Improve Office 365 Mailbox Management Practices

Read time 5 minutes

Many businesses today experience a high volume of incoming and outgoing email traffic, which is efficiently managed through Microsoft 365 accounts. Consequently, there is a significant global user base for Microsoft 365.

Employee turnover poses a challenge to Exchange Administrators, affecting data integrity. Administrators must have a deep understanding of the platform and implement effective practices for data management. Here, we will explore best practices for managing mailbox data and conducting backup Office 365.

Things to know before you begin

Effective Exchange mailbox management entails smooth administration and maintenance, which can be complex. Here, we’ll focus on fundamental aspects. Administrators often employ PowerShell or Admin Center to modify and configure user mailbox properties. However, it’s essential to be a Global Admin or have the necessary permissions for these tasks. You can check out the Mailbox Permissions to know about the authorities.

To change the mailbox properties for a SINGLE USER, you need to follow the steps given below-

1. Open the Microsoft 365 admin center. Under Admin centers, select Exchange to open the Exchange Admin center.
2. From the left panel, expand Recipients and select Mailboxes.
3. Go to the list of user mailboxes, click on the user, and it will open the user settings window.
4. You can change the user mailbox properties, including General, Organizational, Delegation, Mailbox, and Others.

To change the mailbox properties for MULTIPLE USERS, follow these steps-

1. Go to Exchange Admin Center and navigate to Recipients > Mailboxes.
2. Select two or more mailboxes in the list and go to the Details Pane.
3. Select the mailbox properties or feature you want to edit in the Details pane.
4. Make the ideal changes as per requirements and then save the changes.

Below is a detailed list of all the properties and their sub-parts which can be modified. They will vary for a single user or multiple users.

To efficiently manage user mailboxes through Exchange Online PowerShell, you can utilize the Get-Mailbox and Set-Mailbox cmdlets. One of the key advantages of Exchange PowerShell is the ability to simultaneously modify properties across multiple mailboxes.

Now, to verify that the changes are applied to the mailboxes, do the following things:

1. Go to the Exchange Admin Center, select each mailbox you bulk edited, then click Edit to check the modified properties.
2. You can check the same in Exchange Online PowerShell using the Get-Mailbox cmdlet. The advantage of using Exchange Online PowerShell is that it allows you to view multiple properties of multiple mailboxes. The below cmdlet can be used to verify whether the retention policy is applied to a mailbox-

Similarly, you can verify the modified settings of other Office 365 mailboxes.

Managing Office 365 mailboxes using EAC or Exchange Online PowerShell is a bit complicated, as you have to verify every time the changes are applied or not. Similarly, taking backup of Microsoft 365 mailboxes is more complex than managing them, as the manual methods to backup Office 365 mailboxes are too challenging to understand. So, we recommend you use Kernel Export Office 365 to PST tool to ease the Office 365 mailbox backup process.

Wrap Up

Efficiently managing Office 365 mailboxes is crucial, given the evolving nature of organizations. Occasional modifications to your Office 365 mailboxes are necessary. You can easily adjust Microsoft 365 mailbox properties using either EAC or Exchange Online PowerShell. Additionally, the Kernel Office 365 Backup tool offers a straightforward solution for backing up Office 365 mailboxes. It allows you to multiple Office 365 mailboxes to PST and other formats, ensuring the safety and integrity of your data.