Exchange 2010 migration to Exchange 2019

1. Exchange 2010 to Exchange 2019 Migration Planning

   Planning is essential to ensure a safe transfer of all data to the target server. Here's a general checklist and migration strategy to follow:

   1. Take a complete backup of all mailbox data at the source.
   2. Request users to back up important files, attachments, and contact entries.
   3. Communicate the changes to all users and stakeholders.
   4. Estimate the upgrade costs for hardware, operating systems, and maintenance factors.
   5. Prepare the target environment and ensure sufficient bandwidth for migration.
   6. Make note of inventory items like Active Directory association, operating system, firewall, network configuration, port numbers, installed programs, and list of users.
   7. Install Exchange 2019 and create suitable mailboxes and Public folders.
   8. Perform a test migration on a few mailboxes to ensure readiness for a full migration.
   9. Migrate from Exchange 2010 to 2019 and configure the domains to receive emails.
   10. Create new Outlook profiles for all users and verify email reception.
   11. After verifying and informing all end users, decommission Exchange 2010.

2. Exchange 2010 to 2019 Migration Prerequisites

   • Step 1: Check that your system meets the Exchange 2019 setup requirements.

     Before you migrate your mailbox data to Exchange 2019, ensure that your current environment and hardware is compatible for the transfer. The following links will help you to know about the network, hardware,.NET framework and operating system requirements for installing Exchange server 2019.

     1. Network and directory requirement for Exchange 2019
     2. Hardware Requirements for Exchange 2019
     3. Supported operating systems for Exchange 2019
     4. Supported .NET Framework Versions for 2019
     5. Supported Outlook clients in Exchange 2019

     Exchange server version	Coexistence scenario	Requirement	Migration Possible
     Exchange 2019	Exchange 2019 cannot coexist with 2010	Install Cumulative Update 32 for Exchange 2010 SP3	Yes! With EdbMails Exchange migration, you can migrate to any Exchange server version regardless of the coexistence issue

     Note: If you have the Domain Controllers (DC) running on Windows Server 2008, ensure that you first transfer the roles to a DC running Windows 2012 R2 or higher before you decommission any of the earlier DC’s. Exchange 2019 requires Active Directory forest functional level of Windows Server 2012 R2 or higher. See the Exchange server supportability matrix.

   • Step 2: Prepare your system with the following prerequisites for Exchange 2019

     Complete the following prerequisites for Active Directory, Windows 2019 Mailbox server, and Windows 2019 Edge Transport servers for installing Exchange server 2019.

     1. Prerequisites for preparing Active Directory (AD)
     2. Windows Server prerequisites for Exchange 2019
   • Step 3: Decide on the migration path for Exchange 2010 to 2019

     Consider if you want to perform a staged, hybrid or a cutover Exchange migration. EdbMails can help you with the following migrations without downtime or data loss. The advantage with it is that you can keep using your mailboxes during the migration without disconnecting your Exchange server.

     Current environment and requirement	Ideal migration approach	How does the migration take place?
     You want to perform a complete Exchange 2019 migration in a single event and in a limited time frame.	Exchange 2010 to 2019 cutover migration	In this approach, you set up the target Exchange server and migrate everything in a single sitting. Suitable for large mailbox migration
     You have little time and want to migrate mailboxes in phases or over the weekends	Staged Exchange migration	In this approach, you migrate your mailboxes and mail data in stages and transfer the most recent data first followed by the others.
     You want to migrate from Exchange 2010 to a Hybrid 2019 and Office 365 environment	Exchange Hybrid migration	In this approach, you migrate from the source server to a Hybrid Exchange and Office 365 environment. See the prerequisites for a Hybrid deployment

   • Step 4: Setup the target Exchange Server 2019 for migration

     Given below is a list of key points for installing and preparing the Exchange 2019 server for migration.

     Note: If you have already installed and configured Exchange 2019 in the target environment, skip to point 4 in this step.

     1. Prepare AD and domains
        1. Before you install Exchange Server 2019, prepare your Active Directory forest and its domains for the new version of Exchange.
        2. If you have a separate team to manage the Active Directory schema, you must extend the active directory schema, else proceed to the next step to prepare the Active Directory.
        3. If you have multiple domains you need to additionally prepare the Active Directory domains.
     2. Install Exchange server 2019

        Ensure that you meet the server system requirements and prerequisites outlined in the preceding sections. Next, install Exchange 2019 mailbox server and edge transport server using the setup wizard.

