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Converting an Exchange Userbase to Unix?

Posted by Cliff on from the can-we-not-do-this-by-hand...please dept.

Jwfulcher asks: "This is kind of backwards from what normal people do, which is why i'm having problems finding any documentation on it, but I have around 150 users on exchange, with distribution lists and a few custom recipients as well. The CEO wants to switch to a Unix based POP/IMAP mail solution for licensing reasons (we don't use the groupware functions anyway), I was wondering if anyone knew of a method to convert the exchange userbase and add the users on a FreeBSD system and possibly point to our Radius server (which is capable of doing NT authentication) for authentication on those accounts."

2 of 54 comments (clear)

  1. Re:Well.. by Skuggan · · Score: 2, Interesting

    You *cannot* have IMAP and Exchange accounts at the same time on the same computer.

    You have to choose between Internet mode (POP and/or IMAP) or Workgroup mode (POP and/or Exchange).

    But there is no problem to create a Personal Folders file and save all info into.

    Then you can reconfigure mailsupport in Outlook and and change to Internet mode, open the previously created .pst file and copy all mail to the IMAP server.

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  2. I don't know what Outlook does. by jhubbard · · Score: 2, Interesting

    You only have 150 users, if worse comes to worse you can just recreate accounts. As all of the others have suggested you can use LDAP. The big thing is the user data.

    I don't know if outlook does this. But, using mozilla I was able to copy from one account to another by just highlighting all of the messages and then right clicking and doing a copy to.

    My suggestion is setup up the new box with sendmail, imap, ldap enabled. Setup imap on the exhange box and give them a mail reader that do the move. I would think that Outlook would work. Then during the night redirect all incoming e-mail from to the new box. Turn off sending e-mail and receiving e-mail on exchange if it can be done.

    One possibility is to setup a front line box and have it redirect mail for only certain users so that you can do a few users at a time. You may have to do some hand holding to them to move their e-mail.

    Just a suggestion.