Backup

How to Backup Exchange Online Mailbox to PST? Ingenious Ways

Exchange Online is the most preferable cloud-based emailing service across the globe. However, users do not feel very secure with rapidly rising online hacking. That’s why, they need to backup Exchange Online Mailbox to PST to maintain a local copy of their important user’s data saved on the cloud, i.e., Exchange Online account. It also helps in data loss disasters too. Therefore, this article describes a roadmap to export the data on the local platform. Here, we’ll focus on the core queries related to the Office 365 Exchange Online backup.

Users Query:-

“As an Exchange Online Administrator, I want to backup the entire mailbox from Exchange Online for compliance purposes. Suggest a reliable and effortless approach to do so.”

“I was trying to use the eDiscovery tool to download mailbox from Exchange Online. Can anyone help me out with this? Kindly provide all the steps to save the Exchange Online mailbox to PST Via. eDiscovery”

So, let’s begin the process!

Top 3 Methods to Download PST from Exchange Online

In the coming section, we have described the top three ways using which you can easily perform this task, the first method is a more reliable and secure approach and it does not require any technicalities to operate. On the other hand, other methods require more attention to detail and hence, require complete technicalities of Exchange Online and PowerShell. Let’s have a detailed overview of all of these methods.

Method 1: Backup Exchange Online Mailbox to PST Via. Ideal Solution

As a quick and safe approach, users can opt for Office 365 Backup Tool to download PST from Exchange Online. Designed specifically for Office 365 Enterprise E1 / E3 / E5, Exchange Online Plan 1 & Plan 2, Office 365 Business Premium, Office 365 A1/ A3/ A5, Office 365 F1, Office 365 Business Essentials. This tool offers every functionality that you need to export the mailbox to PST file format. Along with the backup process, it offers a restore feature too. So, if you want to recover the backup file of Exchange Online that was saved in PST format, then it can be easily done using the software.

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Step By Step Software Working Guide to Download PST from Exchange Online Quickly

Step 1. Download install, and run the tool on your computer, and choose Office 365 and Outlook as the source and the destination platforms.

Step 2. Mark all the required mailbox items like email, contact, calendar, and documents for backup from workload selection.

Step 3. Use admin credentials such as admin ID and application ID. Log into the portal and validate permissions by clicking the validate button.

Step 4. Locate the path and destination for saving the resultant backup PST file on your local computer.

Step 5. Fetch and validate the desired Office 365 user account. Then hit the start backup button.

Also Read: How to Migrate Mailboxes from One Microsoft 365 Tenant to Another? Complete Guide

Method 2: Save Exchange Online mailbox to PST using PowerShell Command

Here, we will discuss a manual approach by which users can download PST from Exchange Online. Go through the below instructions for the same.

Step 1. Establish connection with Exchange Server via PowerShell

• First of all, run the following command:

Now, in the Windows PowerShell Credential Request box, you should enter Exchange Online admin account credentials. Thus, you need to enter the username and password of amit@cloudsystool.onmicrosoft.com in the given window.

• After that, you have to run the command displayed below:

• Then, execute the command given below

Step 2. Provide Full Access Right to the Mailbox using PowerShell

In this scenario, ajay@cloudsystool.onmicrosoft.com will get complete access to the edwin@123 .onmicrosoft.com mailbox. For the same, you need to run the following command:

Step 3. Start Outlook with A Newly Created Account

After this, now you will open MS Outlook using a new account, i.e., edwin@123 .onmicrosoft.com. Well, make sure that the ajay@cloudsystool .onmicrosoft.com mailbox is available in the left pane of the MS Outlook mailbox. Keep in mind that all permissions will take a few seconds in order to be applicable.

Step 4. Verify the Configuration Settings of MS Outlook

In step 4 of performing the task to backup Exchange Online mailboxes to PST, be sure that the Outlook application is set to get configured and download all emails, follow these steps:

• Go to the File option, click Info, and then, the Account Settings option
• After that, select Account Settings and choose the specific account
• Click the Change button and check whether the option ‘Use Cached Exchange Mode’ is selected or not.

Step 5. Use Import and Export Wizard to Completely Backup Exchange Online Mailboxes to PST

• In order to export the ajay@cloudsystool .onmicrosoft.com mailbox to PST format, select File and then the Open & Export option. Choose the Import/ Export option
• Next, choose Export to a file from the given list option and press Next
• Now, select the Outlook Data file (PST) option and click the Next button

Afterward choose the desired mailbox, i.e., ajay@cloudsystool .onmicrosoft.com from the folder list.

• Click the Next button and then, check to Include Subfolders option
• Provide a new name to a particular file and storage path where you can save the PST file i.e., c:\tmp\outlook-archive- ajay@cloudsystool -20160209.pst
• Select the desired option from the Options section and click the Finish button to complete the export process
• If needed, then you need to enter a password for the Outlook file. Else, leave it blank if it is not against policy and press the OK button to complete the task to backup Exchange Online mailbox to PST.

Step 6. Check Export PST from Exchange Online 365 via PowerShell

Make sure the migration process is done properly; you have to check the mailbox size on the Server and compare it with the size of the resultant PST file. For this, follow the steps given below:

• Right-click on the desired mailbox and choose the Data file properties option
• Then, go to the General tab and select the Folder Size
• Next, move to the Server Data tab and mark down the Total Size
• Navigate to properties of Output PST file and verify if the size of exported PST matches with a given value of Outlook or not.

Step 7. Remove Assigned Permissions in the Above Steps

Here, delete all permissions already assigned to the above steps using PowerShell. To do this, run the following commands:

Step 8. Terminate PowerShell Session

Once you have converted Exchange Online mailboxes to PST files successfully, you can exit the PowerShell session. For the same, run the command given below:

After executing the PowerShell command to export Exchange Online mailbox to PST, users will get a PST file that contains emails, calendars, contacts, and attachments.

Must Read: How to Export Emails from Office 365 to Excel – Learn Quick & Reliable Way

Method #3: Download PST from Exchange Online– eDiscovery PST Export Tool

It is the second manual workaround to backup Exchange Online mailbox to PST, via the eDiscovery PST export tool.

Here are the following steps listed below to save email from Office 365 webmail to desktop in PST file format.

Step 1. Log in to Microsoft Office 365 service and go to the Exchange Online Admin center to perform data conversion.

Step 2. Expand the Admin Center and select the option Security & Compliance

Step 3. Click on Permission, and choose the + icon in Security & Compliance Center. Now, you need to edit the role group of the eDiscovery Manager

Step 4. Next, click on the + icon in order to add an account to the eDiscovery Administrator list. Now, click the Save button and then continue.

Step 5. Then, go to Search & Investigation center and click on the + icon. Select the new Content Search Wizard. Fill in your name inside the Name field, click Next, and proceed further.

Step 6. If you wish to bulk (all data) export mailbox data from Exchange Online, then simply choose the Search everywhere and Exchange option.

To migrate only selective data, choose Custom location selection and click the + icon.

If you need to transfer data from Public folders, select the Search all public folders option.

Step 7. In case of selective migration from Exchange Online mailbox, use different filtering options including logical operators, i.e., AND, OR, NOT, etc., with any keyword or phrases. Now, click the Search option in order to start the search process

Step 8. Once the search process is done successfully, click the Start Export button

Step 9. But, if you want, then you can also add encrypted files. When everything is prepared, go to the Start export button.

Step 10. The export process is started. Select the Download exported results option.

Step 11. Now, the export key is generated you need to copy it before going forward