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How to Perform Lotus Notes to Office 365 Migration Step by Step?

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Published By Jamie Kaler 
Rollins Duke
Approved By Rollins Duke
Published On April 17th, 2025
Reading Time 9 Min Read

This tutorial will help users understand how to do Lotus Notes to Office 365 Migration step by step.

Microsoft Office 365 is one of the most common Cloud platforms nowadays. It is gaining popularity day by day and advanced security features and other functionalities are present in it.

Nowadays, most small-scale, as well as large-scale organizations, are using this because of its tendency to manage the entire platform data.

Lotus Notes, or IBM Notes, is a very popular e-mail client that provides integrated collaboration between different e-mail management applications. It allows users to manage emails, contacts, calendars, etc.

Using a desktop email client and a real connection to an IBM Domino server. Saves all mailbox items to a Notes archive file that can only be imported into other Lotus Notes mail clients.

A lot of Lotus Notes users have now started Lotus Notes to Office 365 migration step by step because of its advanced functionalities and better security features.

Office 365 is a subscription service and therefore proves to be very affordable with zero maintenance requirements. But multiple users many times stay at the same point as they do not get the perfect migration method.

Since migration is a difficult task and migrating NSF to Office 365 is so much more difficult, as it is a Cloud-based platform. No worries, here we provide one of the best solutions for the Lotus Notes to Office 365 Migration step by step.

If you are planning to migrate Lotus Notes to Office 365, including contacts, calendars, and other data items , then read this blog and stay with us till the end.

Why Do Users Want to Migrate NSF to Office 365 Account?

Office 365 is first choice of all users and experts because of advanced features and capabilities to manage your data. Here are some points why do users required to perform Lotus Notes to Office 365 migration.

  • IBM Notes has a less user-friendly interface than O365, which is why non-technical users don’t understand how to use Notes to manage data.
  • Office 365 is a complete suite that contains multiple apps on one platform, unlike Lotus Notes.
  • Also, IBM Notes requires a high cost for maintenance, while the Office 365 subscription plan is a low-cost option to maintain all your data with efficiency.
  • Lotus Notes is desktop based which means you can access the data from only one machine, and Microsoft 365 is a web-based service, which can be accessed from any machine and anytime.
  • IBM Notes is better for large organizations, but for small companies and organizations, Office 365 is enough to manage data.

How to Perform Lotus Notes to Office 365 Migration Step by Step Manually?

If you want to migrate NSF to Office 365 manually, then enabling TCP/IP port in IBM Notes is the only way to do it. All the steps with explanations are mentioned below:

Important Note: We are not suggesting to use this method for Lotus Notes to Office 365 migration, because it has multiple errors and high probability of losing your crucial data.

Step 1: Make a Backup Copy of Your NSF File

The manual method contains a high risk of data loss during the process, so having a copy of your NSF file will save you from this situation.

Step 2: Turn on IMAP Connection (TCP/IP Port)

  1. Launch your Domino Administrator in Lotus Notes.
  2. Head to the “Configuration” section.
  3. Navigate the “Server” → “Current Server Document”.
  4. Under the “Ports” >> “Internet Ports” >> “Mail”, enable the “IMAP TCP/IP Port Status”.
  5. Save all your settings using the “Save” button.
  6. And restart the “Domino Server” for changes to apply.

Step 3: Verify IMAP Access for Users

  1. Open your Lotus Notes.
  2. Head to the “File” >> “Preference” >> “Mail” options.
  3. Check that “IMAP” is enabled or not.
  4. You can verify IMAP access using any email client (Outlook and Thunderbird) to confirm connectivity.

Step 4: Prepare Your Office 365 for Migration

  1. Log in to your O365 Admin Centre.
  2. Next, locate the “Exchange Admin Centre”.
  3. And then, check whether IMAP is enabled or not.
  4. And also, check that “Migration Endpoint” is connected. (If not, then follow step 5).

Step 5: Generate IMAP Migrate Endpoint in Microsoft 365

  1. Connect to Exchange Online PowerShell:

    Connect-ExchangeOnline -UserPrincipalName [email protected]

  2. Create a new IMAP migration endpoint:

    New-MigrationEndpoint -IMAP -Name “LotusNotesIMAP” -RemoteServer “imap.domino-server.com” -Port 143 -Security None

(Change imap.domino-server.com with your Domino IMAP server name and adjust Port and Security as needed.)

Step 6: Generate CSV File for Batch Migration

  1. Ready your CSV file with User Mapping:

    EmailAddress,Username,Password
    [email protected],user1_notes,password1
    [email protected],user2_notes,password2

    • EmailAddress = Office 365 email
    • Username = Lotus Notes IMAP username (may include / for hierarchical names)
    • Password = Lotus Notes password
  2. Finally, save this file as Notes_IMAP_Migration.csv.

Step 7: Create and Start the Batch Migration

  1. Head to the “Exchange Admin Centre” >> “Migration” >> “Batch”.
  2. Hit on the “(+)” and then “IMAP Migration”.
  3. Now, upload the previously created CSV file.
  4. After that, choose the “IMAP Endpoint” which is created previously.
  5. Configure migration options:
    • Target delivery domain: Your Office 365 domain.
    • Folder exclusion (optional): Skip non-essential folders.
  6. Finally, start the batch migration to migrate NSF to Office 365.

