Zimbra to Carbonio Migration Complete Step-by-Step Guide

There are several situations when businesses need to migrate Zimbra to Carbonio server. These include modernizing their email system, streamlining IT operations, and improving access to collaboration tools, among others. If you are also searching for the most optimal approach to implement Zimbra to Carbonio migration then please stay tuned with us till the end of the blog.

Today within this digital column we are going to discuss both the automated and manual solution to migrate Zimbra to Carbonio. However, before moving toward the actual working steps guide, first, let’s discuss some of the important pre-migration actions.

Preliminary Steps Before Starting to Migrate Zimbra to Carbonio

• The very starting step for starting any migration task is to back up all your existing data like Zimbra mailboxes, calendars, contacts, and settings. Additionally, keep the rollback plan ready in your quiver if it is needed at any point in the Zimbra to Carbonio migration process.
• The next step after the Zimbra data backup is to review the system settings and requirements with the Carbonio server. Secondly, plan the DNS records for the final switchover.
• Another important step is to map Zimbra user accounts with Carbonio user accounts and verify the permission settings. Moreover, the businesses need to plan the migration timeline in off hours. So, the Zimbra to Carbonio transfer process will not hinder daily work productivity.

Automated Solution to Transfer Zimbra to Carbonio Server

If you are dealing with a large-scale Zimbra to Carbonio migration process then as per experts you need to go with the automated solution. Since it will minimize the risk of data loss during the process. Users can go with the best Zimbra converter software to automate their transfer process.

This utility is carved with the ability to migrate both on-premise and cloud-hosted Zimbra servers. Additionally, users can use the advanced filter settings features to selectively transfer Zimbra to the Carbonio server. For a detailed step-by-step guide on using the automated solution please read the below outlined quick steps.

How to Migrate from Zimbra to Carbonio Using Automated Way?

1. Initially, download the recommended solution from the official source on your PC.
2. Thereafter, follow the instructions to launch the utility on your desktop.
3. Then, choose the type of Zimbra server you need to migrate in the software panel.
   
4. In our case we are choosing a Zimbra cloud-hosted email server to showcase the process.
5. Next, enter the user credentials for a single Zimbra user migration or upload a CSV file with user credentials to the utility console for bulk migration to the Carbonio server.
6. After that, enable the Zimbra folder you need to transfer and click on the Next button.
7. Now, choose the saving options as IMAP from the drop-down menu list.
8. Next, enable filter settings accordingly and enter destination Carbonio server credentials.
9. Finally, click on the Convert button and wait for the Zimbra to Carbonio migration process to finish.

DIY Approach to Transfer from Zimbra to Carbonio Server

For the free manual solution to migrate from Zimbra to Carbonio CE, users can use Linux commands or scripts. To do so, you must have the basic knowledge of running Linux commands and running scripts through it. For simplification, we will initially extract all users’ data from the Zimbra server, including account details and other data.

Thereafter, we will upload the extracted Zimbra user account data to the Carbonio CE server. Secondly, we will import the Zimbra email data to the Carbonio server and update the DNS records. To have a complete detailed step-by-step tutorial, please follow the below-described one-by-one.

How to Migrate Zimbra to Carbonio Manually? Quick Steps

1. First, access the Zimbra server using the admin account and check Zimbra services are running using the command.
zmcontrol status
2. Next, create a backup directory of Zimbra data and set ownership permission to Zimbra users by running the command.
   mkdir -p /opt/backups/zmigrate
chown -R zimbra:zimbra /opt/backups/zmigrate
3. Now, backup all domains and email accounts in email.txt and domains.txt file using the commands.
   /opt/backups/zmigrate$ zmprov -l gad > domains.txt
/opt/backups/zmigrate$ zmprov -l gaa > emails.txt
4. After that, create directories and extract users data in it such as passwords and display by running the commands.
   /opt/backups/zmigrate$ mkdir userpass
/opt/backups/zmigrate$ mkdir userdata
/opt/backups/zmigrate$ for i in `cat emails.txt`; do zmprov -l ga $i userPassword | grep userPassword: | awk '{ print $2}' > userpass/$i.shadow; done
/opt/backups/zmigrate$ for i in `cat emails.txt`; do zmprov ga $i | grep -i Name: > userdata/$i.txt ; done
5. Thereafter, login to the Carbonio CE server as root, set up backup directories with correct permissions and transfer Zimbra user data by running the below-mentioned commands.
   mkdir -p /opt/backups/zmigrate
chown -R zextras:zextras /opt/backups/zmigrate
/opt/backups/zmigrate# rsync -avp /opt/backups/zmigrate/* root@new_server_ip:/opt/backups/zmigrate/
6. Then, loop through the domains from the exported data and restore the domain in the Carbonio server by running the below-mentioned commands.
   /opt/backups/zmigrate$ carbonio prov -l gad
for i in `cat /opt/backups/zmigrate/domains.txt`; do carbonio prov cd $i zimbraAuthMech zimbra; done
7. Next, create a script “createacct.sh” to restore email accounts in the Carbonio server and make it executable with the following commands.
   #!/bin/bash
USERPASS="/opt/backups/zmigrate/userpass"
USERDATA="/opt/backups/zmigrate/userdata"
USERS="/opt/backups/zmigrate/emails.txt"
for i in `cat $USERS`
do
givenName=$(grep givenName: $USERDATA/$i.txt | cut -d ":" -f2)
displayName=$(grep displayName: $USERDATA/$i.txt | cut -d ":" -f2)
shadowpass=$(cat $USERPASS/$i.shadow)
carbonio prov ca $i CHANGEme cn "$givenName" displayName "$displayName"givenName "$givenName"
carbonio prov ma $i userPassword "$shadowpass"
done
chmod +x createacct.sh
./createacct.sh
8. Finally, adjust DNX records and transfer email data from Zimbra to the Carbonio CE server by running the commands.
   /opt/backups/zmigrate# mkdir MBOX
/opt/backups/zmigrate# chown -R zimbra:zimbra MBOX
/opt/backups/zmigrate/MBOX$ for email in `cat /opt/backups/zmigrate/emails.txt`; do zmmailbox -z -m $email -t 0 getRestURL '/?fmt=tgz' > $email.tgz;
echo $email; done

Challenges with DIY Zimbra to Carbonio Migration

• One of the limitations of using the manual method to migrate from Zimbra to Carbonio is that this approach is full of technicalities. Using this method requires a good understanding of running Linux commands and shell scripting. Any mistake in scripts such as “createacct.sh” may disturb the migration process and lead to potential data loss.
• Another major challenge of using this approach is that it is very time-consuming and may always have the risk of data loss. Any wrong step will hinder the complete migration process. Moreover, the support for this approach is very limited to blogs and community forums.
• Handling confidential data such as user passwords requires strict adherence to security protocol. Any leaks or mishandling of such sensitive data may lead to significant security threats.

DIY Vs. Automated Solution – Which is the Better Approach?

Final Summary

To summarize the above guide on the topic of Zimbra to Carbonio migration we have discussed both the manual and automated approach. Initially, we have seen the pre-migration steps that need to be followed before starting the migration process of Zimbra to the Carbonio CE server. Secondly, we have discussed the automated method to implement the transfer from Zimbra to Carbonio server along with its working steps. Additionally, we have discussed the manual CLI (command line interface) approach to migrate from Zimbra to Carbonio along with its detailed working steps. However, the DIY approach has its limitations. So, we have finally seen the comparison of both manual and Automated techniques in a well-structured tabular format.