Exchange Online Migration From POP3
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If you change your MX records last thing on a Friday, how much e-mail is likely to go to the old POP3 server during the weekend? It wouldn't be much at our place, so I'd pickup the stray e-mail myself using a POP3 client and then forward the e-mail to the users, assuming you know their passwords.
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@Carnival-Boy said:
assuming you know their passwords.
Are you saying you know the passwords of all of your users?
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I'm not sure how the OP's POP3 system is configured. When we were using a POP3 server it didn't integrate with AD, so I knew everyone's POP3 passwords.
Even when I migrated to Exchange, I wrote down most users AD passwords so that I could logon as them and create new profiles in Outlook. This may have been a dumb move, but I didn't know how to create Outlook profiles for a user without logging on as that user and I still don't! So if I the OP doesn't know any user passwords, I don't know how he'll create new Outlook profiles on a Friday night. I'd be interested to know how I should have done it.
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1) Change the TTL for your existing MX records to 1 hour 2) Setup Office 365 and create the users a) As part of tyhe setup you need to create DNS records for autodiscover as directed by MS (DO NOT CHANGE THE MX RECORD, yet) b) Log into the web interface for one user and make sure you can send an email from that account and it appears to be coming from your domain, if not, you need to fix this first 3) Using the existing Outlook profile add the new O365 Exchange account. a) Test that the account can receive mail via the .onmicrosoft.com email address. b) The send address should show your primary domain at this point which means replies would go to the POP service still. 4) Send out instructions to mobile users with how to create the new account on their devices. 5) Now you can change your MX record to Office 365's settings. a) You'll start receiving mail within a few hours to the Exchange account in Outlook 6) After a couple days (again, assuming short TTL) visit each workstation and a) Set the Exchange account as default b) Remove the POP3 account from the Outlook profile c) Disconnect the PST file d) Import the contents of the PST to Outlook i) This should not take a very long time to get the data into the OST, but full sync with Office 365 will vary dependingo n size and internet bandwidth -
@Carnival-Boy said:
I don't know how he'll create new Outlook profiles on a Friday night. I'd be interested to know how I should have done it.
Spin the passwords.
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You mean reset them to something and logon using that new password? Yeah, I could have done, but I'm not sure what benefit that would have. I'm still logging on as them with all the security concerns that that implies.
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Very good info guys and as Scott says, good "knowledge base" info.
Let me digress for a second...because I may end up needing help here...
Our domain name is registered with Network Solutions and is currently pointed to our POP3 provider who also hosts our webpage. The webpage actually has a pointer to our WIX page, which we have set in the POP3 providers control panel. So when the POP3 provider shuts down all of our services, do I simply point the domain to the Wix page or will this be a little more complicated with the MX records and such? Thanks...
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Sounds like you need to migrate your entire DNS to someone new since you're leaving the POP3 service.
@scottalanmiller mentioned some provider a week or so ago that offers free DNS and free mild website cacheing services (they offer a paid service that really 'protects and speeds up' your website). Maybe he'll remind us by posting
You'll need to create all of the current records you have on the POP3's DNS server on the new DNS providers servers. once you create all of these records, go to Network Solutions and point your SOA to the new DNS provider.
As for making sure people are able to make it to your website, you'll need to change your www records and any others that have to do with your website to your WIX IP address (hopefully they are doing header reading and attach the traffic to the correct website - that is assuming you have a shared IP at your hosting company, WIX)
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@JaredBusch a few minor changes.
Why do you like leaving the old Outlook profile in place instead of creating a new one? Also, why keep delivering messages that are coming in from POP3 to the PST until you kill it? Trying to understand the thought process.
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@Dashrender said:
Sounds like you need to migrate your entire DNS to someone new since you're leaving the POP3 service.
At the domain owner website (Network Solutions), I have our 4 domain names we own listed (we only really use one.)...I can go into MANAGE and I have three options with one being domain name server (DNS) and another being Advanced DNS services...under advanced, it says
Warning, Service Interruption Will Occur!
