Differences between move mailbox methods

This article describes different practices for moving Microsoft Exchange Server mailboxes between Exchange Server computers in the same site.

Moving mailboxes by using an Exchange Server computer

The optimal method for moving mailboxes is to initiate the move mailbox process from the target server. This method uses a security channel that is created between the two Exchange Server computers to move mailboxes from the source server to the target server.

Exchange Server 2003

To move mailboxes in the most efficient manner from a source server to the target server, log on to the target server, and then use the Active Directory Users and Computers snap-in:

• Right-click the users, click Exchange Tasks, and then click Move Mailbox.

Exchange Tasks is only available if Exchange System Manager is installed on the server. You can also use Exchange System Manager to move mailboxes in Exchange 2003. For additional information about how to move mailboxes by using Exchange System Manager, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

Exchange 2000 Server

To move mailboxes in the most efficient manner from a source server to the target server, log on to the target server, and then use the Active Directory Users and Computers snap-in:

• Right-click the users, click Exchange Tasks, and then click Move Mailbox.

Exchange Tasks is only available if Exchange System Manager is installed on the server.

Exchange Server 5.5

To move mailboxes in the most efficient manner from the source server to the final target server, use the Microsoft Exchange Server Administrator program to log on to the target server and from there, initiate the move of the mailboxes from the source server to the target server.

Moving mailboxes by using a workstation

Another method is to move mailboxes from an administrator's workstation. If you move mailboxes by using the Exchange Server 5.5 Administrator program or the Exchange System Manager from an administrator's workstation, the flow of data is as follows:

1. The data or the mailbox flows from the source server to the administrator's workstation.
2. The data or the mailbox flows from the administrator's workstation to the destination server or to the target server.

Therefore, the security channel is between the administrator's workstation and the two Exchange Server computers. There is no security channel between the two Exchange Server computers. This is not the most efficient method to move mailboxes between Exchange Server computers, especially if the data is going over a LAN or over a WAN.

The difference in the data flow between these two move mailbox methods can be very important when you are moving many mailboxes from one server to another.