Does everything on the server have to go to SharePoint?

No. Shared working files fit well in SharePoint and personal files in OneDrive. Programs that need a drive letter or a database, such as some accounting or industry packages, belong somewhere else. And anything nobody uses any more can be archived or, once agreed, deleted.

Can we not simply bring the server permissions along?

Technically some permissions can be carried over, but it is often not wise. On an old server, permissions have usually grown folder by folder and nobody knows exactly who can do what. Permissions per SharePoint site or library are clearer and easier to maintain when people join or leave.

How long does a migration to SharePoint take?

That mainly depends on the amount of data and how much needs cleaning up. For a small business, the preparation often takes longer than the copying itself. With a pilot for one department and a final pass just before the switch, colleagues notice little of the move.

Is SharePoint automatically our backup as well?

No. Microsoft keeps the service available, but does not fully protect you against accidental deletion, a recycle bin period that is too short, or ransomware. So arrange a separate Microsoft 365 backup before the old server and its backup disappear.

From the old file server to SharePoint: how an SME should move folders and permissions

Many small businesses still run a server in a cupboard or back office, with a shared drive everyone has been saving files to for years. The server is getting old, the warranty has run out and, in practice, everyone already works in Microsoft 365. Moving the files to SharePoint is the logical next step, but if you copy everything one-to-one, you simply take the clutter and the wrong permissions with you.

Why a one-to-one copy is a bad idea

A shared drive grows along with the business. It holds folders from former staff, five versions of the same quote and a folder called “New (2)” that nobody understands any more. Permissions have often been changed folder by folder over the years, so nobody knows exactly who can see what. If you copy all of that unchanged to SharePoint, you are only moving the problem. A migration is the ideal moment to clean up and create a structure that will still make sense in five years.

Step 1: map what is there

Make an overview of the top-level folders on the server, how large they are, when anything in them last changed and who has access. For each folder, agree with its owner or the colleagues involved what should happen to it:

Move: files people actively work with.
Archive: documents you must keep but do not need every day, for example for statutory retention.
Delete: duplicate copies, installation files and folders of people who left years ago, once the owner agrees.

Step 2: choose a structure that fits your business

SharePoint works best with a separate site per team or department, such as Finance, Sales and Projects. Each site has its own members, and those permissions apply to the whole site. That is far clearer than permissions on individual subfolders, which are hard to manage in SharePoint. Already using Teams? Every team comes with a SharePoint site, and you can often build on that. Personal working files do not belong in a team site but in the employee’s own OneDrive. Also decide in advance who may share externally; see our article on external sharing in SharePoint and OneDrive.

Step 3: check in advance what might break

A few things go wrong in almost every migration if you do not spot them in time:

Paths that are too long and odd characters: deeply nested folders with long names run into the maximum path length, and characters such as :, *, ? and | are not allowed in file names. The migration tools report this beforehand so you can rename.
Programs that expect a drive letter: an accounting package, an Access database or older line-of-business software often does not run properly from SharePoint. Those belong somewhere else, such as the cloud version of that package or a small server.
Links between files: Excel workbooks that refer to other files on the shared drive, or templates and macros with a fixed path, need updating after the move.
Syncing very large libraries: the OneDrive app can handle a lot, but syncing hundreds of thousands of files to every laptop slows things down. Let staff sync only the libraries they really need, or work in the browser and in Teams.

Step 4: pilot, move and aftercare

Microsoft offers free tools to move files from a server to SharePoint, such as Migration Manager in the SharePoint admin center and the SharePoint Migration Tool. Start with one department as a pilot and let those colleagues work in the new structure for a week. Then move the rest: first a full copy, and just before the switch a final pass with the latest changes. Plan the switch for a quiet moment, set the old drive to read-only afterwards and only remove it for good after a few weeks. That way nobody can accidentally keep working in the old location.

Do not forget backup and explanation

When the server goes, the old backup often goes with it. Files in SharePoint are stored safely in a data centre, but that is not a backup against accidental deletion or ransomware; read why cloud is not a backup. So arrange a Microsoft 365 backup before the server is switched off. And take ten minutes to show colleagues where their files are now, how to sync a library and how to share a link instead of emailing an attachment. That saves a lot of questions in the first week.

How Floor ICT handles this

Floor ICT inventories the server and its current permissions, works with you on a simple structure of sites and libraries, and checks in advance for paths, characters and programs that cannot move. We then run a pilot migration, move the rest at an agreed moment and stay available for questions during the first week. We also take care of the Microsoft 365 backup and switching off the old server, so no loose ends are left behind.

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