A smooth migration
CitNOW's data was migrated from the old setup into a SharePoint intranet and document management system so dispersed teams can find and co-author work, and the migration went smoothly.
SharePoint migration
SharePoint migrations, planned properly.
We migrate organisations across the UK to SharePoint Online from on-premise SharePoint, file shares, other tenants, Lotus Notes and Google Workspace, with minimal downtime. Each migration runs as a structured project, with an audit, a target architecture, a pilot and validation before go-live, and as a guide costs between £20,000 and £50,000.
What we migrate
SharePoint migration from wherever your content lives now.
A SharePoint migration moves your documents, sites and permissions into SharePoint Online and Teams. The source decides the tools and the effort, so these are the moves we run most often.
SharePoint Server to SharePoint Online
From SharePoint 2010, 2013, 2016 or 2019 on premise, including farm solutions, workflows and InfoPath forms that need replacing. SharePoint Server 2016 and 2019 went out of support on 14 July 2026.
File shares to SharePoint and Teams
Network drives restructured into libraries with metadata, with duplicates and old files cleared out before they move rather than after.
Tenant to tenant
Bringing two Microsoft 365 tenants together after a merger or acquisition, or splitting one out after a divestment, with sites, Teams and OneDrive mapped across.
Classic SharePoint sites to modern
Classic sites, add-ins and 2013 workflows rebuilt in modern SharePoint and Power Automate before Microsoft retires them.
Google Workspace and Lotus Notes
Content from Google Drive and Lotus Notes databases moved into SharePoint Online, with the structure designed for how your teams work in Microsoft 365.
Data migration and clean-up
Content reviewed on the way, so only what is current and owned moves across, which keeps search and Copilot working from good data.
Related services
Migration services and guides.
The right approach depends on where you are moving from and why. These pages cover the scenarios we see most.
Intranet migration
Moving your intranet off an older platform, with the content reviewed on the way.
Classic SharePoint end of life
What the 2026 retirement of Add-Ins, ACS and 2013 workflows means and how to replace them.
ShareGate
The migration tool we use for complex SharePoint Server moves with granular permissions and large volumes.
SharePoint Server 2016 and 2019
End of support on 14 July 2026, and the options for moving on.
SharePoint governance
Permissions and ownership designed for the new environment before content arrives.
End to end intranet migration
A full intranet move covering audit, design, migration and launch.
4 to 6 weeks
for a straightforward migration under 500 users
6 to 10 weeks
for 500 to 5,000 users with some customisations
10 to 16 weeks
for 5,000+ users and complex environments
How we work
How a SharePoint migration runs.
01
Discovery
We audit your source environment with automated scanning and manual review, covering content volume, site structure, customisations, permissions and content that no longer needs to move.
02
Design
The target information architecture in SharePoint Online: hub sites, libraries, metadata and permissions, with every source location mapped to a destination and a remediation plan for custom solutions.
03
Build
A pilot migration of a representative sample, validated by your key users, followed by the full migration in scheduled batches with validation checks after each one.
04
Train
Training for your people on the new environment, so they know where things are and how to work in modern SharePoint.
05
Go live
We check document counts, metadata, permissions, broken links and search results, then support your people through go-live.
What we recommend
The decisions that make a SharePoint migration go well.
We have been delivering SharePoint migrations since 2007, and these are the recommendations we make on almost every project, because each one either reduces what has to move or makes the new environment easier to look after.
Cleanse before you migrate
Each department produces a file plan, and anything past its retention date is deleted at source rather than moved. It is the right moment to do the housekeeping and it directly reduces the migration time and cost.
Leave the archive behind
Old archive content costs money to move and then costs money to govern year after year. We usually recommend holding it read only with a disposal date rather than bringing it into SharePoint.
Build permissions on groups
A site per team with inherited permissions and Entra ID groups behind it, so joiners and leavers are handled by group membership rather than by someone editing individual access.
Pilot one department first
One department goes through the full process before anyone else, so the mapping, permissions and cut-over are proven on a small scale before the bulk of the content moves.
Go read only department by department
Each department that completes has its old folders set to read only straight away, so people stop working in two places and storage costs start coming down before the project finishes.
