Expert Verified Ways to Export Microsoft 365 Mailboxes to PST File

Admin ~ Modified: May 12th, 2023 ~ 12 Minutes Reading

This article outlines all the necessary steps to export Microsoft 365 mailboxes to PST files using the top 4 expert-recommended techniques. Nowadays, most small and medium-sized business owners use Microsoft 365 (Formerly Office 365) webmail service due to its simple interface and productive features.

Users wish to export Office 365 emails to PST (Personal Storage Table) because PST file is compatible with MS Outlook desktop-based client. However MS Outlook also supports MSG files but users want to export mailboxes from Office 365 to PST because a PST file can store all emails, contacts, calendars, tasks, notes, journals, to-do lists, and all.

What is the Significance of Exporting Office 365 Emails to PST File?

If hackers and unwanted users attack your Microsoft 365 account to alter and delete your crucial data. Then the procedure to export Microsoft 365 mailboxes to PST format will be useful to you to get your data back.
Sometimes users may willfully and accidentally delete Office 365 crucial data then they can easily restore eliminated data. So, users can stay protected from accidental deletion of data.
You may have the desire to stop your Microsoft Office 365 subscription forever due to cost-cutting issues. If you export Office 365 mailbox to PST from the portal then you can use exported data with Outlook desktop to avoid the situation.
The process to export mailboxes from Office 365 to PST can protect you from ransomware and cyber-attacks. Even you can feel secure from all types of internal and external threats.

Export Office 365 Mailbox to PST via eDiscovery PST Export Tool

This is the highly recommended manual approach to export O365 mailbox to PST using content search (eDiscovery PST Export Tool). Hence, if you want to export Microsoft 365 group mailbox to PST file free of cost then it seems most useful to you. Microsoft recommends only Office 365 eDiscovery PST Export Tool (Content Search) to export Microsoft 365 mailboxes to PST format.

Know the Requirements to Use Office 365 eDiscovery PST Export Tool

Microsoft Windows 7 and upper Operating System edition.
Microsoft .Net Framework 4.5 or the latest version.
Internet Explorer and Edge web browser.
eDiscovery Manager permissions from Exchange Admin Center (EAC).
eDiscovery Export role should be assigned.

Note: If you want to perform the process to export Office emails to PST files using Chrome and Firefox browser then you will need to add the following extensions.

For Chrome: Cegid Peoplenet
For Firefox: Breez ClickOnce

Steps to Export Mailbox from Office 365 to PST by eDiscovery

Login to your Microsoft 365 account and select the Admin option to access EAC.
Choose Security & Compliance option from Exchange Admin Centers.
Select Permissions and assign eDiscovery Manager Role to continue.
Select the eDiscovery Manager option and press the Edit button for assigning Export roles for Discovery Management Group.
Afterward, choose the More Resources option and then open Microsoft Purview Compliance Portal. Select Content Search >> New Search option.
Complete the New Search fields by providing the Name and description. Under the Locations option, you need to specify mailbox data to export Outlook 365 mailbox to PST format.
The next option is Conditions which allows defining your search conditions based on different parameters. Thereafter, use Review your search option to review your search and create it. Press Submit button.
The content search process is running in the backend. Hit the Search button and check your search result like Test File.
After that, choose Export File > Actions > Export Results option as shown in the figure.
Now you can see the Export results wizard and choose Output options according to your choice. Click the Export button.
Select the Export button and choose searched file to export data.
Choose the Download resultant option and then select Copy to clipboard for copying the unique export key.
office 365 eDiscovery PST Export Tool will start automatically, need to paste a unique export key and browse a destination path.
Lastly, hit the Start button to export Microsoft 365 mailboxes to PST format.

Export Microsoft Outlook 365 Contacts to PST File

You can follow the all above-mentioned steps to export contacts from Microsoft 365 to PST format. However, you will need to add a condition in step 7 for contacts, the rest of the steps will be same.

Select Add conditions option.
Choose the Type option.
Click the Add/Remove more options.
Select Contacts and follow other all the steps to export Microsoft 365 contacts to PST file.

Export Office 365 Mailbox to PST using Outlook

You can also export Microsoft 365 mailbox to PST using Outlook email client on completing 2 phases. You will need to complete both phases and each phase comes with multiple steps. Let’s know!

