Onboarding | Project Phases | Best Practices | Glossary of Key Terms

Mailbox Migration Methodologies

Transend’s mailbox migration methodologies are designed to ensure an efficient cutover, with an optimized user experience. As a result, we offer two default mailbox migration methodologies.

Staged Migration

For most projects, this is the recommended migration methodology.

The Staged Migration methodology is designed to ensure the most recent messages (sent/received within the last 12 months) are migrated to target mailboxes in advance of the cutover. This ensures that after the cutover is performed and users first log into the target mailbox (just after the cutover), email messages from the last 12 months are already there. Once the cutover is performed, Transend then proceeds to migrate all remaining data from the source.

  • Stage-1 – messages sent/received within the recent 12-month period (migrated pre-cutover)
  • Cutover – Update DNS records to change mail routing to target (Users “Go Live” in target)
  • Stage-2 – calendars/contacts/tasks + Stage-1 delta job (migrated post-cutover)
  • Stage-3 – messages older than 12 months (migrated post-cutover)

Single-pass Migration

Alternatively, for customers who want mail routing to the new platform updated as quickly as possible, Transend can perform a Single-pass migration of all data after mail routing is updated and users are live in the new platform.

  • Cutover – Update DNS records to change mail routing to target (Users “Go Live” in target)
  • Single-pass migration – Perform Single-pass migration of all mailbox data in scope

The benefit of the Single-pass migration is to ensure mail routing is updated as quickly as possible, so that users can begin working out of the new platform ASAP. The downside is that it takes longer for the migration to complete after users are “live” in the target platform.

If your target platform is already live (i.e. users send/receive mail from the target already) and no mail routing changes are required, then a Single-pass migration is the recommended migration methodology.

Custom Mailbox Migration Methodologies

If you require a custom mailbox migration methodology that deviates from the default options described above, please contact your Project Manager during the Setup phase to understand options and additional fees.