     3. Prepare a clean Exchange 2019 target environment
        1. Install and upgrade Exchange to the latest Cumulative Update to keep your server up to date.
        2. Create and configure a Send connector to send mail outside the Exchange organization.
        3. By default, Exchange automatically creates receive connectors for inbound mail flow when the mailbox server is installed. However, if you want to configure custom receive connectors for certain mail flow scenarios, follow the steps in the link.
        4. Add accepted domains to allow recipients to send and receive email from another domain.
        5. Configure the default email address policy to add the accepted domain to every recipient in the organization.
        6. Configure external URLs (domains) on the virtual directories in the Client Access (frontend) services on the Mailbox server to allow clients to connect to your server from the internet (outside the organization’s network).
        7. Configure internal URLs on the virtual directories in the Client Access (frontend) services on the Mailbox server to allow clients to connect to your server from the internal network.
        8. Configure SSL certificates from a third-party certificate authority for services such as Outlook Anywhere and Exchange ActiveSync.
        9. Verify the Exchange server installation by running the command Get-ExchangeServer on the Exchange Management Shell (EMS)
     4. Create mailboxes and Public folder on the target Exchange

        To migrate mailboxes and Public folders, create corresponding mailboxes and mail-enabled Public folders on the target server for the migration. Additionally, assign suitable licenses to ensure proper functionality.

        1. Steps to create mailboxes in Exchange server
        2. Steps to create Public folder in Exchange server
     5. Install cumulative updates (CU) on Exchange server 2010

        Ensure that you have installed the latest cumulative updates (CU) on the source for Exchange server 2010 to 2019 migration.

     6. Create trust relationship between forests (Optional)

        A forest trust is an authentication between two domains within the same Active Directory forest which creates a trust between two root domains for exchanging information. By creating the trust in advance, it is possible to address the trust issues during or after the migration.

        Note: This step applies to Windows Server 2008, Windows Server 2008 R2 and Windows Server 2012. Creating a trust relationship is not required for SBS based environments.

     7. Assign management roles to the admin account

        Ensure that you have set the following permissions to the admin account on the source (2010) and target server (2019)

        1. On the source
           1. ApplicationImpersonation
           2. View-Only Configuration - Run the cmdlet New-ManagementRoleAssignment using the Exchange Management Shell to assign the View-Only Configuration role to the admin.
           3. Organization Management role group. It is an elevated permission that is required to migrate Public folders.
        2. On the target
           1. ApplicationImpersonation
           2. View-Only Recipients
           3. View-Only Configuration
     8. Verify the mailbox of the admin account

        Check to see if the admin account that has been assigned management roles has a valid and non-hidden mailbox on the Exchange 2010 server. This property also applies to all the other user mailboxes.

     9. Configure the throttling and message-size limits

        You can manually change the EWS throttling and message size limits on the target Exchange 2019 server by following the steps outlined in the links below.

        1. Change the EWS throttling settings on Exchange server
        2. Change message size limits on target Exchange 2019

3. Exchange 2010 to 2019 Migration using EdbMails

   After you complete the pre-migration activities, use EdbMails Exchange migration tool to migrate directly from Exchange server 2010 to 2019.

    Tip: One of the benefits of using EdbMails is that you can perform direct migrations to the target server without the need to migrate to an intermediate version. This saves a significant amount of time and effort when you want to upgrade older Exchange versions to the latest.

   • Step 1: Install EdbMails Exchange server migration software setup
     • Download EdbMails and install the application on any computer With Windows Operating System connected to your source Exchange 2010 and target Exchange 2019 server or any other computer. 
     • Launch the application and click either ‘Login’ using the appropriate details  or ‘Start Your Free Trial’.

      See the detailed list of EdbMails system requirements for Exchange migration.

     

     Note: When migrating standard folders (e.g., Inbox, Calendar, Contacts) from your source Exchange 2010 mailboxes that are initialized with a different language (e.g French, where the ‘Inbox’ folder is named 'Boîte de réception'), a direct migration to the destination server may not automatically map to the 'Inbox' folder. Click here to ensure the proper mapping with the corresponding folders.

