Updated On - February 21, 2019

This guide will take you through the steps you need to take in order to migrate from Exchange Server 2013 to version 2016.

To read other parts in this series, go to:

Exchange 2013 to Exchange 2016 Migration (Part 2)

Exchange 2013 to Exchange 2016 Migration (Part 3)

Exchange 2013 to Exchange 2016 Migration (Part 4)

Exchange 2013 to Exchange 2016 Migration (Part 5)

Exchange 2013 to Exchange 2016 Migration (Part 6)

Exchange 2013 to Exchange 2016 Migration (Part 7)

Instant Solution - Kernel Migrator for Exchange Exchange/Office 365 migrations are quite easy with professional tools like Kernel Migrator for Exchange. This tool helps to manage mailbox and public folder migrations involving different Exchange versions and deployment types. Also, this tool helps with all tasks starting from the pre-migration analysis to the preparation of reports after the migration. Download trial Kernel Migrator for Exchange

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If you are upgrading from Exchange 2010, please see our Exchange 2010 to 2016 migration

Advantages of Exchange Server 2016 over Exchange Server 2013

Exchange Server 2016 has brought the latest features and services to strengthen the email communication system of businesses.

You can upgrade to Exchange Server 2016 to scale up the professional email communication.

In Exchange 2016, Microsoft has retained only two server roles:

Mailbox Server Role

Edge Transport Server Role

Mailbox Server Role

Mailbox Server Role combines the two important server roles of Exchange 2013 – Mailbox Server role and Client Access Server role. The Mailbox Server role contains the backend client access protocol, all the mailbox databases, transport services, and Unified Messaging services. Edge Transport Server Role Edge Transport Servers are deployed in the perimeter network and handle the external mail flow. This Server Role makes the Exchange environment safer by providing additional layers of message protection. It tackles all the viruses, spam, and faulty email flow.

Our setup is a single 2013 Exchange Server. We will first install Exchange Server 2016 and then migrate data from Exchange 2013 to 2016.

1. Preparing the environment

Before starting the migration, you need to prepare the environment and ensure that it meets the system requirements. Then read the release notes to make sure you won’t have any post-migration issues. Ascertain the important parameters of the Exchange server appropriately so that there is sufficient RAM, CPU and storage space available for the server to perform correctly. Exchange Server 2016 should be the same size as the Exchange 2013 multirole server, but it requires additional resources.

The next step is to find out whether your clients are supported by the Exchange Server 2016. If they are not in the list of supported clients, upgrade them. Install a supported OS; this can be Windows Server 2012 Standard/Datacenter or Windows Server 2012 R2 Standard/Datacenter. In our case, we used Windows Server 2012. After installation, join the server to the domain. After the environment has been prepared, the next task is to install Exchange Server 2016.

2. Installing Prerequisites and Exchange Server 2016

Before carrying out the Exchange Server 2016 installation, ensure that the user in charge has the appropriate permissions to do it. Before starting, ensure that the following pre-requisites have been installed:

2.1 Pre-requisites

Install .Net 4.5.2 Install the Windows Management Framework 4.0 Install the Unified Messaging Communications Managed API 4.0 Runtime Install the required Windows features. Run the following PowerShell command to install the required Windows feature.

Install-WindowsFeature AS-HTTP-Activation, Desktop-Experience, NET-Framework-45-Features, RPC-over-HTTP-proxy, RSAT-Clustering, RSAT-Clustering-CmdInterface, RSAT-Clustering-Mgmt, RSAT-Clustering-PowerShell, Web-Mgmt-Console, WAS-Process-Model, Web-Asp-Net45, Web-Basic-Auth, Web-Client-Auth, Web-Digest-Auth, Web-Dir-Browsing, Web-Dyn-Compression, Web-Http-Errors, Web-Http-Logging, Web-Http-Redirect, Web-Http-Tracing, Web-ISAPI-Ext, Web-ISAPI-Filter, Web-Lgcy-Mgmt-Console, Web-Metabase, Web-Mgmt-Console, Web-Mgmt-Service, Web-Net-Ext45, Web-Request-Monitor, Web-Server, Web-Stat-Compression, Web-Static-Content, Web-Windows-Auth, Web-WMI, Windows-Identity-Foundation,RSAT-ADDS

