How to set up a migration server for Novell GroupWise and Exchange Server 2003 or Exchange 2000 Server

During customer migrations, it is better to scale out migration servers (that is, increase the number of migration servers) than it is to scale up (that is, use a smaller number of computers with more powerful hardware).

For example, at one customer site, 30 to 40 users are migrated each evening. The customer uses four migration servers and balances the nightly load so that each migration server handles 8 to 13 users. For administration and troubleshooting purposes, this scenario is better than having one powerful server handle the mail data for all 30 to 40 users.

Programs to install on a migration server to let it communicate with both messaging systems, and how to work with the Migration Wizard most efficiently

Client and server software versions

The following combination of tools works best and produces the fewest errors when it is used with the Migration Wizard:

• GroupWise 5.2.5 is the preferred GroupWise client to install on the migration server. This recommendation is only for the migration server. GroupWise users can use the latest GroupWise client.
• Novell NetWare 4.8 is the preferred Novell Directory Services (NDS) client to install on the migration server. This recommendation is only for the migration server. Users can use the latest NDS client.

Migration server programs

Microsoft recommends that you install the following programs on the migration servers:

• Windows 2000 Server, Windows 2000 Advanced Server, Windows 2000 Professional, Windows Server 2003 Standard Edition or Windows Server 2003 Enterprise Edition
  
  Note The Migration Wizard runs faster and more reliably on Windows Server 2003 Standard Edition-based computers, Windows Server 2003 Enterprise Edition-based computers, Windows 2000 Server-based computers and Windows 2000 Advanced Server-based computers.
• Windows 2000 Service Pack 4 (SP4)
• Windows Server 2003 Service Pack 1 (SP1)
• GroupWise 5.2.5
• Novell NetWare 4.8
• Exchange System Manager

To install Exchange System Manager on the migration server, insert the Exchange CD. Run Setup, and then on the Component Selection screen, under Action, click Custom (the first component listed). Click Install, and then complete Setup.

If the migration server is not part of an Active Directory directory service domain, you cannot install Exchange System Manager on the migration server. Additionally, the following event is logged in the application event log when you use the Migration Wizard to migrate users from GroupWise or Lotus Notes:

Event: 12010
Source: MSExchangeMig
Type: Error
Description: Failed to initialize the Notes Migration session. Make sure 'ntsmig.dll' is in the 'exchsrvr\bin' directory.

How Novell GroupWise mailbox folders map to Microsoft Exchange 2000 Server folders during migration

How to migrate local archives from Novell GroupWise

Depending on how much data an organization decides to migrate, Microsoft Consulting Services may caution against migrating local archives because of the sheer volume of data that is produced when multiple users convert their local archives to standard mail data. For example, Microsoft Consulting Services cautions against migrating the last 30 days of e-mail. Sometimes, Microsoft Consulting Services suggests that organizations let only executives and select employees migrate their local archives.

The following list is a basic overview of the local archive migration process:

1. Users request that their local archives be migrated.
2. Each request is approved or rejected by management or by another approving body.
3. If a request is approved, during the migration process, the migration team converts the user's local GroupWise archives back to standard mail data format and then transfers the formerly archived data to the user's GroupWise mail server.
4. The migration team migrates the GroupWise mail data to Exchange Server.
5. In Microsoft Outlook, the user creates a local .pst file.
6. The user copies the data that was previously stored in the GroupWise local archive from the server that is running Exchange 2000 Server to the .pst file.
7. The user computer local archive that is stored locally or on the file server is migrated to the following in this order:
   1. The Group Wise Mailbox server
   2. The Migration server
   3. The Exchange 2000 Server server
   4. The user computer after the migration

Some best practices for migrating from GroupWise to Exchange Server

The GroupWise migration account

On the GroupWise Domain page, where you specify the location and security of the Novell GroupWise domain from which you are migrating, the Migration Wizard prompts you for the path of the GroupWise domain, the user account name, and the password. The password is the GroupWise password, not the Novell Directory Services (NDS) password.

Microsoft Consulting Services recommends that you create a GroupWise account early in the migration process to use for migration. The name of this GroupWise account is the account name that you have to type on the GroupWise Domain page. The migration account must meet the following criteria:

• The account name that you type on the GroupWise Domain page must have complete access to the GroupWise domain and the post office in that domain that contains the users who you want to migrate. Additionally, migration complications are significantly reduced if the GroupWise migration account also has read and write access to all files in the post office and proxy rights to every mailbox in the post office.
• The GroupWise migration account must be in the same post office as the users who you want to migrate.

In most GroupWise organizations, it is unlikely that every post office contains an account that meets both of these criteria. To simplify this step, create designated migration accounts.

The GroupWise migration account must be local to the migrating post office

As mentioned in the "The GroupWise migration account" section, the GroupWise migration account, or any account that you type on the GroupWise Domain page, must be in the same GroupWise post office as the accounts that you plan to migrate. However, being in the same GroupWise domain is not enough. Therefore, regardless of the number of GroupWise domains that you have in your organization, if you have multiple post offices, you must create a migration account for every post office.

Pointing the Migration Wizard to the primary GroupWise domain may be insufficient

The GroupWise Domain page is also where you type the path of the GroupWise domain that contains the users who you want to migrate. To make sure that the migration is successful, the Migration Wizard has to point to the GroupWise domain that contains the post offices that contain the users who you plan to migrate. Even if the Migration Wizard is set to point to the primary GroupWise domain, the Migration Wizard cannot see the post offices in secondary GroupWise domains. Therefore, in a multiple-domain GroupWise environment, type the domain name that contains the post office that contains the users who you want to migrate. Do not type any parent domain names.