Migrate Google Drive to OneDrive Without Downloading: Practical Methods

Why Organisations Move Files from Google Drive to OneDrive

There could be various reasons why organizations choose to migrate from Google Drive to OneDrive. For reference, go through the points below.

• An organization could be planning on deploying Microsoft 365 for Teams and SharePoint.
• Two cloud platforms may be merging into a tenant.
• If an admin wants a team to keep all its files together in one cloud platform.

No matter which option you choose for transferring files from Google Drive to OneDrive, the main concern remains the same. Concerns such as folder hierarchy, permissions handling, reporting, format changes, etc.

Different Ways to Migrate Google Drive to OneDrive

There are several approaches users can consider when they need to move their Google Drive to OneDrive.

1. Migration Through The Native Methods
2. Migrating Google Drive to OneDrive Through a Professional Tool

Method 1: Migration Through The Native Method

In the native method, we use Microsoft Migration Manager, which is available within your SharePoint admin center. It allows files that are in your personal and shared drives in Google Drive to be migrated to OneDrive. This will transfer files from Google Drive to OneDrive rather than deleting them. Therefore, files that are stored in Google Drive are not affected by this migration. This whole migration process is performed using Google Workspace admin credentials.

Key Points To Remember Before Using Migration Manager

1. If a tenant has fewer than 300 licenses, Microsoft, by default, enables Migration Manager Lite. This Lite version does not include the scan, destination review, or identity mapping features.
2. File-level permissions do not migrate by default. They are given the same permissions as the destination folder.
3. If there are any sharing links to other files on the external sharing tab, they will not be recreated. They have to be manually created in OneDrive.
4. Only the most recent file is copied by default. If you want to copy previous files, you should change the Files setting before you start the migration.
5. Files having the same name within the same folder are renamed with (1) and (2).
6. Sites and maps cannot be exported from Google, so these are not migrated.

Steps to Migrate Google Drive to OneDrive

Below are some key points that explain how users can migrate their Google Drive using Microsoft Migration Manager.

1. Open the SharePoint admin center and select Migration.
2. Inside the Google Workspace tab, click Get Started, then click Connect to Google Workspace.
3. Click Install and authorize, then complete the admin install of the Microsoft Migration Manager.
4. In the SharePoint Tab, select the drives you want to migrate, and click Scan, then click Copy to Drive migration.
5. On the Drive migrations tab, check each destination path and fix any faulty destination paths.
6. After that, map your Google users and groups to the Microsoft 365 users and groups.
7. After this, you have to choose drives to migrate and run this process to complete the migration.

Limitations of the Manual Method

When users migrate Google Drive to OneDrive through the manual method, it creates several problems for them.

• Users must wait for the entire folder to be downloaded, sometimes for 7 GB folders, which can take hours.
• And for quality, if the network connection fails, you need to start over.
• Also, the formats of Google Sheets, Slides, and Docs can change when saving.
• There is no migration report to check whether the transfer is successful or not.
• This can be manageable for a small number of files but not for a complete department.

Method 2: Migrating Google Drive to OneDrive Through A Professional Migration Tool

However, some teams have needs for more control than that offered by an administrative center workflow. For example, an organisation might want to transfer certain types of files within a certain date range. In these scenarios, it’s convenient to transfer files from Google Drive to OneDrive using a professional tool.

Aryson Google Drive Migration Tool is such a professional tool that allows data transfer between the two authenticated accounts. It also allows migration of Google Drive to OneDrive, Google Drive to Google Drive, and Google Drive to a local drive. Users can easily transfer Google Drive to OneDrive without any issues. All this can be completed without the manual download and re-upload of the files between the two drives.

Key Features Of This Professional Tool

Below are some features offered by this tool to ease the migration process when users migrate Google Drive to OneDrive

• Skipping migrated files: When users are performing repetitive migrations, they can enable this option to only migrate newer emails.
• Exclude duplicates: Users can remove duplicates from mail on the basis of name, size, modification, or checksum.
• Skip the particular drive folder: It allows you to exclude system folders, folders including My Drive, shared with me, trash, etc., according to your choice.
• File size: This option allows you to filter files by excluding them on the basis of minimum and maximum file size.
• Folder hierarchy: Users can enable this option to retain their hierarchy of folders even after migration.
• Custom folder name: You can give a name to a new folder in OneDrive with this option. Otherwise, if left empty, it gives it an automatic name.

Steps to Transfer Google Drive to OneDrive

Follow the points below to successfully migrate your files from Google Drive to Microsoft OneDrive.

1. Download and install the Aryson Google Drive migration tool.
2. Select Next and click Open in the browser.
3. From the migration mode, choose Google Drive Migration.
4. Log in with your credentials, then select available mailboxes.
5. Choose the Email client option, then select Microsoft 365 from the dropdown.
6. Click Continue and connect your destination account, then apply desired filters.
7. Click Start Migration and wait for migration to complete.

Note: The above-mentioned sections briefly describe the tool’s functionality and its features. Users can go through the software guide to transfer files from Google Drive to Microsoft OneDrive smoothly without any issues.

Best Practices Before Finalizing the Migration

• Use a small pilot migration with an individual user or a small folder. Then review the migration report and resolve all issues before expanding the migration.
• For groups or shared drives, be prepared to map user identities to associate users, groups, and/or shared drives.
• Set a content start date where users stop editing source files before the final sync.
• Keep source data until users have confirmed that the destination is complete and all files are available.

Comparison Between a Native Method and a Professional Migration Tool

Aspect	Microsoft Migration Manager	Aryson Google Drive Migration Tool
Access point	SharePoint admin center	Windows desktop application
Source access	Google Workspace administrator credentials	Source account sign-in
Selection	Drive and path-based	File extension and date range filters
Reporting	Scan and migration reports	Downloadable migration report
Typical use	Tenant-wide, administrator-led projects	Targeted or account-level transfers

Conclusion

Every user can migrate Google Drive to OneDrive without re-downloading and re-uploading the data. The Microsoft Migration Manager is more appropriate for this, but having a specific tool that has some filtering can be helpful. Besides any method, detailed planning, pilot, and post-migration validation are the factors that make or break a migration. Users can move their Google Drive to OneDrive with the help of the Aryson Google Drive Migration Tool. It enables users to migrate bulk files from Google Drive to OneDrive by skipping files by size, ignoring system folders, etc.

Frequently Asked Questions

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