From Microsoft 365 to WebOké: what to clean up in the DNS and at Microsoft

Switching your email from Microsoft 365 to WebOké? Copying your mailboxes is covered in Moving email to WebOké with the email migration tool. This article covers the rest: what you change in your domain's DNS, what you clean up at Microsoft, and in what order. If you skip this, mail may keep arriving at Microsoft or Outlook may keep logging in to Microsoft.

What to watch out for

• The accepted domain. As long as your domain is listed in Microsoft 365 as an accepted domain, Microsoft delivers mail between users in your environment internally, without looking at the MX records. If a colleague still on Microsoft emails another colleague, that mail ends up in the old mailbox. So move everyone over on the same day, and remove the domain from Microsoft after the switch.
• Autodiscover. Outlook looks up its settings via autodiscover.yourdomain.nl. If that points with a CNAME record to autodiscover.outlook.com, Outlook will keep checking in with Microsoft, even when you add a new account.
• Quick setup replaces records. With Quick setup for WebOké Mail you get the records right in one click, but the existing MX and SPF records are then replaced. You'll need to put any other senders in your SPF record back yourself afterwards. See Quick email setup in DNS.

Step by step plan

1. Back up your DNS. First make a DNS backup, so you can always go back. See Restoring DNS and making a DNS backup. Also write down which services send mail on behalf of your domain, such as your website, webshop, or newsletter service.
2. Set up mailboxes and make a first copy. Create the mailboxes at WebOké and copy the mail with the email migration tool. At Microsoft you log in with Sign in to Microsoft and a code.
3. SPF during the transition. There can only be one SPF record. Add WebOké into the same record, so both are allowed to send during the transition days, for example:

   v=spf1 a mx include:webawere.nl include:spf.protection.outlook.com ~all

   Leave the includes for your other senders in place. The SPF builder has buttons for WebOké and Microsoft 365, see DNS helpers: MX, SPF, DMARC, CAA, and SRV.
4. The switchover moment, for everyone at once. Point the MX records to WebOké and remove the old MX from Microsoft. Set delivery to WebOké: on the Email settings card the Delivery switch should be set to WebOké, and in DirectAdmin, under MX Records, the option Use this server to handle my emails should be enabled. Quick setup for WebOké Mail does this in one go; afterwards put the Microsoft include and your other senders back in the SPF record. At the same time, remove the CNAME record autodiscover pointing to autodiscover.outlook.com. See After the move: MX records and your devices.
5. Second copy. Run the migration again a day later. Mail that has already been copied will be skipped.
6. Outlook and devices. Add your mailbox at WebOké as a new account (IMAP) and then remove the old Microsoft account. If Outlook for Windows still keeps logging in to Microsoft, create a new Outlook profile containing only your WebOké mailbox. See Outlook for Windows (new and classic) and at Microsoft Create an Outlook profile.
7. After a few weeks: clean up. Once everything is working, clean up the DNS and Microsoft (see below), and only then cancel your licenses.

What to clean up in the DNS

Afterwards, check with the Email check that MX, SPF, DKIM, and DMARC are set up correctly. If you have a DMARC record with p=quarantine or p=reject, send a test email before the switch to confirm that mail via WebOké arrives properly signed.

Removing the domain from Microsoft

In the Microsoft 365 admin center, go to Settings, Domains, select the domain, and click Remove domain. Your users will then get their address back on .onmicrosoft.com, including as their login name. So make sure to do your final copy with the migration tool first. See at Microsoft Remove a domain and Manage accepted domains in Exchange Online.