Microsoft Exchange Migration

Question

I am working on a project that the customer has Exchange 2010 and 2016. The first 2016 Server was installed in a different datacenter and another site location, the 2 datacenters are in different countries and communication between them are difficult at best. The problem has arisen when i try to move one of the 2010 mailboxes to the 2016 Servers, this is because the Microsoft Exchange Migration mailbox resides on the server in the other country. My question is can I create a second arbitration migration mailbox and home it on the US Server?

Answer 1

Hi Patrick Genova,

Based on your problem description, the issue occurs because the Microsoft Exchange migration mailbox resides on a server in another country, and your suggested approach is feasible, you can perform the following actions in the Exchange Command Line Manager (EMS):

1. Run the following format command to create a new arbitration mailbox:

New-Mailbox -Arbitration -Name ArbitrationMailboxUSA -UserPrincipalName ArbitrationMailboxUSA@domain.com -Database "DB01"

1. After creating a new Arbitration Mailbox, you need to enable its Mail Relocation Service (MRS). Run the following format command:

Set-Mailbox -Arbitration ArbitrationMailboxUSA@domain.com -Migration

1. If your organization uses email address policies to automatically manage email addresses for mailboxes, ensure that the new arbitration mailbox also adheres to these policies. If you need to set up email addresses manually, you can use the following format command:

Set-Mailbox -Arbitration ArbitrationMailboxUSA@domain.com -EmailAddresses SMTP:ArbitrationMailboxUSA@domain.com

1. When you begin migrating mailboxes, ensure that the arbitration mailbox on the new US server is designated to store migration reports and logs. When using the 'New-MoveRequest' command, you can specify the arbitration mailbox with the '-ArbitrationMailbox' parameter:

New-MoveRequest -Identity "UserMailbox" -TargetDatabase "DB01" -ArbitrationMailbox ArbitrationMailboxUSA@domain.com

By creating and configuring a new arbitration mailbox on an Exchange 2016 server located in the United States, you should be able to facilitate mailbox movement without having to rely on problematic cross-border server communications.

If the problem persists, feel free to comment me and I'll be happy to help you out!