Migration licence.
Exchange Online