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The Best Way to Import PST to Office 365 Mailbox Powershell – In Depth

Shubham Dixit   
Published: Oct 3, 2023 • Import • 5 Min Read

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When it comes to Cloud computing, Microsoft is a renowned name for everyone. Now, it is quite simple to work on cloud-based applications. However, users when need their locally stored data on the cloud, face several challenges. Many users want to import PST to Office 365 Powershell. This operation is quite tricky & only users with core technical knowledge can get desired results.

This article explains the in-depth solution to execute this operation using PowerShell. Moreover, users who find this solution quite difficult can opt for the modern-day alternative below. Without wasting any time, let’s move further & start with the reasons why users go through this operation. Understanding the cause can help us solve the issue in a smart manner. 

Why do Users Import Large PST to Office 365?

  • Users working with the On-premise environment can understand how cloud computing is becoming the future. In order to import their data file stored on their systems to the cloud, they’re searching for a reliable solution.
  • Several users corrupt their data files. What should they do? The option is to import the backup made earlier to the system to start working where you left from. For this particular reason also, users show deep interest in this topic.
  • There are scenarios where users find some files not important for a specific time period. So they keep these files in a hard drive to save costly cloud storage. Later on, when required, users need to import these files to the cloud storage. This is another reason why users do so.

Prerequisites

  • An active admin account for Office 365 tenant.
  • Import Export Mailbox role must be assigned to the respective admins.
  • For uploading heavy files, high upload bandwidth is a plus point.

Import PST to Office 365 Mailbox Powershell Method Phase – Ⅰ

Carefully go through these steps to import PST to Office 365 without any errors. Skipping on any step will lead to failure. 

Step-1. Go to Import Services in Office 365 & Click on Data Migration.

import PST to Office 365 Powershell step-1

Step-2. Select the Upload PST option as shown in the image.

step-2

Step-3. Click on the “+” icon & Click on the Upload email messages (PST files) option.

step-3

Step-4. Click on ‘Show network upload SAS URL’

step-4

PowerShell Method Phase Ⅱ

Now we are at the second phase of the operation. You must be thinking that this is not the best way to import PST to Office 365. Yes, it’s true. But users searching for an open-source solution have no other option. Although the modern method is quite affordable too.

Step-1. Connect to the Azure Storage Explorer

connect Azure Storage Explorer

Step-2. Now, enter the Shared Access Signature (SAS) URL in the given field.

enter SAS key

Step-3. Once, you will enter the SAS URL, you can see the Connection Summary as shown in the image.

connection summary

Step-4. Now, Use the Azure Storage Explorer tool, to import your PST files.

step-4 use tool

Step-5. Use these scripts to move further to the next step

New-AzureStorageContext -SasToken ($SharedAccessSignatureURL -split ‘\?’ | Select-Object -Last 1) -StorageAccountName ($SharedAccessSignatureURL -split ‘\.’ -split ‘//’)[1] | Get-AzureStorageBlob -Container ($SharedAccessSignatureURL -split ‘\?’ -split ‘/’)[3] | Select-Object -ExpandProperty Name

Step-6. After importing the files to the Azure storage, you’ll be needed a CSV file to map your mailboxes to their destination.

Step-7. Finally, users need to import that PST file to map all the mailboxes successfully. Click on the Finish button. Your files will be moved to the Online Archive in Office 365.

Get-MailboxImportRequest | ForEach-Object -Process { Get-MailboxImportRequestStatistics -Identity $_.RequestGuid } | Select-Object -Property BatchName, TargetAlias, StatusDetail, StartTimestamp, OverallDuration, TotalInProgressDuration, EstimatedTransferSize, PercentComplete, @{Label=’File’;Expression={$_.AzureBlobStorageAccountUri | Split-Path -Leaf}} | Out-GridView -Title “PST Import Progress

upload files

validate

Best Way to Import PST to Office 365 – Automated Approach

3Steps Software is the perfect way to get desired results in a comprehensive way. This is because it lies under the category of automated solutions. An automated solution is just using a dedicatedly developed tool for a particular task. It is made for simplifying users’ trouble & eliminating these PowerShell scripts.

After quality research, 3Steps Software developers created a solution that can automatically perform all the required operations on its end. Users just need to give commands regarding their needs. Various filters even allow the selective import operation.

The automated solution is popular among users to import large PST to Office 365 because of these features:

  • Ability to import various mailbox items like Emails, Contacts, Calendars, Tasks.
  • Feature of Include Folder to move only the selected folders & leave the rest behind.
  • This software works well with all versions of Microsoft Outlook & Windows OS quite efficiently.
  • Advanced date filters & incremental import is something users can’t get in PowerShell.

Conclusion

This issue is quite big & users really get frustrated because of not getting the desired solution. Following the above steps can let you import PST to Office 365 Powershell & get accurate results. However, the manual method is quite lengthy & consumes time. This is why expert-recommended automated solutions must be users’ first choice. If you are in a search of a much faster solution, investing in future technology is a wise decision.

Also Read: How to Import MBOX to Office 365 – Overview

By Shubham Dixit

Shubham is a distinguished subject matter expert and accomplished author with an unparalleled understanding of technology. With a deep-rooted passion for all things tech-related, Shubham brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise to their written works.