Step 8: Analyse the Lotus Notes to Office 365 Migration Process

  1. Launch your Exchange Admin Centre.
  2. Choose the “Migration” >> “Batch options”.
  3. Select the migration batch and choose “View Details”.
  4. If it shows:
    • Synced: Your emails have been successfully migrated.
    • Failed: Verify the logs for errors.

Troubleshooting Common Issues

  • Connection Failed: Check your Firewall or Port settings on your Domino server.
  • Authentication Errors: Verify that you are using the right Usernames and passwords of Lotus Notes.
  • Slow Speed of Migration: Check your internet or network bandwidth.
  • Data Loss: One mistake can lead data loss situation.

After reading all the steps, I know now you will look for the alternate solution for Lotus Notes to Office 365 migration. So don’t worry, we have another tool as well to migrate NSF to Office 365 account.

Easy to Use and Fastest Lotus Notes to Office 365 Migration Tool

To resolve this issue, you can try the Lotus Notes Migration Tool by RecoveryTools. This tool is one of the best utilities that allow users to easily migrate data without having any kind of issues or size limitations.

Users can easily migrate NSF to Office 365 with emails, mailboxes, contacts, calendars, and other data items. Using this solution, you can be able to understand the solution for Lotus Notes to Office 365 migration step by step.

Migrating from Lotus Notes emails to Office 365 on the web isn’t that easy. All items in your HCL Notes mailbox are stored in NSF format. It was nearly impossible for HCL Notes to the O365 tool.

How to Migrate Lotus Notes to Office 365? Complete Guide

Before continuing with this, you can choose to view the video tutorial. And, follow the mentioned steps:

  1. Firstly, install and run the Migration tool in your existing Windows system & choose “Add Files” or “Add Folders”.

    Lotus Notes to Office 365 Migration

  2. Select the “Folder” having NSF files from your system & then click on “OK”.

    Folder having NSF files

  3. The utility will allow the preview of Lotus Notes mailbox items with all properties like From, To, CC, etc.

    preview of Lotus Notes

  4. Select the mailbox folders to perform migration and click on “Convert” to proceed.

    mailbox folders

  5. Choose the “Office 365” option from the list of 30+ “Select the Saving options” list.

    Office 365 option

  6. The software will ask the users to set up Lotus Notes to Office 365 migration options like “Change Language” as Dutch, French, German, Spanish, or Swedish. Use “I Am Admin” if you want to log in using “Office 365 Administrator” for multiple user accounts. To protect the on-disk “System Folder Hierarchy” it also asks the users to “Copy to default folders”.

    Lotus Notes to Office 365 migration

  7. Set up migration options by entering Office 365 account login credentials, i.e., Username & Password.
  8. Lastly, click on the “Convert” button to initialize the process. Analyze the Live conversion process directly in the application panel.

    Office 365 account

  9. At last, the software will display a confirmation box. Click on the “OK” button to confirm & exit from here.

    confirmation box

Therefore, the work of this amazing software is very convenient for both technical and non-technical users. It has been recommended as the best solution by experts in terms of speed and accuracy.

Lotus Notes to Office 365 Migration Tool – Major Features & Benefits

  • Easily import IBM Notes to Office 365 email client just by providing account login credentials using the Username and password.
  • The software allows the users to load Lotus Notes mailbox items using dual ways. Enter data by clicking on Select Folders or Select Files
  • Users can migrate Lotus Notes to Office 365 accounts in a single instant. It provides the I am Admin option, which enables users to log in using an Office 365 Administrator account.
  • Moreover, the HCL Notes to Microsoft 365 migration tool allows the users to change the language from default English to some of the significant universal languages like Dutch, German, French, Spanish & Swedish.
  • Users can take a preview of Lotus Notes mailbox items directly.
  • Also, the software allows users to migrate Lotus Notes to Office 365 with emails, along with all inserted attachments.
  • The users must have Lotus Notes installed and configured properly in the application panel.
  • Also, it supports all the Notes Database files exported with all versions i.e., IBM Notes 10.0, Notes 9.0, Notes 8.5, Notes 8.0, Notes 7.0, Lotus Notes 6.5, or all other previous versions.
More Related Questions
  1. Q 1: Where are Office 365 notes stored?

    Ans: Sticky notes are synced with Microsoft 365, which is stored in the Notes folder.

  2. Q 2: Can you export Lotus Notes to Excel?

    Ans: Here are the steps to extract data from Lotus Notes to Excel.

    • Step 1: Log in to your Lotus Notes.
    • Step 2: Click on the “File” >> “Export” option.
    • Step 3: Choose “CSV” from the “Save as type” list.
    • Step 4: Select “All Documents” >> “OK” icon.
    • Step 5: Finally, your Lotus Notes emails are saved as CSV.
  3. Q 3: Does IBM still use Lotus Notes?

    Ans: No, IBM doesn’t support Lotus Notes, but that doesn’t mean Lotus Notes is going away.

  4. Q 4: Which port is used by Lotus Notes?

    Ans: TCP Port 1352 is used by Lotus Notes.

The Verge:

Learn how to do Lotus Notes to Office 365 migration step by step by using the above-mentioned solution. A lot of users are facing multiple issues while doing the migration. We had also received a wide number of user queries and that’s the main reason for us to bring up one of the well-defined and better solutions for the migrated solutions.

Similar Blog: How to Import NSF Files to Exchange Server?