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Switching from Workspace Email to Hosted Exchange Email Without Losing Any Emails

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Last Updated: January 24, 2012 1:38 PM

You can move your emails and other settings from your existing email plan to your Hosted Exchange email plan.

We've all been there—upgrading our technology. Whether it is getting a new computer, a new operating system, or, in this case, a new way of managing your email, there are settings you need to change and migrations you may need to perform.

If you're starting from scratch and you don't care about your existing email, don't worry about the information in this article, go to Getting Started With Microsoft Hosted Exchange Email . If you want to see all your old email in your new account and have all your contacts, then follow these instructions.

We'll break it down for you, but it will take a bit of time. Turn your cell phone off, close the office door, and grab a cup of coffee. Let's do this.

Step 1: Configuring Your Domain Name and Setting Up Your Hosted Exchange email Account

You need to make some changes to your domain name so it is configured to work with Hosted Exchange email. After you set up the domain name properly, you can create your Hosted Exchange email account and set up your mailboxes.

Configuring Your Domain Name to Work with Hosted Exchange email

How does the Internet know where to go when you type a domain name into your browser? More importantly, how does it know where to send your email?

It knows because your domain name has a file—a zone file—that tells the Internet where to go.

Before adding your mailboxes, we are going to preemptively tell the Internet where to go for your new email. Since the Internet is a pretty big place, it can take a few hours or even a day or two for the Internet to realize you changed your zone file. Until the Internet realizes this change, your email won't work.

The other issue we're tackling here is tricking the Internet to avoid downtime. To make the transition seamless, you need to add the Hosted Exchange email MX record without deleting any of the other MX records. Remove the other MX records after the Hosted Exchange email address is set up.

NOTE: For every domain name you intend to use with Hosted Exchange email, you have to update the MX records and add two CNAME records. If your domain name is with another provider, contact them for assistance with changing to the CNAME and MX records listed below.

Before continuing, you need to know which version of Exchange your mailbox uses. For more information, see Finding Your Hosted Exchange email Version.

To Configure Your Domain Name to Support Hosted Exchange email

  1. Log in to your Account Manager.
  2. Next to Domains, click Launch.
  3. From the Tools menu, select DNS Manager. The DNS Dashboard displays.
  4. For the domain name you want to add records to, click Edit Zone. The Zone File Editor displays.
  5. In the CNAME (Alias) section, click Quick Add, and then complete the following fields:
    • Create a CNAME called autodiscover pointed to:
      • Exchange 2007 — autodiscoverredirect.ex1.secureserver.net
      • Exchange 2010 — autodiscoverredirect.ex2.secureserver.net
  6. In the same section, click Quick Add again, and then complete the following fields:
    • Create a CNAME called OWA pointed to:
      • Exchange 2007 — mail.ex1.secureserver.net
      • Exchange 2010 — mail.ex2.secureserver.net
  7. In the MX (Mail Exchanger) section, click Quick Add, and complete the following fields:
    • Priority — Type 15.
    • Host — Type @.
    • Points to —
      • Exchange 2007 — presmtp.ex1.secureserver.net
      • Exchange 2010 — presmtp.ex2.secureserver.net
  8. Click Save Zone File, and then click OK.

TIP: The best practice is to make the changes to your domain name and then do something else. Sometimes it takes 30 minutes, other times it takes up to 48 hours for the Internet to reflect these changes.

Setting Up Your Hosted Exchange email Account

Get started by setting up your Organization and adding one or multiple email addresses. See What is an Organization in Hosted Exchange email? to learn more about Organizations in Hosted Exchange email.

To Set up Your Hosted Exchange email Account

  1. Log in to your Account Manager.
  2. Click Email.
  3. Above the Email Accounts list, click Microsoft Email Plans.
  4. Next to the account you want to use, click Set Up Account. The Hosted Exchange email Manager displays.
  5. Read the End User License Agreement, and then click Accept.
  6. In the Organization name field, enter your company, business, or organization name, and then click Next.
  7. Enter your user name and password. If necessary, indicate whether you are configuring a mobile mailbox.
  8. (Optional) Click + below the Password field to add additional mailboxes.
  9. Click Next.
  10. Review your settings, and then click Finish.

To Add a Domain Name to Your Organization

Add your domain name to your Organization to personalize your email addresses. Your Organization can use multiple domain names. Remember, for every domain name you intend to use with Hosted Exchange email, you have to update the MX records and add two CNAMEs.

  1. On the left, in the All Organizations list, click Domains for the Organization that you want to add a domain name to.
  2. Click Add Domain and do one of the following:
    • Click Add a domain in this account and then select a domain name from the list.
    • Click Add a domain Not in this account and then enter a domain name in the field.
  3. Click OK.