2.2 Installing the Exchange Server 2016

After the environment is ready and the prerequisites have been installed. We can now install Exchange Server 2016. Follow the below steps:

Download and extract the Exchange Server 2016 setup file. After the file has been extracted, run the Exchange Setup (Setup.exe) to begin installing the Exchange Server. Select the first option and click Next. The Setup will look for updates, and if found will install it. Click Next to proceed. The Setup will copy the required files and initialize the installation. The Introduction page will appear, click Next to proceed. In the next step, the License Agreement page opens up, accept the license. Click Next to proceed. Then, select Recommended Settings and click Next to proceed.

On clicking next, select the server role page will appear. Select the ‘Mailbox Role’ and click Next to proceed.

Specify the location where software will be installed. It can be installed at the default location, or a different location can be specified using the browse button. In the next step you will have to select whether you want the Malware Protection Settings. By default, the settings are enabled but you can choose to disable it. The Setup will do a readiness check of the system and will configure pre-requisites. Installation will continue and finally a window will popup reporting a successful installation.

3. Setup the Service Connection Point

The Service Connection Point (SCP) is an Exchange Server object’s attribute in Active Directory, which guides domain-joined Outlook clients to a URL to get auto-discover settings. This attribute is, by default, the FQDN of the server. The SCP should be configured to refer to the Exchange Server 2013 endpoint.

Conclusion

This is the first blog in a series which will give you an in-depth breakdown of all the steps involved in migrating from Exchange Server 2013 to Exchange Server 2016. In this part, we made sure our environment met the prerequisites for Exchange Server 2016, prepared the environment for installation, installed the Exchange Server 2016 and configured the SCP. The next blog (part 2) will discuss installing the correct SSL certificate on Exchange 2016.

× Try Kernel Migrator for Exchange Select Your Country Afghanistan Albania Algeria Angola Antarctica Antigua and Barbuda Argentina Armenia Aruba Australia Austria Azerbaijan Bahamas Bahrain Bangladesh Barbados Belarus Belgium Benin Bermuda Bhutan Bolivia Bosnia Botswana Brazil British Virgin Islands Brunei Bulgaria BurkinaFaso Burundi Cambodia Cameroon Canada Cayman Islands Central African Republic Chad Chile China Colombia Comoros Congo CostaRica Croatia Cuba Cyprus Czech Republic Denmark Djibouti Dominica Dominican Republic Ecuador Egypt ELSalvador Equatorial Guinea Eritrea Estonia Ethiopia Falkland Islands Fiji Finland France French Guiana French Polynesia Gabon Georgia Germany Ghana Gibraltar Greece Greenland Grenada Guam Guatemala Guinea Guinea-Bissau Guyana Haiti Honduras Hungary Iceland India Indonesia Iran Iraq Ireland Israel Italy Jamaica Japan Jordan Kazakhstan Kenya Kiribati Kuwait Kyrgyzstan Laos Latvia Lebanon Lesotho Liberia Libya Liechtenstein Lithuania Luxembourg Macau Macedonia Madagascar Malawi Malaysia Maldives Mali Malta MarshallIslands Martinique Mauritania Mauritius Mexico Micronesia Moldova Monaco Mongolia Montserrat Morocco Mozambique Myanmar Namibia Nauru Nepal Netherlands NewZealand Nicaragua Niger Nigeria North Korea Norway Oman Pakistan Palau Palestine Panama Papua New Guinea Paraguay Peru Philippines Poland Portugal PuertoRico Qatar Romania Russia Rwanda SanMarino SaudiArabia Senegal Seychelles Singapore Slovakia Slovenia Somalia SouthAfrica SouthKorea Spain SriLanka Sudan Sweden Switzerland Syria Taiwan Tajikistan Tanzania Thailand Tibet Togo Tonga Trinidad and Tobago Tunisia Turkey Turkmenistan U.A.E Uganda Ukraine United Kingdom Uruguay USA Uzbekistan Venezuela Vietnam Yemen Yugoslavia Zambia Zimbabwe Select mailboxes 1-100 101-250 251-500 501-1000 1000+ I have read and agree to the Privacy Policy