14 DAY TRIAL // Microsoft has updated a collection of tools it’s offering to IT professionals to simplify the migration process from Exchange to Microsoft Online Services. In all fairness, the refreshed Microsoft Online Services Migration Tools (32 bit) were posted on the Microsoft Download Center at the end of July 2011.
However, it’s only now that the software giant is providing the first details about the refresh introduced to the tools.
According to a member of the Microsoft Online Services team, the update to the Microsoft Online Services Migration Tools, or the Microsoft Online Services Transporter Tool as they’re also being referred to, involves the introduction of a few new commandlets.
The new resources are designed to “allow Administrators to manage password expiration for user accounts, permissions for Exchange Online mailboxes, and server-side forwarding rules for Exchange Online,” the software giant explained.
As IT pros are bound to know, the migration tools can be leveraged to forward Exchange Server email copies to Exchange Online mailboxes.
In addition to Exchange Server, the Microsoft Online Services Migration Tools can also be used for migration scenarios involving POP3 or IMAP4 e-mail servers.
The Microsoft Online Services team highlighted a few of the new commandlets introduced with the update:
“• Set-MSOnlineUserPasswordNeverExpire - This commandlet allows Administrators to set user account passwords to never expire. While Microsoft does not recommend non-expiring passwords due to security best practices, non-expiring passwords are often needed for service accounts that support line of business applications, unmonitored mailboxes, and mail-enabled hardware.
• Add-MSOnlineMailPermission - With this commandlet, Administrators can establish alternate permissions for an Exchange Online mailbox, such as granting full access to a delegate or granting send-as and send-on-behalf permissions to a delegate.
• Set-MSOnlineAlternateRecipient - This commandlet allows Administrators to set server-side rules to forward Exchange Online messages to an alternative e-mail address, including forwarding to a distribution list (DL).”
The Microsoft Online Services Migration Tools (32 bit) are available for download here.