Microsoft OneDrive
Microsoft OneDrive Migration (WIP)
Organizations looking to migrate to M365 services may consider giving end user's access to Microsoft OneDrive. The explanation below will help administrators prepare for OneDrive migrations to help ensure a successful deployment.
Technology Considerations
OneDrive has many additional features to consider and is an improvement on prior Microsoft technologies. Prior to M365 Services many organizations would utilize redirected folders, offline files, roaming profiles, and file shares to give end users access to data storage. Policies and procedures were then designed to help secure this data. In this deployment type Perimeter Based Security was commonly utilized to protect this information. As an example, institutions would deploy advanced firewalls with detection mechanisms built-in to prevent unauthorized data access. With the advancements in cloud technologies Perimeter Based Security is no longer the single solution to protect information stored in the cloud. Depending on the OneDrive deployment the organization is considering some systems may not be compatible with the technology above.
Implementation Approach
Phased Approach
Due to the complexities of migration to OneDrive its best to take a phased approach. This approach allows your organization to test the implementation and migration strategy before major environment changes. This is typically recommended as there are limitations to how much data can be migrated to your M365 tenant within a 24-hour period and due to the complexities of OS versioning, OneDrive versioning, and Group Policy considerations. Listed below is the recommended phased approach with estimated timelines.
Preparation Phase
2 Weeks
Migration Strategy Phase
1 Month
Implementation Phase
1 Month
Issue Resolution Phase
2 Weeks
Retirement Phase
1 Month
Project Timeline Estimations
User accounts
Below are estimations on project timelines based on user account migrations. These timelines can vary greatly depending on issues that could arise during the project's implementation. It's important to understand the more users that need to be migrated and the more out of date the existing technology is the more difficult this project can become. It's recommended to plan your timelines accordingly and understand additional time may be needed to complete the project.
100 Users
1 Month
200 Users
2 Months
500 Users
3 Months
1000+ Users
3+ Months
Preparation Phase
This is the first phase and one of the most critical. OneDrive especially when configured with Known Folder Move is not compatible with the technologies listed above. File shares may be able to work in tandem with OneDrive, but folder redirection cannot.
Preparation Phase Steps
Step 1
Discover & Document Group Policies
Step 2
Review Any Group Policies with Folder Redirection, Offline Files, Roaming Profiles, or Mapped Drives. (Documentation)
Step 3
Isolate any policies mentioned in Step 2 into their own Group Policy. Confirm inheritance isn't negatively affected.
Step 4
Create organizational units for testing underneath both User and Computer nodes. (Documentation)
Step 5
Disable inheritance and relink all other group policies except the isolated policy mentioned in Step 3.
Step 6
Create a new folder redirection or roaming profiles Group Policy to redirect back to the local device and link it to the OU's created in Step 4. (Documentation)
Step 7
Migrate test users and computers to their applicable organization units.
Step 8
Ingest OneDrive ADMX Templates within your domain following the link listed here. (Documentation)
Step 9
Configure OneDrive Known Folder Move Group Policy and link it to the OU's created in Step 4. (Documentation)
Step 10
Confirm group policies have been enforced and OneDrive KFM has been properly enabled redirecting Desktop, Pictures, and Documents.
Step 11
Migrate files located on the roaming profile or offline files server to the users OneDrive accounts mentioned in Step 7 using the Migration Manger Tool. (Documentation)
Step 12
Document any issues during testing and confirm any timing issues from the migration.
Migration Strategy Phase
This is the second phase of the migration. Migration to OneDrive can present multiple challenges. This phase is dedicated towards strategizing the best way to implement OneDrive based on the results recorded above. This section will do its best to help your organization determine the best migration pathway.
Technical Challenges
OneDrive KFM can have issues when first engaging due to stale registry entries left over from the Group Policy migration as well other considerations. It's important to understand this can be due to a large number of reasons. This guide will do its best to document these and potential work arounds. Microsoft's official stance when the OS isn't fully migrating is to wipe and reload the OS. Something this guide tries to avoid.
Step 1
Testing Points of Failure
Was the test machine successfully able to transition from Folder Redirection Group Policies to OneDrive KFM?
Yes
No
Proceed to the next step below
Please Proceed to Diagnostics