After completing the instructions, the domain name you added displays. Before you can add the domain name to a mailbox, it must display Setup in the Status column. If you've waited after making the domain changes in the first step, you should be able to click Refresh in your browser to see the status change from Pending to Setup. Give it a few minutes before you refresh the screen.

To Assign Your Domain Name to Your Email Address(es)

After adding your domain name, you can assign it to your email address(es).

  1. On the left, in the All Organizations list, click Mailbox for the Organization containing the email address you want to modify.
  2. From the Actions column, click Edit for the email address you want to modify.
  3. From the Domain list, select the domain name you want to use for the email address.
  4. Click OK.

Step 2: Downloading and Setting Up Outlook

Your Hosted Exchange email account comes with a copy of Outlook 2007 and Outlook 2010 for every user of your plan. After downloading Outlook, you can set it up to work with your Hosted Exchange email account.

Downloading Outlook

Users

  1. Go to the Outlook/Entourage Download page.
  2. Enter your Email Address and Password, and then click Log In.
  3. Read and accept the Hosted Exchange Email End User License Agreement.
  4. If you are using a PC, click Download for Microsoft® Outlook 2007® or 2010. If you are using a Mac, click Download for Microsoft Entourage 2008 or Outlook 2011.

Email Administrators

Follow the instructions listed above for Users to access the download page, or you can log in to the Hosted Exchange email Manager and then click the Download Outlook link.

Setting Up Microsoft Outlook

If you're already using Outlook, the steps for adding your Hosted Exchange email account are different than if you are setting up a new copy of Outlook.

To Set Up a New Copy of Outlook for Your Hosted Exchange email Account

  1. Open the Outlook install file, read and accept the Microsoft Software License Terms, and then click Continue.
  2. Launch Microsoft Outlook.
  3. In the Startup Wizard, click Next. If the Startup Wizard doesn't automatically display, from the Tools menu, select Account Settings, and then click New.
  4. In the Add New E-mail Account dialog box, select Microsoft Exchange, POP3, IMAP, or HTTP, then click Next.
  5. On the Account Configuration page, select Yes to indicate you want to configure an email account, and then click Next.
  6. On the Auto Account Setup page, enter the following:
    • Your Name — Enter your first and last name.
    • E-mail Address — Enter your email address.
    • Password — Enter the password you created for your email account.
    • Retype Password — Enter your password again.
  7. Click Next to allow Outlook to autodiscover your settings and complete any remaining fields.

To Set Up an Existing Copy of Outlook for Your Hosted Exchange email Account

  1. Go to the Windows® Start menu and select Control Panel.
  2. Double-click Mail.
  3. Click Show Profiles.
  4. Click Add.
  5. Enter a name for the profile and then click OK.
  6. On the Auto Account Setup page, enter the following:
    • Your Name — Enter your first and last name.
    • E-mail Address — Enter your email address.
    • Password — Enter the password you created for your email account.
    • Retype Password — Enter your password again.
  7. Click Next to allow Outlook to autodiscover your settings and complete any remaining fields.

Step 3: Migrating Your Emails and Contacts

Right now you still have three MX records. Two of the MX records are still pointing to your old Web-Based Email account and all of your email is still going to your old Web-Based Email account. You can send with your new, fancy Hosted Exchange email account, but anyone replying sends their message to your old account thanks to those old MX records.

We're going to get rid of those MX records, but not before making sure we've taken care of your existing email and contacts.

Switching Over if You Were Already Using Outlook

Moving Messages

If you were already using Outlook, then all your emails are stored by Outlook in a .pst file. You can import the .pst file into your Hosted Exchange email address. Keep in mind that when you import those old emails they will consume storage space in your Hosted Exchange email account. That could quickly use all your space.

CAUTION: Don't import your email until a couple of days after you drop your Web-Based Email MX records (see below). If you import your email before removing the MX records, you will have an incomplete record of your previous emails in your Hosted Exchange email account.

  1. In your Outlook account, select Import and Export from the File menu.
  2. Select Import from another program or file, and then click Next.
  3. Select Personal Folder File (.pst), and then click Next.
  4. Locate your backed up messages on your local hard drive, and then click Next.
  5. On the Import Personal Folders page, select your email account.
  6. Select Include subfolders, and then select Import items into the same folder in.
  7. Select your Exchange Mailbox from the list, and then click Finish.

Moving Contacts

You can import the contacts from one Outlook profile to another. If you were previously using Outlook, and were using the contact feature, these instructions enable you to move those contacts into your new profile that contains your Hosted Exchange email account.

  1. From the File menu, click Import and Export.
  2. Click Import From Another Program or File, and then click Next.
  3. In the Select File Type to Import From box, click Personal Folder (.pst), and then click Next.
  4. Click Browse to locate the .pst file you want to import and click Next.
  5. Click the Contacts folder that you want to import. Select the Include Subfolders check box, if necessary.
  6. Click Import Items Into the Current Folder, and then click Finish.

