System survey and data gathering (2/2)

To complete the second part of this section, I am going to talk about the following points:

1. Confirm the number of users to be migrated
2. Get an estimated data size for all users and for each user
3. Make an inventory of all groups that are mail enabled
4. Make sure a password policy that match requirements by Google is active in the local network with no exceptions
5. Check local DNS to confirm local domain name and relation with public domain name
6. Confirm access to the Exchange server with an administrator user that has “Full-Access” permission and “Receive-As” permission on all the databases and all users
7. Confirm access to Active Directory and local DNS services with an administrator user with proper permissions to create/edit/delete user objects and DNS records
8. Confirm there are available PCs to be used for GAMME when needed for data migration
9. Agree

So, after the introduction in part 1, I will start with this subject, which is the most critical of the whole project, because based on the output of this step or phase, your plan and your action and teams will be decided.

System survey and data gathering

For me, the most important tasks that always created issues and troubles in every project, can be resolved by making sure the following items are all known and documented before starting to make the plan:

1. Make sure the domain to be migrated is not registered with Google Apps
2. Confirm the customer has access to the public domain DNS zone, and get the access
3. Internet connection: its stability and available bandwidth
4. Find out if a mail security or anti-spam solution is in use, and email flow route
5. Find out the most important workflows and processes that are related to the email system