Remove First Database – Exchange 2016

Removing the very first database can be a bit challenging if you don’t know what to expect. This is because Microsoft stores some important system mailboxes on the very first database that was created. I’ve written about this for Exchange 2010 and 2013:
Remove First Database – Exchange 2010
Remove First Database – Exchange 2013
Why Cover Exchange 2016?
A lot of companies are moving to Office 365. The reality is that cloud is hot and a lot of companies see Exchange Online as a way to remove some complexity from the environment. However, there are still quite a few companies that are deploying Exchange 2016, whether this is a Hybrid server or as an upgrade from an existing Exchange 201x environment. Thus, rehashing an old topic with the changes that are specific to Exchange 2016.

Get-Mailbox -Database <Source Database> -Arbitration | New-MoveRequest -TargetDatabase <Destination DB>
Get-Mailbox -Database <Source Database> -AuditLog | New-MoveRequest -TargetDatabase <Destination DB>
Get-Mailbox -Database <Source Database> -Monitoring | New-MoveRequest -TargetDatabase <Destination DB>
Get-Mailbox -Database <Source Database> | New-MoveRequest -TargetDatabase <Destination DB>

** NOTE ** The -Auditlog switch is for internal Microsoft only….
This leads to the mailboxes being moved:

Don’t forget to move all user mailbox archives either:

Get-Mailbox -Database <Source Database> -archive | New-MoveRequest -TargetDatabase <Archive DB>

Mailbox Types to Move

• Arbitration Mailboxes
• AuditLog Mailboxes
• Monitoring Mailboxes
• User Mailboxes
• Archive Mailboxes

Conclusion
While the above mailbox types are typically the types on the default database, however Public Folder mailboxes could also be in the default database. To find those mailboxes:

Get-Mailbox -Database <Source Database> -PublicFolder

And to move those mailboxes, similarly like the other mailboxes above:

Get-Mailbox -Database <Source Database> -PublicFolder | New-MoveRequest -TargetDatabase <Destination DB>