Migrating to Google Workspace: Part 2 – Communications

Client: Kevin Harris Architect (KHA) – “Architectural Firm”
Industry: Architect for custom homes, residential renovations, and design consultant
Location: Baton Rouge, Louisiana, USA
Project: Data Migration from Hosted Microsoft Exchange to Google Workspace
Migration timeframe: July 2024

1. Executive Summary

This case study continues after the server migration successfully performed for Kevin Harris Architect. We will now examine the process of migrating email service from a Hosted Microsoft Exchange provider to Google Workspace. This study explores our steps, tools, and the new advantages of Google Workspace that our client can now access. We’ll also dive into the details of the migration strategies, address challenges, and offer best practices for a smooth and efficient transition that minimizes disruption to business operations.

2. Challenges:

Historical Data: Email mailboxes went back several years. We needed to ensure we could get all that historical data into Google Workspace.
Email, Contacts, Calendar Migration: Our client needed a more straightforward way to communicate within their company and have integration options with other services they utilize that did not work with their existing provider.
User Adoption: Transitioning users from a familiar file server environment to Google Drive required training and support to ensure smooth adoption and minimize workflow disruption.
Minimal Downtime: The migration needed to allow our client’s team to work as usual while the data was copied to Google Drive.
Choosing the right tool: Several services are available to handle the migration. Google offers its own options, but ultimately we decided to go with BitTitan’s MigrationWiz.
Choosing the right type of migration: As outlined in MigrationWiz types and best practices, there are three migration routes: Big Bang, Pre-stage, and Quick-switch. Each has its benefits, and each situation is different. We chose Pre-stage due to the amount of historical data and the need to verify that the connections worked.
Mailbox Differences: The hosted Exchange provider offered up to 50 MB email attachments, Google Workspace is limited to 25 MB for outbound, and 50 MB for inbound attachments.

3. Solutions:

Planning and Assessment: Before setting up the migration plan, we gathered current mailbox sizes in the Hosted Exchange environment to determine how much data we’d need to handle. We also met with Migration Wiz BitTitan’s team to review our findings before beginning.
User Credentials: The number of users was below 10, so we utilized MigrationWiz’s option to gather the credentials from each KHA team member via a secure link. We notified the KHA team beforehand to let them know it was a legitimate request and to please proceed when the email is received. We also provided a screenshot of what the email from MigrationWiz would look like. We also asked the KHA team to log in to the Outlook Web App of their Hosted Exchange to verify they have the correct credentials ready.
Trial Migration: As we received each confirmation of credentials provided, we ran a Trial Migration on each mailbox individually. A Trial Migration will migrate a minimal amount of data to test that the project has been created and configured correctly and that the users have been entered into the project correctly.
Pre-Stage Migration: This will migrate all emails older (in our case) than 90 days. This was the vast majority of the email to be migrated, and it was the largest and most time-consuming. The benefit is that the KHA team could continue to work as usual while this was happening. We did ask that they not perform any clean-up or filing of older email during this time, as it may be lost on the final cut-over.
Cut-Over to Google Workspace: First, we met with the KHA management team and decided on a cut-over date. We picked a Friday to make the final changes and migration. We changed the DNS records entries for the MX (Mail eXchange) records to point to Google Workspace (this tells the internet where to deliver email). Then we ran a final migration of all the mailboxes to move the remaining email (newer than 90 days) to Google Workspace.
Monitor Post-Migration: Monitor email functionality after the migration to identify and address any issues that may arise.
Post-Migration Support: During the cut-over meeting, we provided plenty of time for Q&A and shared our contact information, letting them know we’re here to answer any questions that may come up. This client has been a long-time customer of our Business Support Plan, so they know how to contact us, and we welcome all questions.
Error Report Export: The migration caused errors related to the attachment size in the old Hosted Exchange account compared to what Google Workspace could import. Within MigrationWiz, you can export those logs to assist with locating the original emails and manually exporting them.
Large File Attachments: We found many email attachments that exceeded what Google Workspace could accept. There is a workaround: opening the email in the older Hosted Exchange Outlook Web portal and saving it in a way that could be downloaded and archived into Google Drive. More on how the export can be performed: https://mongeit.consulting/export-email-from-outlook-web-app-owa/

4. Results

Streamlined Solutions: By consolidating all their information into Google Workspace, they eliminated the need for Hosted Exchange, Microsoft Office licenses, and Zoom licenses by using similar tools in Google Workspace. Google Workspace offers a comprehensive suite of applications, including Gmail, Drive, Docs, Sheets, Meet, and more, all integrated seamlessly.
Advanced Features: Gmail within Google Workspace offers advanced features like smart compose, email scheduling, and powerful search capabilities, which enhance productivity and efficiency, facilitate collaboration on shared files, and facilitate the administration of shared data.
Improved File Collaboration: Integration with other Google Workspace apps fosters seamless collaboration. Sharing files via Drive, scheduling meetings through Calendar, and collaborating on documents through Docs directly from Gmail streamlined their workflow.
Enhanced Email Security: Google’s security infrastructure protects against spam, phishing, and malware, ensuring secure business-critical communication. Advanced features like two-factor authentication and data encryption further enhance security.
Cost-Effectiveness: Google Workspace reduced the monthly cost of the Hosted Exchange subscription from $174 to $100, a savings of $888 annually.

5. Conclusion:

We planned thoroughly and followed MigrationWiz best practices for a successful migration. A well-defined migration plan is essential for a successful transition. We also needed to keep users informed throughout the migration process. Thorough testing was crucial to identify and resolve issues before they impacted users. Through multiple meetings, we wanted to ensure the KHA team was comfortable with Gmail and other Google Workspace applications.

6. Lessons Learned:

Errors in the migration process are not the end of the world. There could be many reasons, and there could be workarounds to those errors. The one ‘fly in the ointment’ with this is that MigrationWiz is not a sync tool, so between the pre-migration and final cut-off, if an email, contact, or calendar is deleted in the Hosted Exchange environment, it won’t be removed from Google Workspace. In other words, the final migration will be an “additive process” only. Only new emails, contacts, and calendars will be added to Google Workspace; nothing will be deleted during the final migration run.

7. Next Steps:

Backup, backup, backup. [conclusion… Part 3)

Featured Image Photo by GRAHAM MANSFIELD on Unsplash