Migrate POP3 Email to Google Workspace Cloud
Organizations that use POP3 as their email communication rule and want to switch to G Suite need a solid plan. Without it, any attempts to migrate POP3 email to Google Workspace will fail.
There are many pathways to perform this transformation. Each one has its merits and demerits; we will explain to you all possible methods, then help you select the best one out of all the options that are there on the list. Before we discuss the methods, let’s examine the vulnerabilities in POP3 accounts that compel an organization to adopt G Suite.
Problems with POP3 & Reasons to Switch to Google Workspace?
POP3 mails often face “Server denied POP3 access.” So users are unable to authenticate accounts or view emails.
Loose coupling and permanent deletion of the message from the mail server mean POP3 accounts only work with one device at a time.
Many mandatory security requirements, like the setup of SPF, DKIM, and DMARC in Office 365, are simply not possible in POP3 accounts. Making it vulnerable to replay attacks.
If all these reasons weren’t enough to push you into migrating POP3 email to Google Workspace, there are equally good reasons that pull users into the G Suite cloud.
Google gives you an always accessible account that you can interact with many different endpoints, all of which are in sync with each other.
Security is the very first thing that organizations experience once they get rid of POP3 and start using Google Workspace. Gmail uses OAuth, which is way more secure than the plain-text, encryption-less credential transmission that POP3 is infamous for.
Moreover, another major advantage is continuous access. The email you send from your Gmail mobile can be viewed in the sent box on your computer. Email drafts you make at work can be edited and sent from your home.
Google Workspace goes way beyond a traditional email service. Not only do you get multiple modern ways of communication, like Google Meet and Google Chat, but also the latest AI advancements. All this is available on top of the many different business suite applications like Sheets, Slides, Docs, and Keep, etc.
Now that we have a rough idea of what reasons push people to give up POP3 and take up G Suite, let’s start discussing the methods one by one.
Use Google Service to Move POP3 into G Suite
Google has a free-to-use proprietary service that is usually used for the transfer of IMAP accounts. With a few small tweaks, we can use it to bring in POP3 data. Users play no role during this process, except that they should minimize it if they can’t outright stop email communication. Here is what admins must do:
Step 1. Log in to https://admin.google.com
Step 2. Follow the path. Apps > Google Workspace > Data migration (you can also search for Data Migration Service using the search bar at the top).
Step 3. Under data type, select Email.
Step 4. Choose Other IMAP (because POP3 isn’t an available option)
Step 6. Enter POP3 server name (pop.yourdomain.com), port (995 for SSL/TLS), and protocol settings.
Step 7. Prepare a CSV list of all users containing both source/destination emails in your domain and upload it.
Step 8. Use app passwords (if available), apply date range and folder exclusion, and start.
The service instructions may sound simple, but they are notorious for getting stuck at the beginning or at the end. Like it won’t move past 0% for a long time. There have also been instances where the service got stuck at 99% completion, forcing admins to redo the entire process.
After the transfer is done, you must update the DNS settings so all new emails arrive in the new address instead of the old one
Instead, try a better alternative that involves all stakeholders in the transfer.
Professional Tool to Migrate POP3 Emails to Google Workspace
Before admins can deploy the tool, users must make sure that their emails are in a transferable state. So, add your account to any of the widely used email clients. Like Thunderbird, Outlook, Apple Mail, etc., make sure that the entire organization is using the same client.
Adding the POP3 account, the client creates a copy of emails on the local computer in a specific file format. MBOX for Thunderbird, PST for Outlook, etc. Find the location where these local profiles are made can copy the content from there, and then send it over to the admin.
Once the admin receives all the user files, they must arrange them in a specific format, which looks something like this.
Parent-Folder |__[email protected] Folder | |__[email protected] POP3 emails | |__[email protected] Folder |[email protected] POP3 emails
After this, procure a copy of the SysTools MBOX to G Suite Import Software or the SysTools PST to G Suite Import Tool, depending on the file format of POP3 emails.
Step 1. Launch the tool and select a source format: Outlook (for PST), MBOX, or File System (for EML). Scroll down, mark the email workload, and apply a date filter. Then press Next.
Step 2. In the source screen, browse for the parent folder and validate the path.
Step 3. Perform G Suite admin validation to add the POP3 emails to Google Workspace.
Step 4. Map the users with any one of the three available options.
Step 5. View the user list, mark, prioritize, validate, and start the transfer.
Conclusion
Here, we saw how important it is to migrate POP3 email to Google Workspace to keep email communication secure at a time when threats are coming from all directions.
Moreover, if organizations that traditionally used Post Office Protocol Version 3 (POP3) for email communication now want to switch to a modern platform like G Suite, they must have a solid plan.
That’s what we provided with our write-up. You have to know about multiple means from Google’s official service, email forwarding, importing emails, etc. Choose the path you have the most confidence in.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q. How much time will it take to migrate POP3 to G Suite?
It depends on the volume of mail you are transferring, plus the pathway you choose. Individuals can switchover relatively quickly compared to organizations, where admins have to coordinate the transfer of thousands of employees.
Q. Which is the best way to transfer from Post Office Protocol emails to Google Workspace?
You might think that the native Google Data migration method is best, but it’s not. Uploading a client-created copy of the local email repository into G Suite with the help of the professional tool is better.
Q. Does Google support POP3-type accounts?
Yes, unlike its Microsoft counterpart (where we had to move POP3 to Office 365 just because POP3 is no longer being supported), Google continues to support POP3 accounts, as seen by the fact that you can still configure POP3 accounts inside Gmail.