01Sep2022
02Nov2020
The “Five Rules of Fields” for File Server Migrations to Microsoft 365
What a fun tongue twister, and such a practical resource that I am excited to share with you today! Well, actually a lot of this information you might have already gleaned by following my past posts about file server migration. But I still find that when I consult with folks...
19Feb2020
The importance of starting with OneDrive
I am going to make an argument that OneDrive is the most important application for you to focus on when starting a new migration of files to Microsoft 365. Not Teams, and not SharePoint. OneDrive. I recommend starting here for a variety of reasons--and maybe not all of the ones...
21Jan2020
Understanding file server migrations to Microsoft 365
In my opinion, there is only one viable migration path to move data from old file servers to Microsoft 365: it has to be a user-engaged migration. IT people always ask me about tools--stuff like the SharePoint migration...
31Jul2019
Replacing folder redirection and mapped network drives: Controlling the OneDrive client experience on Windows 10 with Intune
For as long as we can remember, the primary way to share files in an organization was mapped network drives. This may have included a "Public" or "Company" drive (e.g. P:\ for Public), as well as a "Home" or "User" drive (H:\ or U:\ respectively). As well, there may have...
18Apr2019
How to migrate company file shares and mapped drives to Office 365 using the SharePoint Migration Tool
I debated on writing about this tool for a long time. Because here's the thing: most file servers in production today are just huge garbage piles, built out of years of half-completed thoughts and haphazard document collaboration. Therefore, before we get into it, I first want to cover off on...
01Nov2018
How to migrate from Windows Server Active Directory to Azure AD and Microsoft 365 Business (including Teams) in 5 easy steps
Microsoft 365 Business is a very compelling platform for the small business, particularly those that are "born in the cloud," or, those who have shed most of their on-premises server weight already, by moving their line of business apps to cloud-based alternatives. I can't tell you how many clients I...
05Sep2018
Replacing your traditional file server with Microsoft Teams and OneDrive, part 2: How to make it happen fast
As promised, today I am going to show you how easy it is to replace your legacy file server and network drive experience with Microsoft Teams and OneDrive. Seriously, anyone can set this up, and it takes just a few minutes. Pre-requisites are: Windows 10 Pro (Creators...
04Sep2018
Replacing your traditional file server with Microsoft Teams and OneDrive, part 1: Overcoming the hurdles
There is no doubt about it, more and more workloads are moving to the cloud these days, especially in the SMB space. Nevertheless, more often than not organizations (even small ones) remain completely disorganized when it comes to their legacy file servers, and this can be the most difficult piece...
06Mar2018