   • Step 2: Select live Exchange migration as migration option

     Select the option 'Live Exchange Migration (Hosted, hybrid, on-premise and more..)' and proceed

     

   • Step 3: Connect to source Exchange server 2010

     In the ‘Connect to Exchange server (Source)’ window, select the required connection option and connection methods.

      Click here to know more about the  different Exchange server connection methods supported by EdbMails.

      With EdbMails, you can migrate mailboxes, public folders, and archive mailboxes from the source Exchange to the target server.

      Tip: EdbMails enables you to connect to Exchange with the Default connection where you specify the Exchange server name and Exchange version, or the Autodiscover Email option where you directly login with the user credentials.

     If you have connected to the source server using a global admin account, after a successful login, you have the option to load the mailboxes. EdbMails can automatically load the mailboxes for you. Alternatively, you can choose to load the mailboxes manually using a CSV file.

     

   • Step 4: Select the mailboxes and define the target connection

     Select the mailboxes and folders from Exchange 2010 that you want to migrate to Exchange 2019 server.

      Tip: If this is the first time you’re migrating with EdbMails, the migration is a full migration. On subsequent migrations from the same source to the target, the migration is incremental. If you have duplicate emails in your source server, you can remove them with the Exchange Duplicate remover tool before the migration.

     Click ‘Migrate to Live Exchange’ to set up the connection with the target server.

     

      Tip: EdbMails provides the following additional options to help you customize the migration task.

     1. Additional Include and Exclude Filter Options
     2. Filter emails by Date: Migrate to Exchange 2019 by applying the Date filter
     3. Filter emails by Size: Exclude emails from migration larger than a specified size.

     

   • Step 5: Connect to target Exchange 2019 server

     Select the required connection option and connection method in the ‘Connect to Exchange server (Destination)’ window. After the successful login, select one of the options to load the mailboxes if you have connected using a global admin account. You can also use the CSV method of loading mailboxes.

     

   • Step 6: Map the source and target Exchange server mailboxes

     EdbMails automatically maps mailboxes, folders between the source and the target Exchange servers. This feature saves time when you’re migrating a large number of mailboxes.

     

   • Step 7: Start the migration to Exchange 2019

     Start and monitor the migration operation after you complete the mailbox mapping. Finally, verify the count of migrated emails, folders and mailbox items with EdbMails text-based log report. You can also pause and resume the operation at your convenience. Login to your Exchange server to verify migrated items such as emails, calendars, contacts.

     

4. Post Migration Tasks

   Perform the following post-migration activities after you complete the migration to ensure that your users receive emails correctly.

   • Step 1: Update the MX records to point to Exchange 2019 server

     To receive messages on the Exchange server 2019, change the DNS records known as MX records to enable email to work with the new server you have migrated to. In addition, configure the Autodiscover record to allow Outlook to connect to the migrated mailboxes.

   • Step 2: Install the latest updates and configure features

     Perform any necessary updates or upgrades to the new server, such as installing the latest service packs or cumulative updates. Configure any additional features or services that you want to use on the new server, such as archiving or eDiscovery.

   • Step 3: Create a new Outlook profile for users in the new domain

     Exchange 2019 is compatible with Outlook 2013 and later. Uninstall any earlier versions and ensure that you have the latest client installed to prevent conflicts. Next, configure the Outlook profile for each user in your domain if Outlook has problems connecting to the new Exchange server.

   • Step 4: Decommission Exchange 2010 after the 2019 migration

     Wait a few days and check to see if you are receiving emails correctly and that everything is working as expected.

     • Remove any external connectors or send connectors that are pointing to the Exchange 2010 server.
     • Remove any accepted domains or email address policies that are associated with the Exchange 2010 server.
     • Remove any mail-enabled public folders that are hosted on the Exchange 2010 server.
     • Remove any client access services from the Exchange 2010 server, such as Outlook Web Access (OWA), ActiveSync, and Outlook Anywhere.
     • Remove the Exchange 2010 server from the organization.
     • Remove the server object from Active Directory Domain Services (AD DS).

     Finally decommission the source Exchange server. Follow the instructions on Microsoft's website to learn how to uninstall Exchange Server 2010.

Exchange migration troubleshooting

 See Exchange migration troubleshooting guide for possible solutions related to common migration errors.