It is a well-known fact that migrations are complex and can result in a significant financial loss when not performed with proper planning. However, the entire process can be completed in a seamless manner if you choose the right procedure and tool. Here, we are discussing a step-by-step process to migrate Zimbra to Office 365 that is tried and tested by various tech experts.
But before jumping to the migration steps, there are some users who want to know why businesses are migrating from Zimbra to Microsoft 365.
Most Common Reasons for Switching to Office 365 from Zimbra
- Zimbra is a light and affordable application that is more suitable for small businesses. Once the business requirements become complex, then they ought to move to a more sophisticated platform.
- Zimbra offers inflexible filters and searches when compared to Microsoft 365.
- Many users find its user interface old-fashioned, especially when they have earlier used an advanced email application.
- Zimbra can be simply termed as a simple communication tool with a limited set of features when compared with a long list of Office 365.
Zimbra to Office 365 Migration Steps
When we talk about an error-free migration process, it is always performed with proper planning and tried and tested steps. Thus, to make your entire process simple and flawless, we have listed a seamless guide for you.
Step-1. Evaluate Source Zimbra Environment
The first and the basic step in any migration is to evaluate your source environment and create a complete inventory. In this step, you need to evaluate the email architecture, any potential risks involved, and creating a foolproof plan to eliminate those risks. The points that you need to evaluate during Zimbra to Office 365 migration are:
- Current Zimbra version
- Number of mailboxes and their size
- Existing email retention policies
- Compliance requirements
- Added integrations and customizations in Zimbra environment
Step-2. Planning for Zimbra to Office 365 Migration
Once you are done evaluating the Zimbra platform, now it is time to work on Office 365 environment. The primary factors that you need to plan and evaluate are:
- Choose a Suitable Office 365 Plan: Microsoft offers various subscription plans for its business productivity suite. Each plan comes with a different set of features and prices to match the needs of every organization.
- Create Destination Office 365 Accounts: Now comes the next step of moving Zimbra mailboxes to Microsoft 365 accounts where you need to create user accounts in Office 365. You can use the Office 365 Admin Center to create accounts and assign licenses to the users.
- Plan Migration Schedule: Once you have created users in your Office 365 account, then you need to decide when you are starting your migration. It should be done in such a way that there is minimal downtime and almost negligible workflow interruption.
- Create Zimbra to Office 365 Migration Plan: Another important aspect of this migration process is a proper plan containing a detailed timeline, possible risks and their elimination strategies, and a migration tool.
- Run a Pilot Migration: As Zimbra mailboxes contain a lot of sensitive and crucial data, it is always suggested to test the migration on a smaller batch before going with all users.
Step-3. Prepare Zimbra Environment
Another crucial step while switching to Office 365 from Zimbra is to prepare your source platform. In this step, you need to follow the below-listed points:
- Make sure that the Zimbra version that you are using is compatible with the migration tool that you will use to transfer your data.
- You can also remove unnecessary/unimportant emails from your mailbox to reduce time and effort during migration.
- Create a list of Zimbra mailboxes that will be migrated to destination Office 365 accounts for better management.
Step-4. Start Migrating Zimbra Mailboxes to Office 365
Now comes the main and most time taking step of this entire process. Here, you need to choose a migration solution using which you will carry out the complete process without losing a single bit of data.
If you are not aware of any secure and reliable solution and looking for the same solution, then TTD Zimbra Converter should be your choice. This software permits users to convert Zimbra TGZ files into multiple formats including PST, PDF, MBOX, EML, and Office 365. Additionally, the software also gets the option to add Zimbra webmail into it and migrate data directly to the destination platform.
You can download this application for free and try Zimbra to O365 migration project.
You can also use this application to export Zimbra mailboxes to PST.
Step-5. Verify Migration Process
After successfully completing the migration, the final step is to verify that 100% of your data is migrated. You can check this by looking into the emails, calendars, and contacts in the destination account. Furthermore, you also need to make sure that the new Office 365 environment is running properly without any issues.
Conclusion
Despite being a daunting process with a lot of complexities and issues, the entire process can be completed with proper planning and execution. Moreover, a trusted Zimbra to Office 365 migration solution is required for a seamless migration. You can go through this blog for a step-by-step guide and move your data to destination accounts without any limitation.