Summary: Recent attacks on the Exchange server have led to a shift from on-premises Exchange server to cloud-based Office 365. Besides security and compliance, businesses and organization are also migrating their emails from Exchange on-premises to Exchange Online (Office 365) due to its features and advantages, such as scalability, built-in anti-malware/spam protection, integration with Azure, anywhere access, and low maintenance/running cost. In this Office 365 migration guide, we listed some best Office 365 migration tools that you can use to migrate mailboxes and data from on-premise Exchange to Office 365 with minimal to no downtime.
Exchange on-premises versions were recently attacked by a Chinese state-sponsored group known as HAFNIUM. The group exploited the ProxyLogon vulnerabilities on the on-premise Exchange server to access and compromise the Exchange servers.
HAFNIUM is by far the most devastating and invasive attack on Exchange on-premises versions that compromised more than 30,000 organizations worldwide. Such Increasing threats and attacks on Microsoft Exchange on-premises server are pushing organizations and businesses across the globe to move their emails from Exchange on-premises to a more secure cloud-based Exchange Online or Office 365, which is unaffected by such attacks.
In this post, we discussed the best Office 365 migration tools to migrate all mailboxes from Exchange 2019, 2016, 2013, 2010, 2007, 2003, 2000, or 5.5 version to Microsoft Office 365 with 100% integrity and precision.
Best Office 365 Migration Tool
Although you can use the manual methods to migrate mailboxes and data from Exchange on-premises to Office 365, these methods are often complex and have many limitations. For instance, Cutover Migration limits 2000 mailboxes and takes several days to migrate the mailboxes, which causes extended downtime and impacts users. Also, it doesn’t work when the mailbox database is dismounted or offline.
An Office 365 migration tool overcomes these limitations and helps you quickly migrate mailboxes from on-premises Exchange to Office 365 without any risk of data loss or corruption. They facilitate 1:1 migration while maintaining the original folder structure and content. You can also add various filters to migrate desired mailboxes or mail items to Office 365 and save time.
1. Stellar Converter for EDB
Stellar Converter for EDB is one of the most advanced tools to extract and export mailboxes from online or offline Exchange mailbox database (EDB) file directly to Office 365. You may also convert and save mailboxes from EDB to PST format and then import the PST mailboxes to respective Office 365 accounts. Recommended by MVPs and IT administrators worldwide, Stellar’s Office 365 migration tool can export single or multiple mailboxes simultaneously to Office 365. The software utilizes a parallel processing technique for faster and efficient mailbox migration from on-premise Exchange to Office 365 without disrupting the server performance.
Further, you can prioritize the mailbox migration and choose to migrate critical or important mailboxes first to Office 365 than others. The software auto-maps the source and destination mailboxes and provides an option to edit or map the source and destination mailboxes manually. Administrators can also remove mailboxes from the export queue or resume recovery of the removed queue if the mailboxes are removed accidentally.
Pros
- Migrates mailboxes from large offline EDB files to Office 365, Live Exchange Server, PST, and other multiple formats
- Exports mailboxes directly to Public Folders on Office 365 and Live Exchange
- Extracts Public Folders from offline EDB files to PST, Live Exchange, and Office 365
- Provides an enhanced preview of mailbox items, such as email
- Advanced filter options to filter out specific mailboxes or emails based on the email address or date range
- Migrate mailboxes from EDBs of a decommissioned server to Office 365 and Live Exchange
- Maintains folder structure and hierarchy
- Auto-maps source and destination mailboxes on Office 365 and Live Exchange server
- Recovers deleted mailboxes and mail items
- Exports contacts to CSV format
- Facilitates Dial Tone Recovery
- Option to search and export specific mailboxes or mail items to Office 365
- Converts and export mailboxes from Unicode EDB files
- Option to save and load scan information to resume migration later
- Supports Exchange 2019, 2016, 2013, 2010, 2007, 2003, 2000 & 5.5 versions
Cons
- Demo version only allows scan and preview of converted mailboxes and items.
2. Systools Exchange to Office 365 Migration
The Systools Exchange to Office 365 Migration Tool helps Exchange administrators to migrate the mailboxes from on-premises Exchange server to Office 365 mailboxes. The software can migrate up to 200 mailboxes simultaneously to Office 365. However, this requires a high-end system with at least 8 cores and high bandwidth internet connection.
The software also features a built-in dashboard that displays the status of the migration process. It provides an option to map source and destination mailboxes for quick and easy migration. Further, it allows you to re-run the Exchange to Office 365 migration process if the mailbox export fails due to any reason.
Pros
- Migrates mailbox data from Exchange to Office 365
- Exports unlimited mailboxes to Office 365
- Option to map source and destination mailboxes
- Option to set mailbox export priority
- Facilitates selective mailbox migration
- Displays live export progress report
- Preserves folder hierarchy and structure
- Supports Exchange 2016, 2013, 2010, 2007
Cons
- The free version allows two-user migration. For unlimited mailbox migration, it requires activation
- Does not support Exchange 2019
3. Shoviv Exchange to Office 365 Migration Tool
Shoviv’s Office 365 migration tool allows administrators to migrate user mailboxes from Exchange EDB files to Office 365, Live Exchange, or PST format. Its intuitive and easy-to-use interface allows anyone to use the tool for Office 365 migration. It also facilitates Office 365 to Office 365 migration while maintaining the folder structure. It further provides an option to map source and destination mailboxes for accurate and precise migration.
The software also migrates Public Folder and Archive mailboxes to Office 365. It features a search option to help locate specific mailboxes for migration to Office 365. You can search and filter the results based on various criteria, such as Cc, Bcc, Date, Subject, Attachment date, etc.
Pros
- Migrates mailboxes from Exchange EDB to PST, Live Exchange, and Office 365
- Facilitates Office 365 to Office 365 migration
- It comes with an Incremental Export option to avoid duplicity
- Features auto-mapping and manual mapping options
- Advanced filter option to find and migrate specific mailboxes
- Exports mailboxes from multiple EDB files
- Retains original folder hierarchy and structure
- Supports Exchange 2003, 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and Office 365
Cons
- Demo version allows you to export or migrate 50 items/folder
- Requires activation to export unlimited mailboxes
- Slow migration as it does not support Parallel or Concurrent mailbox processing
Conclusion
Office 365 migration tool is a must-have tool for Exchange administrators looking for a solution to migrate mailboxes from on-premises Exchange to Office 365 without disrupting the user access. Exchange migration tools, such as Stellar Converter for EDB, helps backup and migrate mailboxes from Exchange on-premises to another Live Exchange server, Office 365, or PST format. In this post, we discussed the 3 best Office 365 migration tools that can help you migrate mailboxes and data from Exchange on-premises or EDB files to Office 365 with 100% integrity and precision. These Office 365 migration tools help you quickly migrate the mailboxes and avoid downtime. You may choose any based on the features and your requirements.
