Advantages of Including Archiving as Part of Your SharePoint Online Migration Strategy
- Ryan Bowler
- Jun 13
- 3 min read
Migrating to SharePoint Online (SPO) is a great project to improve collaboration, as well as to centralize and modernize your organization’s data. A successful migration isn't just about moving files from one place to another, though. It's about creating a strategic, long-term environment, and part of your strategy should include having archiving built into the migration process, itself.
Archiving is often treated as an afterthought, and something that will be handled "later" after the migration is complete. This approach can lead to migrating unnecessary data, cluttering in your new environment, and missing the chance to build a streamlined, compliant system that is ready from day one.
Why Archive?
Incorporating archiving into your SharePoint migration brings several key benefits:
Reduced Migration Scope & Cost
By identifying and archiving unnecessary data upfront, you can reduce the volume of data being migrated, saving both time and money.
Cleaner Environment from Day One
A well-planned archive strategy means your new SharePoint environment will start clean, focused only on active, relevant data. This not only improves user experience but also boosts search performance right from the start.
Improved Information Architecture
Designing your SharePoint structure with archiving in mind allows you to manage data more effectively over time. For example, you can designate certain sites or libraries specifically for aging content, making future management much simpler.
Avoiding the "Digital Landfill"
Archiving helps you prevent your SharePoint Online environment from becoming a chaotic mix of both active and inactive data. A cluttered environment can overwhelm users and make it harder to find relevant information.
When to Archive?
Archiving shouldn’t be a one-time task but a process occurring through every phase of your migration:
Phase 1: Inventory & Analysis
Identify data that is inactive, obsolete, or related to completed projects. This data is your first pool of archive candidates.
Phase 2: Data Architecture & Design
Plan specific archive locations or strategies. You might designate certain sites or document libraries for archived content, or even design workflows for data to be routed to a separate archival solution.
Phase 3: Data Mapping & Staging
Implement your pre-migration archiving decisions.
Phase 4: Post-Migration
Use retention policies, automated workflows, and other archiving strategies to ensure proper data is archived as it ages.
Archiving Methods
There are several archiving methods available from Microsoft to control your content.
Direct to Archival Storage
Once you identify archive-ready data, prepare to move it to low-cost storage solution, like Azure Blob Storage, before it ever enters SharePoint Online.
Tip – Look to setup shortcuts to the files inside the blob storage so users can still access the files if needed from their SharePoint sites!
Migrate to a Designated Archive Site in SharePoint Online
Create specific SharePoint libraries or sites for archived content and route data to these areas during migration. Once those sites are configured, you can use SharePoint Admin Center (Microsoft 365 Archive) to archive those sites.
Hybrid Approach
Use a combination of methods based on what works best for your organization. For example, move truly old data to Azure Blob, while more recent project data can be migrated to a dedicated archived sites in SharePoint Online. Look to tailor a solution that works for everyone in your organization but still will save storage costs.
Key Takeaways for Your Migration Project
Archiving isn’t something to be left until a later date. By planning for it early in the migration process, you ensure that your SharePoint Online environment is efficient, compliant, and easy to manage. A tailor-made archiving strategy will also reduce unnecessary cost and overhead, help you avoid clutter, and set your organization up for long-term success.
