How to Take Backup of Mailbox In Exchange Server 2016/2013/2010? Get the Solution
Summary: This write-up will guide users and provide a solution for how to take backup of mailbox in Exchange Server 2016 / 2013 / 2010 via Exchange PowerShell command and automated wizard. Users will also know about the limitations of manual solutions & why to use the advanced software to take back Exchange database mailboxes to the Outlook PST file and other formats.
Microsoft is upgrading the Exchange Server and its services day by day because it is widely used in IT organizations and other industry verticals around the globe. To use the new functionalities, features, etc. provided in the Exchange Server users and companies are migrating their Exchange data to the latest server version, and to protect the data users backup their Exchange mailboxes to keep it safe and secure for future use.
Table of Content
Reasons for Exchange Mailbox Backup in 2010 / 2013 / 2016
- Exchange Server Crash
- EDB file gets damaged or corrupted
- Unavailability of the Exchange Server
- Unexpected catastrophe which leads to data loss
- Unintentionally deleted of Exchange mailbox data items
These are the major causes that result in Exchange data loss. That’s why it is important to backup the Exchange database mailboxes to the PST file to keep the data safe & secure. In case, if any disaster occurs in the future then users have the backup file which helps them to retrieve and access the Exchange data back. Also, backing up the Exchange mailbox data reduces the size of mailboxes in the Exchange Server.
How to Take Backup of Mailbox in Exchange Server 2016/2013/2010? Different Methods
Users can use the New-MailboxExportRequest PowerShell cmdlet as a manual solution and Exchange Export Software as an automated method to backup the Exchange database mailboxes to the Outlook Database File and later they can import PST file to Exchange Online the or Microsoft Outlook to access the Exchange data.
Use PowerShell Command to Backup Exchange Server Mailboxes to PST File
Step 1. Assign Mailbox Import Export Role
The user should have a Mailbox Import Export role in its profile. Admin can assign this role to the user using the below command:
New-ManagementRoleAssignment -Role “Mailbox Import Export” -User DomainName/UserName or alias
Step 2. Create a Shared folder Location
Manage a shared folder before going to save the resultant PST file. To do so execute the below steps:-
- Create a new folder and provide a suitable name.
- Press right-click on the folder and select Give access to > Specific people.
- Choose the Find People and Search to add the username for whom you want to assign the Mailbox Import Export role.
- Finally, click OK and Share.
- Copy the displayed shared folder path.
Step 3. Take Backup of Individual Mailbox in Exchange Server 2016 to PST
First to backup the Exchange mailbox, you need to know the name of the mailbox. To find the list of all mailboxes execute the below command.
Get-MailboxStatistics -Server YourExchangeServerName
After getting the list of the mailboxes, enter the below command the create a mailbox backup.
New-MailboxExportRequest -Mailbox “MailBoxName” -FilePath \\Servername\SharedFolderPathName\FileName.pst
You can also manipulate the results at your convenience by using some filters such as:-
1. ContentFilter Parameter – It can extract the data based on date, subject, and others. For Instance,
New-MailboxExportRequest -Mailbox “MailBoxName” -ContentFilter {(Received -lt ’01/01/2020′) -and (Subject –like ‘Re*’)} -FilePath
2. Exclude and Include Folders Parameters – To export only the essential folders items suc as:-
New-MailboxExportRequest -IncludeFolders “#Inbox#/*”,”#SentItems#” -Mailbox “MailBoxName” -FilePath
3. IsArchive Parameter – For archive mailbox export
New-MailboxExportRequest -Mailbox “MailBoxName” -IsArchive -FilePath
Step 4. Backup Multiple Exchange 2016/2013 Online Mailboxes to PST
Use the Foreach command to backup the multiple user’s mailboxes in one go.
1. Create a variable to save all the mailboxes in your organization.
$ExchangeMailboxes = Get-Mailboxes
2. Execute the below command to download multiple mailbox data to PST.
$ExchangeMailbox|%{$_|New-MailboxExportRequest -FilePath
Limitation of Manual Solution
- You cannot take offline/dismounted Exchange database mailboxes by using this command. Also, it consumes time to backup the mailboxes. All of it depends on the number and size of the Exchange mailbox.
- This solution doesn’t work properly with corrupt EDB mailboxes and there are chances that users may lose data.
- It requires users to have technical skills, in-depth knowledge, and hands-on experience to work on the Exchange Management Shell and use this command.
Also Read: How to Migrate Exchange 2010 Database to Exchange 2016 Mailboxes?
Use Automated Wizard to Take Backup of Exchange Mailbox to PST File
To avoid all the complexity, technical difficulties and save time to backup mailboxes in Exchange 2016, 2013, 2010 and below version to the Outlook PST file format, for that users can use the Export Exchange Mailbox to PST software. This utility easily backup multiple Exchange mailboxes such as corrupt, journal, enabled, disconnected, disabled, exclude dumpster, and hosted to the PST file in a simplified manner without any PowerShell command.
Users can easily take the backup of Exchange 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, and 2019 mailboxes to the Outlook data file hassle-free. Any technical and non-technical users can use this utility as it provides a graphical interface that allows users to do their tasks simply and saves time and effort. It doesn’t impose any file size limitation, users can take backup of any size of mailboxes. You can also selectively backup the Exchange database mailbox items such as emails, calendars, and contacts.
The software automatically detects, scans & loads the AD (Active Directory). The include-subdomain user’s option allows you to search mailboxes within the subdomain. Also, it provides a date filter option that lets users backup the data items within a specified date range.
Steps For How to Take Backup of Mailbox in Exchange Server 2016 / 2013 / 2010 to PST File
Step 1. Download, Install, and Launch the tool. Select Exchange as the Source and Outlook as the Destination platform.
Step 2. Under the workload section, choose the items to backup such as Email, Contact, and Calendar. Apply the Date filter if necessary and then Next.
Step 3. Now in the Source tab, enter all the details of the Source Exchange server such as Exchange server version, Admin Email and Password, AD IP, and Exchange IP. Validate all the provided details and then move to Next.
Step 4. In the Destination tab, provide the path of the resulting PST file along with the size of the file. Make sure to validate the path and then Next.
Step 5. Fetch all the users into the automated tool with the help of Fetch users, Import Users, and Download template options.
Step 6. Click on Start Export button.
Now users can see the status of backing up the mailboxes and after completion, users access the PST file from Microsoft Outlook to access the Exchange data.
Note: Most users have Offline / Dismounted Exchange database files and they want to backup up the mailboxes from this database but the solution provided here only exports Exchange Server mailboxes and there is no other manual method that can perform this method. In that case, you can use the EDB Converter Tool which supports this dismounted / offline EDB file (Public & Private) used by technical & non-technical users to export multiple mailboxes to the Outlook PST and other file formats. In addition to this, this tool offers Quick and Advance scan mode options which repair corrupt Exchange mailbox and .edb file in a hassle freeway.
Bringing It All Together
However, now users have complete information on how to take backup of mailbox in Exchange Server 2016 / 2013 / 2010 by using the solution provided in this write-up. Also, users know the reason for backup the Exchange Server mailboxes and which solution is best suited to backup the EDB mailboxes to the Outlook data file in a simplified way.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q1. How to take an Exchange mailbox backup without PowerShell commands?
Ans – Because of the difficulties of using the PowerShell commands, users are avoiding it. The alternate, solution to perform Exchange Online mailbox backup is the above-mentioned automated tool.
Q2. What is the PowerShell command to track the backup of the Exchange mailbox process?
Ans – Execute the below command to track the status of the process.
Get-MailboxExportRequestStatistics