In order to use Advanced DNS Manager, your Name Servers must be moved to Network Solutions managed name servers.
Please Note: When you Move Name Servers to Network Solutions, your Existing Name Servers will no longer be used. As a result, Web sites and E-mail from other providers will be lost.So, this is where I need to go when you said above, correct?
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You can go there if you want to use Network Solutions as your DNS provider.
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@Dashrender said:
You can go there if you want to use Network Solutions as your DNS provider.
That's what I plan to do to keep it net and consistent for now...now the timing of it all...I still think I can do the MX records before I do this DNS move, right?
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Sure, you can do the records change in nearly any order you want, as long as your old POP3 provider keeps your records alive on their system.
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i'd create new profiles with the exchange plan and just import the pst's. you can also just use the @domain.onmicrosoft.com address for the migration and setup forwarders at your pop provider for the time being.
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@Dashrender
Setting up a new outlook profile is a waste of time in a staged migration. That is why I just add an exchange account to the current profile.
You will be receiving mail at the pop address until the MX records are transferred and propagated. If you make a new profile and only import the pst, how are you supposed to keep checking the pop3 otherwise.If you forward the pop3 at the host as @Hubtech suggested, then that would change that and make it feasible.
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@JaredBusch said:
@Dashrender
Setting up a new outlook profile is a waste of time in a staged migration. That is why I just add an exchange account to the current profile.
You will be receiving mail at the pop address until the MX records are transferred and propagated. If you make a new profile and only import the pst, how are you supposed to keep checking the pop3 otherwise.If you forward the pop3 at the host as @Hubtech suggested, then that would change that and make it feasible.
yep. and then all you've gotta do is make the final mx changes to flow ALL mail to exchange and finito!
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@JaredBusch said:
@Dashrender
Setting up a new outlook profile is a waste of time in a staged migration. That is why I just add an exchange account to the current profile.
You will be receiving mail at the pop address until the MX records are transferred and propagated. If you make a new profile and only import the pst, how are you supposed to keep checking the pop3 otherwise.If you forward the pop3 at the host as @Hubtech suggested, then that would change that and make it feasible.
In both our situations you have to visit the workstations twice. Though in my setup all email from the time you touch the pc the first time starts arriving in your O365 account. One of my steps when making the new profile is to have the Outlook client connect to the POP3 account and through the Outlook client upload it to your O365 account.
How do POP3 servers handle forwarding email to another server? would the mail split into the appropriate mailboxes?
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@Dashrender said:
@JaredBusch said:
@Dashrender
Setting up a new outlook profile is a waste of time in a staged migration. That is why I just add an exchange account to the current profile.
You will be receiving mail at the pop address until the MX records are transferred and propagated. If you make a new profile and only import the pst, how are you supposed to keep checking the pop3 otherwise.If you forward the pop3 at the host as @Hubtech suggested, then that would change that and make it feasible.
In both our situations you have to visit the workstations twice. Though in my setup all email from the time you touch the pc the first time starts arriving in your O365 account. One of my steps when making the new profile is to have the Outlook client connect to the POP3 account and through the Outlook client upload it to your O365 account.
How do POP3 servers handle forwarding email to another server? would the mail split into the appropriate mailboxes?
It forwards the mail to whatever address you push it to. you'd have to set a forwarder for each individual account. lik-a-dis
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@Hubtech said:
It forwards the mail to whatever address you push it to. you'd have to set a forwarder for each individual account. lik-a-dis
Does that add to the header? What happens when you reply to those types of emails?
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@Dashrender said:
You can go there if you want to use Network Solutions as your DNS provider.
I recommend keeping your Registrar, DNS Host and Web Host as three discrete entities. Seen way too many companies get screwed by rolling all of their "checks and balances" into one company.
Your Registrar should be managed by the CEO or board, not IT. DNS should be IT only, no access by the business. This is important separation of duties even for an SMB.
