CTS - Computer Technology Specialists
Microsoft 365 Migration for Melbourne Law Firm
A commercial law firm in Melbourne's CBD engaged CTS to migrate from an ageing on-premises Exchange server and scattered file shares to Microsoft 365. The firm's solicitors, paralegals and support staff depended on email and document access that had become slow, fragile and difficult to secure. CTS delivered a fully managed migration to Exchange Online, SharePoint Online and OneDrive on Microsoft 365 Business Premium licensing — with Entra ID identity protection and Microsoft Intune device management — across a staged weekend cutover with zero unplanned downtime during business hours.
Melbourne IT support with visible local credentials
CTS - Computer Technology Specialists has supported Melbourne SMBs since 2000. Contact: 1300 790 780, hello@cts.au, L30 - 35 Collins St Melbourne 3000.
Certifications, affiliations and technology partners
Microsoft Partner, ACSC Essential Eight aligned, ISO 27001 practices, NBN Business Accredited Adviser, Cisco Partner, Dell Partner, HPE Partner, Arcserve Partner, Broadcom Partner, Kyocera Partner.
The challenge
The firm was running an end-of-life on-premises Exchange server with no disaster recovery, alongside an unstructured file server that staff could only reach reliably over a slow VPN. For a practice holding sensitive client and matter data, the security and continuity gaps were a growing risk.
- Ageing on-premises Exchange server approaching end of support, with no tested backup or disaster recovery
- Mailboxes exceeding storage limits — staff were archiving to local PST files that were never backed up
- Documents spread across an unstructured on-premises file server with no version history and no safe remote access
- No multi-factor authentication — partner and solicitor accounts were protected by passwords alone
- Court-based and remote work hampered by VPN dependence and slow file retrieval
The CTS solution
CTS scoped a Microsoft 365 Business Premium migration covering email, documents, identity and device security as a single managed project — not just a mailbox move, but a full modernisation of how the firm worked and protected its data.
- Migrated every mailbox from on-premises Exchange to Exchange Online with no loss of mail, calendar or contacts
- Consolidated sprawling PST archives back into compliant, searchable online mailboxes with retention policies
- Migrated the file server to SharePoint Online with a matter-centric document structure and full version history
- Deployed OneDrive with Known Folder Move so desktops, documents and downloads were backed up automatically
- Enforced MFA and conditional access across all accounts through Entra ID
- Onboarded every device to Microsoft Intune with compliance policies and BitLocker encryption
The migration process
CTS ran the migration in controlled stages so the firm could keep billing time throughout, with senior engineers on hand at every cutover.
- Discovery and data audit of mailbox sizes, file shares and PST sprawl
- Pilot migration with two partners and the firm's IT champion to validate the cutover process
- Staged mailbox migration in batches across consecutive weekends to avoid business-hours disruption
- Document migration with pre-staging followed by a final delta sync at cutover
- Two weeks of hypercare support, with a CTS engineer on site for the first day back
The results
The firm moved to a fully cloud-based, secured Microsoft 365 environment with no business-hours downtime — and met the security requirements its cyber-insurer had set for renewal.
- Zero unplanned downtime during business hours across the entire migration
- Every mailbox and the firm's full document set migrated with complete fidelity
- MFA coverage rose from 0% to 100% of accounts
- The single point of failure — the on-premises Exchange server — was retired
- Staff gained secure access to email and documents from court, home and mobile without a VPN
- The firm satisfied its cyber-insurance MFA and backup requirements, supporting policy renewal
- Ongoing Microsoft 365 administration was folded into a flat-rate CTS managed IT agreement
Technologies deployed
Exchange Online, SharePoint Online, OneDrive for Business, Microsoft 365 Business Premium, Entra ID (conditional access and MFA), Microsoft Intune, Microsoft Defender for Office 365, and BitLocker device encryption.
Frequently asked questions
How long did the Microsoft 365 migration take?
The full migration ran over approximately four weeks — covering discovery, a pilot, staged weekend mailbox cutovers and document migration — followed by two weeks of hypercare support. Business-hours operations were unaffected throughout.
Was there any downtime during the law firm's migration?
No. CTS scheduled all mailbox and document cutovers for weekends and after hours, with a delta sync at final cutover. Staff started the following Monday on Microsoft 365 with all mail, calendars and documents intact.
How did the migration improve the firm's security?
MFA and conditional access were enforced on every account through Entra ID, devices were brought under Intune compliance with BitLocker encryption, and Microsoft Defender for Office 365 added email threat protection — moving the firm from password-only access to a layered security posture that satisfied its cyber-insurance requirements.