Office 365 Migration Project

Background

Many of us use apps and software to coordinate our lives at home, and expect the same capabilities in our work and academic environments. Faculty and staff told the U of T’s Office of the Chief Information Officer they want more comprehensive tools to make professional and academic life easier and more accessible.

Starting in January 2018, faculty and staff at U of T Scarborough will be migrated from Exchange to Office 365.

What is Changing?

At its core, Office 365 is the same suite of Office products and services you recognize, now provided through the cloud. The web-based access to software will provide a myriad of exciting new improvements such as:

  • Mobility: You can access your files from virtually anywhere—your PC, tablet, smartphone or any device with an internet connection.
  • Collaboration: No more mixing up different revisions of a file. Share documents that are always up to date and accessible from almost anywhere.
  • Communication: Online meetings (audio or video) and instant messaging using Skype for Business.
  • Additional storage: 50 GB quota per mailbox and 1 TB of storage space in OneDrive.
  • Free software: 5 copies of Office 365 client downloads at no cost.

For more details, see Products Available.

How Will This Impact Me?

The migration only impacts @utoronto.ca accounts. If you use @utsc.utoronto.ca, you will not be impacted.

The upgrade should have little effect on your typical day-to-day user experience. To ensure a smooth and seamless migration, follow the steps in the Pre-Migration Checklist. IITS staff will take care of the rest.

The project team will work with each department and functional area to create a custom plan suited to your needs while ensuring you are personally supported and encounter minimal disruption during the migration. Here are the basic steps in the migration process:

Discovery and Planning IITS project team will verify account details for staff and faculty with departmental contacts.
End-User Communication You will be personally emailed in advance of your migration date with instructions and a pre-migration checklist.
Account Migration Migrations will be completed in small batches.

On your migration day, your Outlook mailbox will be unavailable from 5 p.m. to 9 a.m. the following morning. Log in to Webmail at 9 a.m. the morning after your migration to access your email.

Support The IITS on-site support team will be available to assist newly migrated users with questions.

How Can I Learn More About Office365?

  1. Information SessionsIITS is providing weekly Office 365 information sessions from January to March 2018. RSVP for a session to learn about new features and pre and post migration steps.
  2. Post-Migration TrainingIITS is providing weekly hands-on training sessions from January to March 2018. The training focuses on new features/services such as the web interface, Skype for Business and OneDrive. RSVP to attend.

Still Have Questions?

Contact us by phone at 416-287-HELP (4357)

Or e-mail us at helpdesk@utsc.utoronto.ca