Use ShareGate for anything sizeable
We are a ShareGate partner and have used it on more than 15 migration projects. It keeps created and modified dates, version history, metadata and permissions, and its pre-migration reports confirm the real volumes before each cut-over.
Client feedback
What it is like to work with us.
“The migration went very smoothly, and our new intranet ensures our data is secure and easily accessible.”
“ThinkShare were a delight to work with and supported us every step of the way with great client service and strong technical expertise.”
Migration experience
SharePoint migrations we have run.
Shared drive to SharePoint migration is one of the things we do most often, from charities with a few hundred staff to public bodies moving several terabytes.
7TB for 1,700 users
A public body moved off shared drives and legacy SharePoint into SharePoint Online using ShareGate, and we trained their team so they could own the platform afterwards.
6TB for 1,500 users
A second public body, moved from shared drives into SharePoint Online with ShareGate, department by department.
Tenant and intranet migration for 3,000 people
A law firm's tenant and intranet migration covering content, permissions, metadata and the term store.
From SharePoint 2007 to SharePoint Online
An intranet rollout to more than 35,000 users in the NHS, including migrating the content off SharePoint 2007.
File server to Teams and SharePoint
A charity's file server moved into a Team per business function, with the data cleansed before it moved and the old shares set to read only behind us. Read the Praxis case study.
Shared drives during a de-merger
Shared drive content moved into SharePoint Online with ShareGate as part of a de-merger, followed by a restructure and cleanse once everything had landed.
Case studies
Case studies we have delivered.
Read the CitNOW case study
File server to Teams and SharePoint
Praxis moved its file server into Teams and SharePoint, with a Team per business function and the data cleansed and reorganised on the way.
2016 SharePoint to modern
Shelter moved from a 2016 SharePoint intranet to modern SharePoint, mostly out of the box, with retention labels and policies.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions.
How much does a SharePoint migration cost?
As a guide, a SharePoint migration costs between £20,000 and £50,000. Where it sits in that range depends on how much content there is, how many sites are moving, how much custom development has to be replaced and how much rework the permissions need. We confirm the cost once we have audited your environment.
How long does a SharePoint migration take?
As a guide, 4 to 6 weeks for organisations under 500 users with straightforward content, 6 to 10 weeks for 500 to 5,000 users with some customisations, and 10 to 16 weeks for 5,000+ users, sometimes phased by business unit.
| Organisation size | Content and customisation | Typical duration |
|---|---|---|
| Under 500 users | Straightforward content | 4 to 6 weeks |
| 500 to 5,000 users | Some customisations | 6 to 10 weeks |
| 5,000+ users | Complex, often phased by business unit | 10 to 16 weeks |
Which migration tools do you use?
Microsoft SPMT for straightforward migrations, ShareGate for complex SharePoint Server moves with granular permissions and large volumes, and custom PowerShell or Graph API scripting for non-SharePoint sources. We recommend the tool, or combination, during scoping.
Do we keep our permissions, metadata and version history?
Yes, where the source holds them. ShareGate brings across metadata, version history and permissions, and we decide during design which permissions are worth keeping and which should be rebuilt in the new structure rather than copied as they are.
Can you migrate from file shares, Google Workspace or another Microsoft 365 tenant?
Yes. As well as SharePoint Server, we move content from network file shares, Google Workspace, Lotus Notes and other Microsoft 365 tenants, which is common after a merger or acquisition. Each source is mapped to a destination in SharePoint Online or Teams before anything is moved.
What happens to our custom solutions?
Farm and sandbox solutions do not work in SharePoint Online. We audit each one and recommend replacing it with native features, rebuilding it in SPFx or converting it to Power Platform.
Will our users be disrupted?
The full migration runs in scheduled batches, typically over evenings and weekends, with validation after each batch and rollback procedures in place.
Do you run SharePoint migrations in Scotland and across the UK?
Yes. We are based in Scotland and run SharePoint migrations for organisations across the UK, from charities to large enterprises.
Talk to our migration team.
Tell us what you are working on and we will come back to you within one working day to arrange a call.