Summary: There are different reasons for the organization to migrate to cloud-based services like Office 365. We have explained some of them and Lotus Notes to Office 365 migration step by step procedure.
Are you looking to use the cloud experience to evolve your emailing experience? Many organizations are now considering moving towards Office 365 from the on-premises email client. In recent years the number of queries to migrate Lotus Notes to Office 365 has increased at a rapid speed. However, many of them get successfully migrates and several of them are in the queue.
Migration is a broad subject that comes with many hurdles and consumes a lot of time. Planning, fulfilling pre-requisite and a reliable migration solution have their importance. Don’t worry this post will describe a few techniques to transfer all components of your Lotus Notes account into Office 365 environment.
What Advantage does Office 365 provide over Lotus Notes?
If we talk about the HCL Notes email client, it is among the few developed by IBM and has ruled in the email client niche more many years. But after others came into the competition, such as Office 365, Lotus Notes lost its shine.
- Office 365 provides better protection to the user data as all data is stored over the cloud, so the chances of data loss are rare.
- Users can access the Office 365 account from any device, irrespective of location, with the help of an internet connection.
- Lotus Notes has an upfront cost that the user needs to pay at the time of purchase, but Office 365 only cost monthly subscription fees, which users need to pay.
- Office 365 is a lot easier compared to any other email client. In addition, it offers multiple inbuilt applications like Excel, PowerPoint, Skype for business, etc., which the users can take advantage of.
- Installing newer updates is always daunting as it consumes time and resources. However, Office 365 users do not need to worry about installing updates as it will take care of Microsoft itself.
Due to these factors, Office 365 emerges as the first choice among users. So to migrate Lotus Notes to Office 365, users can look for manual methods only if they have the required skills to migrate data safely, else look towards the third-party migration tool. In the below section of this blog, we will discuss all manual methods and also talk about reliable third-party software.
Manual Technique to Transfer NSF files into Office 365
There are a few manual options available through which users can approach the Lotus Notes to Office 365 migration, but it is advised to remember that a single mistake costs you much more while migrating the data. The first manual method that we will discuss will help to migrate Lotus Notes to Office 365, utilizing the help of the IMAP connector to transfer user Lotus Notes data. However, there are four stages that users need to follow for a successful migration.
Migrate Lotus Notes NSF files using IMAP Connector
As we have mentioned earlier, the user needs to go through 4 steps to complete the migration task using this method.
- Firstly, it is advisable to complete backup data before opting out of this method.
- Secondly, create new mailboxes for each user whose profile is already created in the HCL Notes in the Office 365 account.
- Then, the next task is to enable the IMAP port for all users. To do it, follow the steps given below:
- Launch the HCL Notes and then go to the Domino administrator.
- Open the Server document from the HCL Notes configuration tab.
- Click the Ports>> Internet Ports and after that press the Mail tab.
- Enable the TCP/IP port for all users in the IMAP column.
- After implementing the above steps, click the save button to update the new changes.
- You need to synchronize the emails from Lotus Notes to Office 365. It is the last step to migrate Lotus Notes to Office 365 using the IMAP connection
Migration through Microsoft Online Notes Inspector (MONTI.exe)
It is an official guide available on Microsoft’s official website. It will consist of 84 pages where all details have been shared through implementing users can migrate Lotus Notes to Office 365. But make sure to follow the migration guide rigorously, as a minor mistake can even fail the migration. We have also shared the procedure to download this guide from the Microsoft website.
- Firstly, open the Microsoft official website on your system.
- From the download center of the website, search for Monti.exe.
- Click on the download button to save the guide on the system.
- Make a double click on the Monti.exe application to start the process of unzipping the migration guide.
- Click on the application unzip button to start extracting the files.
- Once done with unzipping all files, click on the finish button.
By following the migration guide thoroughly, users can successfully migrate their NSF files. However, only some users will find it easier to perform all required migration steps.
Alternatively, you can also follow the below-listed method to migrate Lotus Notes to Office 365 without taking risk of losing your important data.
Shoviv Lotus Notes to Office 365 Migration Tool: An Alternative and Perfect Solution to quickly migrate NSF file
A better alternative is available than the manual migration solution, which will reduce the pressure to safely migrate the data. One such solution is Shoviv Lotus Notes to Office 365 migration software which many IT professionals across the globe test. This software handles the migration of multiple Lotus Notes NSF files of any size simultaneously.
Its user interface is simpler, and users who don’t have enough technical knowledge can operate it effectively. Users can install this tool on all system which has Windows Operating System installed on them. The software also provides an incremental option which helps to resume the migration from the point where users have stopped migration.
Check out Lotus Notes to Office 365 migration step by step procedure through the software:
- After installing the software, open it on the system.
- Now you need to go to the tool’s ribbon bar and select the Add NSF file option.
- After that, a new window will open where you can add the Lotus Notes NSF files using different options such as Add local NSF, search local NSF files, or even add the Domino NSF file.
- Once the required files get added to the tool, choose Office 365 option from the ribbon bar menu.
- You can include items through the check sub folder check box and remove the folder through the exclude folder checkbox.
- After entering the required credentials, click on the Next button.
- In this window, there is an option to map the source files with the target mailboxes. Once done with it, click on the Next button.
- Now, users can utilize the tool’s filter option, which is used in to include as well as exclude any particular file item. Also, users can use its email translation feature.
- The software will now start the migration process and show live processing. Users can save the process report once the migration is over using the same report button. Click the Finish button to end the migration.
Wrapping Up
Migrating the complete data of the Lotus Notes account takes time and effort. Indeed it is difficult to migrate Lotus Notes to Office 365 through manual migration methods. If users have the required migration skills and adequate time, they may go with them. However, another option explained in this blog has more capabilities and offers more safety to the data during migration.