Phase 1: Configure Microsoft 365 Account with Outlook Desktop

Launch Microsoft Outlook 2021, 2019, and 2016 desktop client.
Choose File > Add Account option.
Fill your M365 email address and choose Advanced Options.
Let me set up my account manually and press Connect.
Select the account type as POP3.
Enter POP3 settings including server name and port number.
Fill your O365 account password and hit the Connect button.

Note: Thereafter, Outlook will start adding Microsoft 365 data in PST file at the default storage location.

Phase 2: Export Outlook Data in PST Format

Run the Microsoft Outlook email client on your machine.
Choose File > Open & Export > Import/ Export option.
Select the Export to a file option and press the Next button.
Pick Outlook Data File (.pst) and click Next.
Enable the required email folders and press Next.
Browse the destination path to store exported PST.
Provide a name for the PST file and click Finish.

Note: Now go to the destination path and get exported PST file that has complete Microsoft 365 data. If you want to avoid phase 2nd then you can directly get the PST file at the default storage location as given below:

Outlook 2021, 2019, 2016, 2013: C: \ users \ username \ Documents \ Outlook Files

Outlook 2010 and 2007: C: \ users \ username \ AppData \ Local \ Microsoft \ Outlook

Export Office 365 Mailbox to PST using PowerShell Command

Technical users can export mailbox from Office 365 to PST via PowerShell method. This is a very complex approach that requires technical expertise to execute the process to export mailboxes from Office 365 to PST format. PowerShell command requires admin permissions for completing this task.

Now assume that you are exporting mailboxes from support@birdiesoftware.com to PST format. Your other email address contact@birdiesoftware.com is configured in desktop Outlook and you want to get all emails in this account. Your admin@birdiesoftware.com account currently has admin rights then follow these steps.

1 Step: Establish Exchange Server Connection via PowerShell

Run the below command in PowerShell for initiating the steps.
“$UserCredential = Get-Credential”
Enter Microsoft 365 admin account (admin@birdiesoftware.com) credentials.
Run this PowerShell Command to continue establishing an Exchange Server connection.
“$Session = New-PSSession -ConfigurationName Microsoft.Exchange -ConnectionUri https://outlook.office365.com/powershell-liveid/ -Credential $UserCredential -Authentication Basic –AllowRedirection”
After that, run this suggested PowerShell Command continue.
“Import-PSSession $Session”

2 Step: Grant Access to Export Mailboxes via PowerShell Command

Assign permissions to support@birdiesoftware.com to access the admin@birdiesoftware.com account mailbox.
“Add-MailboxPermission – User contact@birdiesoftware.com -Identity support@birdiesoftware.com -AccessRights FullAccess -InheritanceType All”

3 Step: Run Outlook Profile for New Account

In this step, you need to start MS Outlook as support@birdiesoftware.com and make sure that contact@birdiesoftware.com is available in the mailbox in the left pane. Sometimes, the permission takes seconds or even minutes to get effectively applied.

4 Step: Check Outlook Profile Configuration Settings

Now you need to check whether Outlook is ready to be configured to export emails in PST.

Choose File > Info > Account Settings.
Under Account Settings, choose Account.
Press the Change button and ensure the Use Cached Exchange Mode option should be highlighted.

5 Step: Export Mailboxes to PST via Import/ Export Wizard

Run Outlook and choose File > Open & Export > Import/ Export.
Select the Export to a file option and click the Next button.
Choose Outlook Data File (.pst) option and hit the Next button.
Select support@birdiesoftware.com together with folders and choose Next.
Set a destination path and give a name for the exported file.
Enter the password for exported PST file but this is not mandatory.
PST file is exported successfully from Microsoft 365 account.

6 Step: Ensure Export Process Completed or Not

After exporting the office 365 mailbox to PST using PowerShell, this is advisable to confirm the mailbox size on the server and exported the PST file. This is mandatory because sometimes this technique exports only a few parts of the data. Follow these steps to confirm your data size.

Right-click on the mailbox and select the Data File Properties option.
Select General Tab and choose the Folder Size button.
Choose Server Data Tab and note the mentioned size.
Now check the Properties of exported PST file and ensure that the size should be comparable to server data.

