Backing Up Microsoft Exchange Online Mailboxes Using Top Solutions

Overview of Exchange Online Mailbox

You can manage your emails, contacts, and calendars easily on the Exchange Online service offered by Microsoft. Basically, it is a cloud-based collaboration platform that offers built-in retention and security features. But these features can not eliminate the need for a proper Exchange Online mailbox backup.

Users might lose their data due to accidental deletion, ransomware, or account misconfigurations. Thus, there is a need to use a correct workflow to back up this data to avoid any further disruptions. For understanding the need to Backup Exchange Online emails in detail, refer to the upcoming section of the blog.

Why Backup Microsoft Exchange Online Mailboxes

Before moving on to the actual backup process, let us first understand the need for the Exchange Online mailbox backup. Mentioned below are some of the common reasons to perform the backup.

• The built-in retention features will keep your emails secure for a limited time period.
• Microsoft’s default security doesn’t provide a separate backup copy.
• Moreover, you might lose data due to Ransomware or accidental deletion.
• Furthermore, misconfigurations will not affect the data after backup.
• Additionally, some software can restore a limited number of emails or dates.
• Also, users might need to store voluminous data for legal and compliance needs.

Considering the above factors, the need to back up Microsoft Exchange Online mailboxes is evident.

Things to Consider Before Starting Backup

Listed below is the pre-backup checklist to follow before backing up the Microsoft Exchange Online mailboxes. Make sure to consider all these pointers to effortllessly backup mailboxes without any errors.

• Make sure to acquire the necessary permissions to access the Microsoft 365 account.
• Users must have the valid admin credentials before starting the backup process.
• Cross-Verify whether the backup destination has sufficient storage space.

Once you meet all the above requirements, proceed with the methods explained below.

Proven Methods to Backup Microsoft Exchange Online mailboxes

In this section of the article, we will primarily discuss the two simplest yet most effective methods to back up Microsoft Exchange Online mailboxes.

• Using eDiscovery 
• Aryson Office 365 Backup Tool

Make sure to consider all the relevant factors like time consumption, size of data, and the technical expertise of both methods. After that, choose either of the two as per your convenience.

Method 1:How to Export Exchange Online Mailboxes via eDiscovery

Microsoft provides an eDiscovery feature to allow administrators to search and export mailbox data. Users can use this option to open the Exchange Online mailbox data and export it as a backup. Now, follow the steps below to know how to backup Exchange Online mailboxes using eDiscovery.

Step 1: Create and Run Content Search

1. To begin, sign in to the Microsoft 365 Admin Center.
2. Make sure your account has the required eDiscovery permissions.
3. Then, open the Microsoft Purview Compliance Portal
4. After that, navigate to the eDiscovery option >> select Content Search.
5. Now, click on the “+” icon to create a search.
6. Enter a name and choose a specific location.
7. Next, enable the Exchange mailboxes option & select the mailbox you want to export.
8. Apply the required filters and click on the Submit option to begin the search.

Step 2: Export and Download the Mailbox

1. Next, open the search and click on the Export Results option.
2. After that, select the output format to export( usually PST ) and click Export.
3. Now, navigate to the Exports tab and click on the Download Results option.
4. Then, copy the Export key and paste it into the eDiscovery Export Tool.
5. Next, choose the destination folder and click on the Start button to begin the download.

Limitations of Using eDiscovery

1. This method might take you many hours to complete the backup.
2. The user can not schedule the backups via this approach.
3. Moreover, it does not support incremental backups.
4. Furthermore, you would require technical expertise & role specific permissions.
5. Also, the eDiscovery feature is designed for compliance purposes only.

Method 2: Automated Method to Backup Microsoft Exchange Online Mailboxes

Aryson Office 365 Backup Tool is the quickest software to perform Microsoft Exchange Online backup. This software makes sure to provide 100% data security and accuracy during the backup process. Moreover, many organisations and IT administrators prefer to use it for its secure authentication methods: Modern Auth 2.0 and Impersonation. This helps them securely migrate their data to various other email clients. Also, the built-in features of the software remove duplication and allows user to apply filters on the selected mailbox data.

Step-by-Step Guide to Backup Exchange Online

1. Firstly, install and open the Office 365 Backup Tool & press the Backup button.
2. After that, click on the Continue button to proceed further.
3. Then, choose either of the authentication methods to log in to the Office 365 account.
4. Next, select the desired files/folders to preview in the right panel >> Next.
5. Under the dropdown list of the file formats, select PST as the output format.
6. Use the built-in features of the software as per your requirements.
7. Finally, click on the Next button to Office 365 Exchange Online backup.

Core Functionalities of the Aryson Office 365 Software

Apart from the above-discussed features, there are some additional functionalities of the software as well.

• Users can back up the complete Office 365 mailboxes, including emails, contacts, calendars, tasks, and public folders.
• Moreover, it can export Office 365 mailbox data to PST, MBOX, EML, MSG, etc.
• You can back up multiple user accounts with the impersonation rights.
• Furthermore, this software uses Modern Auth 2.0 and does not store user credentials.
• Additionally, this utility provides the user with Date Filter, Remove Duplicates, etc.
• Also, the Free demo version of the software can migrate up to 50 emails/folders.

Let’s Wrap Up

In the above write-up, we mainly focused on the two most reliable methods to backup Microsoft Exchange Online mailboxes. The eDiscovery feature of Microsoft is suitable for compliance purposes and can back up small mailboxes efficiently. On the other hand, the automated Exchange Online email backup solution allows users to securely backup large mailboxes simultaneously. Moreover, the software simplifies the entire backup process using advanced features. User can try the demo version of the software to backup uto 50 emails/folders for free.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

About The Author:

Rohan Wiese

Rohan Wiese is a Technical Writer at Aryson Technologies. He is an expert Email Forensic, Cloud Computing, and a passionate nerd with over 10 years of experience in technical content writing. He writes about Cloud Migration, Database Recovery, Email Backup, Windows, Mac, and Tech.

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