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North Ark

Microsoft 365 migrations

Move mail, files and sites into Microsoft 365 without losing data or a working day.

The last on-premises Exchange server, the file server everyone is afraid to touch, the SharePoint farm on an unsupported version: each keeps costs and risks in place. We plan the migration around your data and permissions, move it in waves and retire the old platform.

Start with a Microsoft 365 security assessment
Empty open-plan office at dusk, with windows looking over a river city.

What we migrate

  • Exchange on-premises and hybrid to Exchange Online, including public folders and shared mailboxes
  • Exchange hybrid decommissioning, done safely once the last mailbox has moved
  • File servers to SharePoint and OneDrive, with the structure and permissions redesigned rather than copied
  • SharePoint Server to SharePoint Online
  • Google Workspace to Microsoft 365: mail, calendars, Drive and shared drives
  • Large-volume data, planned around bandwidth, throttling and change windows
A migration shown as waves. Workloads move from the legacy estate on the left through a pilot wave and waves two to four to the target platform on the right, with dependencies drawn between waves.

How it runs

  1. Discover: data volumes, permissions, dependencies and the applications that relay mail or map drives.
  2. Design: target structure, permissions, retention and labelling, agreed with data owners.
  3. Pilot: one team moved end to end to prove the method.
  4. Migrate: waves with pre-staging and short cutovers, so users switch with minimal disruption.
  5. Retire: old servers and hybrid components decommissioned, with nothing left relying on them.

Where migrations go wrong

Applications and devices that send mail through the old Exchange server, file paths hard-coded into spreadsheets and macros, permission structures that don't translate to SharePoint, and throttling on large moves. We find these in discovery, so they are handled in the plan rather than on cutover night.

Experience behind it

Before North Ark, our founder's work included SharePoint migrations and data migrations of 20TB and more. Migration steps are scripted and logged, and the scripts and reports stay with you.

Questions buyers ask

Can we turn off our last Exchange server?

Usually yes, once mail relay, recipient management and hybrid identity are handled another way. We plan the decommission so nothing still depends on it.

Should file shares go to SharePoint or OneDrive?

Shared team content goes to SharePoint or Teams, and personal files to OneDrive. Some data, such as large CAD or application files, may be better in Azure Files.

How long does a migration take?

It depends on data volumes and how many teams are involved. Discovery gives a dated plan, and waves are scheduled around your business.

Will users lose email during the move?

No. Mailboxes are pre-staged and switched in short cutovers, with mail flow planned so nothing is lost.

Can you clean up permissions while we move?

Yes, and it is the best time to do it. Moving broken permissions into Microsoft 365 carries the problem forward, especially before Copilot.

Related

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Retire the old platform for good.

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