Migrating email to Microsoft 365 moves your mailboxes – mail, calendars, contacts – from an old provider or on-site server to Microsoft’s cloud. Done properly it happens with little or no downtime and no lost mail; done badly it causes days of disruption.
The steps
- Prepare – licence users, verify your domain, plan the cutover
- Pre-stage – copy existing mail into Microsoft 365 in the background while the old system still runs
- Cutover – change the domain’s mail records (MX) so new mail arrives at Microsoft 365
- Sync the gap – catch any mail that arrived during the switch
- Reconfigure clients – set up Outlook and phones on the new accounts
How long it takes
For a small business, planning plus a few days of background copying, then a cutover done outside business hours. Large mailboxes and slow source systems extend the copy phase.
What changes for staff
- A one-time Outlook and phone reconfiguration
- Webmail moves to outlook.office.com
- Larger mailbox quotas
- MFA prompts (set up during the migration – see the security checklist)
Common mistakes
- Cutting over MX records before mail has finished copying
- Not lowering DNS TTLs beforehand, so the switch is slow
- Forgetting shared mailboxes, distribution lists and app/printer accounts that send mail
- No plan for the few hours around cutover
Need help with Microsoft 365? See our cloud services or talk to our Edmonton team.
Microsoft 365 guides
- Microsoft 365 vs Google Workspace
- Microsoft 365 licensing explained
- What you get with Business Premium
- OneDrive vs SharePoint vs Teams files
- Microsoft 365 security checklist
- Is Microsoft 365 backed up?
- Migrating email to Microsoft 365
Frequently asked questions
Will we lose email during the migration?
No, if it is planned. Mail is pre-copied while the old system runs, and the gap is synced after cutover. The risk comes from rushing the MX change.
How long does email migration take?
Days rather than hours for the background copy, then a short out-of-hours cutover. Very large mailboxes take longer to copy.
Do staff have to do anything?
A one-time reconfiguration of Outlook and their phone, and setting up MFA. We usually handle or guide each person through it.
How does Scandifix help?
We plan and run the whole migration – licensing, domain, pre-staging, cutover, client setup and MFA – with the cutover outside business hours.