7 Step: Remove Assigned Permissions using PowerShell

After completing the process to export Microsoft 365 mailboxes to PST files, you need to remove assigned permissions. Just run this PowerShell Command script.
“Remove-MailboxPermission -User support@birdiesoftware.com -Identity support@birdiesoftware.com -AccessRights FullAccess”

8 Step: Egress PowerShell Command

After exporting emails from Outlook 365 to PST format, you can exit the PowerShell Command for closing the session.
“Remove-PSSession $Session”

Drawbacks of Manual Methods

All the manual methods require technical knowledge about account configuration, eDiscovery, PowerShell Commands, and Import/ Export process.
Your one wrong step may become the reason behind accidental data deletion and manipulation.
Manual methods say to configure and setup different applications like Outlook and Exchange Server accordingly.
These techniques are suitable to export Microsoft 365 mailboxes to PST files one by one.

Export Mailboxes from Office 365 to PST via Birdie Tool

Birdie Microsoft 365 Backup Software is an easy-to-use and all-in-one solution to export Microsoft 365 mailboxes to PST format including complete information. This software is also known as Office 365 to PST Export Tool due to its feature.

This Microsoft 365 to PST Export Tool is obtainable with a free trial version which is capable of backup 25 items from each M365 folder to PST format. Even works the same as the licensed version so that you can check its functionality before investing your money.

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How to Export Office 365 Mailbox to PST?

Start Office 365 to PST Export Tool and enter the M365 email address and press Login.
Fill password of your O365 account and choose Sign in.
Software is adding Microsoft 365 mailboxes in the software GUI, please wait.
Choose the required email folders for downloading backup in PST format.
Afterward, pick PST as a saving option from 30+ options.
Set the maximum size of the resultant PST file from 2 GB, 5 GB, 10 GB, and 20 GB.
Non-English Outlook users can change the language of PST folders.
Use advance filter options to selectively export Microsoft 365 mailboxes to PST files.
Browse the destination path to store exported PST files by clicking on the Change button.
After that, hit the Backup button to export Office 365 mailbox to PST without Outlook.
Export emails from Office 365 to PST process has been finished successfully.
Office 365 to PST Export Tool creates a log report file that has details about exported data.
Thereafter, the software will automatically open the destination path, and get the PST file now.
You can open PST files in Outlook 2021, 2019, 2016, 2013, 2010, 2007, etc. using Open Outlook Data File option.

Office 365 to PST Export Tool Facilities

Export Office 365 mailbox to PST file from primary, shared, and in-place archive mailboxes.
Backup Microsoft 365 to PST format including emails, contacts, calendars, tasks, notes, journals, to do lists, etc.
You can enable only selective folders for exporting Outlook 365 emails to PST format.
Freedom to choose a maximum size for resultant PST files like 2 GB, 5 GB, 10 GB, and 20 GB.
Choose a preferable destination path to store the resultant PST file from your pc and external storage device.
It creates Unicode PST file which is compatible with MS Outlook 2021, 2019, 2016, 2013, 2010, 2007, and 2003.
Filter options are helpful to export Microsoft 365 mailboxes to PST by date range, email address, and email subject.
Microsoft 365 to PST Export Tool generates a log report file that stores information about exported data with all details.

Frequently Asked Questions with Answers

Que 1: How do I export my Office 365 mailbox to PST?

Ans: We have explained 4 different techniques to export Microsoft 365 mailboxes to PST files. You can choose any method as per your depth of knowledge and work requirements. However, Office 365 to PST Export Tool is an excellent way for resolving your query easily.

Ques 2: Is the process to export mailbox from Office 365 to PST by eDiscovery safe?

Ans: Yes, all methods are fully safe and tested but all steps should be processed in the right way. Office 365 to PST Export Tool is a guaranteed solution recommended to you.

Ques 3: Does your software support Microsoft 365 business edition?

Ans: Yes, the software is suitable to export emails from Outlook 365 to PST files from all Microsoft 365 variants like enterprise, business, frontline, and education.

Let’s Wrap Up

It is possible to export Microsoft 365 mailboxes to PST format using the above-mentioned methods. Now anyone can easily export Office 365 mailbox to PST via eDiscovery PST Export Tool, PowerShell Command, Outlook configuration, and Birdie Software. We have discussed complete details with proper information so all technical and non-technical users can use them effortlessly.