Modernizing Shared File Storage: Migrating Network Share Drives to SharePoint Online

Modernizing Shared File Storage: Migrating Network Share Drives to SharePoint Online

When a multi-billion-dollar, member-owned healthcare and insurance company set out to modernize its enterprise-wide file storage, it faced a significant challenge: migrating decades of shared data from on-premises LAN drives to a secure, cloud-based solution—without disrupting business operations.

Following the successful migration of 200 terabytes of private drive data for 50,000 users across multiple states to Microsoft OneDrive, the company turned its focus to the next phase: untangling and migrating complex shared folders from LAN drives to SharePoint Online. For this ambitious transformation, the organization once again partnered with Collective Insights, trusting their expertise to deliver a seamless and strategic migration.

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Challenges

Over the years, the client’s shared drives had become the digital jungle of hundreds of business units—sprawling, unstructured, and filled with everything from critical team files to long-forgotten PII and PHI. What began as a convenient storage solution had evolved into a labyrinth riddled with obstacles such as legacy systems, automated processes, and Excel links that resisted modernization at every turn.

Adding to the complexity, with no internal project manager available and multiple transformation initiatives already underway, the migration risked stalling before it began. Teams were wary of change, especially during high-pressure periods like open enrollment.

Despite these challenges, the client recognized the need to move forward. The legacy infrastructure was costly to maintain, difficult to secure, and limited in its ability to support modern collaboration during rapid growth. A cloud-based solution would offer enhanced security, better data governance, ability to adapt to dynamically changing groups, and the flexibility to support a hybrid workforce.

Despite the complexity, the client was ready to move forward. That’s where Collective Insights came in—not just to migrate data, but to bring clarity, structure, and momentum to a mission-critical transformation.

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Our Approach

Collective Insights began the project by conducting deep-dive discovery sessions with over 266 groups across the enterprise. These sessions were designed to uncover how each group used their shared drives, identify data owners, and understand any dependencies or complexities that could impact migration.

From these conversations, we developed tailored solution plans for each group. We ran pre-migration scans to assess data volume and structure, and we worked closely with stakeholders to finalize migration strategies. In cases where groups had overlapping or nested folder structures, we coordinated migrations to minimize disruption and ensure data integrity.

Further, identifying the data used by one group often led to the discovery of additional groups and subgroups not officially recognized or organized by the company.

“Every folder was like a digital attic—full of treasures, mysteries, inherited items, and the occasional skeleton. Our job was to assist the teams in figuring out what to keep, what to clean, what belongs to someone else, and how to move it all without waking the ghosts.”
- Nathaniel Greve, Technical Specialist

Security was a top priority, so we paid special attention to any data that would potentially require HIPAA, PII, PHI and BCI compliance. Using Microsoft Purview, we applied over 70 million labels to files before their migrations. This ensured that sensitive data was protected from the outset and aligned with the client’s compliance requirements.

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Execution and Migration

A total of 173 groups and more than 75 terabytes of data were successfully migrated to SharePoint Online. An additional 51 groups were excluded from the migration because they had already moved to SharePoint, had no data to migrate, or could not identify ownership of their shared paths.

Throughout the process, we maintained a detailed Runbook to track planned versus actual data migration. Many groups chose to clean up their data or apply retention policies, which reduced the overall volume of data migrated and improved long-term manageability.

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Hypercare and Support

Collective Insights maintained a dedicated shared inbox to provide real-time support and ensure a smooth transition for all user groups throughout the entirety of the engagement. This centralized communication channel allowed the team to quickly respond to questions, troubleshoot issues, and provide guidance as users adjusted to the new SharePoint environment. Our availability fostered valuable relationships with people throughout the company that appreciated our dedicated assistance.

When internal processes such as site provisioning, entitlement creation, or user assignments lagged or failed, the team proactively identified escalation paths to keep the project on track. In parallel, every step of the migration process was meticulously documented, and detailed guides were delivered to the client to empower them to manage future migrations independently, especially for any newly discovered groups.

Beyond standard support, the team frequently went above and beyond the original scope to ensure successful outcomes. They regularly encountered novel challenges—ranging from unexpected data structures to unique business requirements—and developed tailored solutions in real time. The team remained agile, adapting to evolving needs and platform limitations while maintaining comprehensive tracking and documentation. This ensured the client had a clear understanding of which data sets were ready for decommissioning and which files still required support on legacy systems. This level of transparency and responsiveness not only minimized disruption but also built trust and confidence across the organization during a period of significant change.

"In a project of this scale, success isn’t just about moving data—it’s about understanding the people, the processes, and the dependencies behind that data. We treated every group as unique, and that mindset made all the difference. We encountered challenges that couldn’t be solved with a playbook—legacy systems, unclear ownership, and evolving business needs. Our team’s ability to adapt in real time was critical to keeping the migration on track and the client confident."

- CI Delivery Manager

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Results

The migration delivered significant productivity and efficiency benefits for the scores of business units in the organization.

The Microsoft cloud-based solution also provides additional benefits for the client, including:

• ‍Cost - By moving to Microsoft, the client could take advantage of the data storage already included in their licensing rather than pay extra for facilities, servers, networking, climate control and other administrative burdens associated with on-premises solutions.

• ‍Security - Previously, the client was responsible for their own servers, which meant they had to manage patching, potential vulnerabilities, disaster recovery, threat detection and prevention, physical security, and more. The client can now depend on Microsoft to manage security liabilities, as well as immediate patching for security incidents and data backup and recovery in the event of a disaster. The power of Microsoft’s paired data centers and global replication ensures data is never lost.

• ‍Information protection - Microsoft Purview provides robust information protection that includes file governance, data loss prevention, and more for files stored in OneDrive, SharePoint, and Teams. This product will provide additional protection to the client and help them understand not only what their data is, but where it resides, and how to control it.

• ‍Collaboration - Employees can easily access and share information from their company-owned computer, company virtual machine, or registered personal device for real-time collaboration, optimization, and enhanced productivity.

The project also highlighted opportunities for future improvement. Application dependencies that could not be addressed in this phase were cataloged for future modernization efforts.

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Solutions & Roadmap

Leveraging the client’s existing Microsoft 365 E5 licenses, we applied our S.A.F.E. (Start Anywhere Finish Everything with E5) methodology to guide the migration.  

• Migrating shared drives to SharePoint Online for structured collaboration.

• Using Microsoft Teams for dynamic, team-based file sharing.

• Leveraging Microsoft Purview for data governance and protection.

This modernized infrastructure provides the client with a secure, scalable, and cost-effective solution that supports their long-term goals. With enhanced data governance, improved collaboration, and reduced IT overhead, the organization is well-positioned for the future.

At Collective Insights, we’re committed to delivering lasting value to our clients. Our approach is comprehensive and customized, and we provide more than just a roadmap—we help you get there, too.