Outlook imports the Contact items to the target folder.

Switching Over if You Were Using Web-Based Email

Moving Messages

If you were using our Web-Based Email client to manage your email, and want those emails in Outlook along with your new Hosted Exchange email, you can download those messages into Outlook with the POP protocol.

To Copy Your Messages from Web-Based Email into Outlook

  1. Open Outlook and launch into the profile you created for your Hosted Exchange email account.
  2. From the Tools menu, click Account Settings.
  3. Click New.
  4. Click Microsoft Exchange, POP3, IMAP, or HTTP and then click Next.
  5. Select Manually configure server settings or additional server types, and then click Next.
  6. In the Choose E-mail Service dialog box, click Internet E-mail, and then click Next.
  7. Select Internet Email and then click Next.
  8. Complete the following:
    • Your Name — Enter your full name the way that you want it to display to other people.
    • E-mail Address — Enter the email address you want to retrieve the messages from.
  9. In the Server Information section, complete the following:
    • Account Type — Select POP3.
    • Incoming mail server — Type pop.secureserver.net.
    • Outgoing mail server — Type smtpout.secureserver.net.
  10. In the Logon Information section, complete the following:
    • User Name — Enter the full email address you entered previously.
    • Password Enter your Web-Based Email password.
  11. Click More Settings and go to the Outgoing Server tab.
  12. Check My outgoing server requires authentication and click OK.
  13. Click Next, and then click Finish.
  14. Click Close, click Close again, and then click OK.

When you click Send/Receive, all your messages from your Web-Based Email account download into Outlook. It might take a while!

Moving Contacts

If you've been using Web-Based Email to manage your contacts, you can export them and then import them into Outlook.

To Export Your Web-Based Email Contacts

  1. Log in to your Web-Based Email account.
  2. From the Address Book menu, select Contacts.
  3. In the Contacts header, click Export.
  4. Click Export CSV.
  5. Enter the location on your hard drive where you want to save your contacts.

To Import Your Contacts into Outlook

  1. In Outlook, from the File menu, select Import and Export, and then select Import from another program or file.
  2. Click Next.
  3. Select Comma Separated Values (Windows), and then click Next.
  4. Browse to locate the file on your local hard drive and then specify how you want to handle duplicates.
  5. Click NEXT.
  6. Select the Contacts Folder from your Exchange Mailbox, and then click Next.
  7. Click Map Custom Fields and make sure the fields from your import file correctly match up to the fields in Outlook.

    TIP: If you do not map your custom fields, you will end up with names that do not have important details, such as the email address, associated to them.

  8. Click Finish.

Step 4: Finalizing the Switchover

Whew. We made it. Outlook is set up. Your old contacts and email messages are imported. One last remaining item—the old Web-Based Email account.

It's still receiving emails because of the MX records. Now you can remove the two Web-Based Email MX records and tell the Internet you're ready to move forward with your Hosted Exchange email account. Even after you remove them, there is still a chance that emails will get sent to the old account.

After 24-48 hours, the Internet will recognize the change and all emails should be directed to your Hosted Exchange email account. At that time, it is safe to cancel the Web-Based Email account. If Outlook is still downloading messages from your Web-Based Email account, you'll need to remove the account from Outlook as well.

Deleting the Web-Based Email MX Records

Deleting the Web-Based Email MX records breaks the connection to your Web-Based Email—that's a good thing. When the Internet recognizes the change, all future emails will go only to the Hosted Exchange email account.

To Delete Your Web-Based Email MX Records

  1. Log in to your Account Manager.
  2. Next to Domains, click Launch.
  3. From the Tools menu, select DNS Manger. The DNS Dashboard displays.
  4. For the domain name you want to edit, click Edit Zone.
  5. In the MX (Mail Exchanger) section, select the records that point to smtp.secureserver.net and mailstore1.secureserver.net, and then click Delete.
  6. Click Save Zone File, and then click OK.

Canceling the Web-Based Email Account

You can safely delete your Web-Based Email account after waiting 48 hours and verifying it isn't receiving any emails.

To Cancel the Web-Based Email Account

  1. Log in to your Account Manager.
  2. Click Email and click the checkbox in front of the account you want to cancel.
  3. Click Cancel Account and follow the prompts.

Deleting the Web-Based Email Account from Outlook

You can delete the Web-Based Email account from Outlook after deleting it from your customer account.

To Delete the Web-Based Email Account from Outlook

  1. In Microsoft Outlook, from the Tools menu, select Account Settings.
  2. On the E-mail tab, select your non-Exchange Service account, and then click Remove.
  3. Click Yes to confirm that you want to delete the account from your profile.
  4. Click Close.

NOTE: As a courtesy, we provide information about how to use certain third-party products, but we do not endorse or directly support third-party products and we are not responsible for the functions or reliability of such products. Outlook® is a registered trademark of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countries. All rights reserved.