Do you need to migrate an email address from one server to another while keeping the same custom domain name? If so, you might be wondering: When should you best update your DNS & MX settings?
You can change your domain’s DNS records either before or after the migration. In this article, we’ll walk you through both approaches and explain the pros and cons. And don’t forget to have a look at our three tipps to facilitate your same domain email migration!
Summary:
When to Update DNS & MX for Same Domain Email Migrations
There are two possible timeframes to update your domain’s DNS & MX settings:
- After the migration: First perform the email migration, then change your domain’s settings.
- Before the migration: First change DNS & MX settings, then migrate your email data to the new server.
Pros & Cons:
| Update DNS / MX After the Migration | |
| Pros | Cons |
| ✅ short crossover time | ⛔️ all migrations need to finish before changing domain settings |
| ✅ minimum service interruption | ⛔️ should use an alternative server name / IP address for the migration |
| ✅ easy to handle when migrating emails for clients | |
| Read complete walkthrough ➡️ | |
| Update DNS / MX Before the Migration | |
| ✅ new mailboxes can be used right away | ⛔️ email clients need to be updated before performing the migration |
| ✅ no waiting time until migrations finished | ⛔️ constant change in the mailboxes while the migration is running |
| ✅ best approach to quickly move away from the current mail server | |
| Read complete walkthrough ➡️ | |
In Depth Look: Two Approaches to Updating DNS & MX Settings
- Update after the migration
- Update before the migration
- Bonus: Three tipps to facilitate your migration
Still have questions? Check out our FAQs at the end of this article!
What is a same domain email migration?
➡️ Same domain email migration means that you are moving your email data from one server to another while keeping the exact same email address / custom domain name.
Example:
- Your email address example@mailjerry.com is currently hosted on mail server A.
- After the email migration, the email data is stored on mail server B.
- The email address remains unchanged: example@mailjerry.com.
Approach 01:
Update DNS & MX Settings After the Migration
With this method, you migrate all emails to the new provider first, and only then update your domain’s DNS/MX settings. This allows you to keep using your current email account until the migration is complete. Once done, just update your domain settings – and you’re ready.
Advantages:
✅ Crossover time is reduced to a minimum
✅ You (or your clients) can keep working with the old mailbox until your migration finished
✅ Ideal for migrating client mailboxes: migrate first, then update their email clients
Downsides
⛔️ You have to wait until all migrations are complete before updating domain settings
⛔️ For the auto sync / backup mode to work after changing the domain settings, you should use the IP address or a general server name for the new and old mail account
➡️ Our recommendation: This migration method is fast, effective, and helps minimise confusion – especially when migrating emails for clients.
Walkthrough:
1. Create the new mailbox(es) on your new mail server.
2. In MailJerry, start a new migration.
3. For the “Existing Address”, select the account type and enter your old mailbox credentials.
4. Enter the IP address of your old mail server or your general server name.
5. For the “New Address”, also select the account type and enter your credentials.
6. Again, enter the IP address or general server name in the corresponding field.
7. Click on “Check Settings”.
8. On the summary page, enable the auto sync and start your migration.
9. Wait until all migrations finished.
10. Now update your domains DNS / MX settings.
11. If possible, disable the email service on your old server as soon as the new domain settings propagated (learn here why you should do so).
Approach 02:
Update DNS & MX Settings Before the Migration
In this scenario, incoming emails are delivered to the new server as soon as the DNS/MX changes take effect. You can start using your new mailbox immediately – but note that older emails won’t be there yet.
If you use an email client configured with the domain you just updated, it may stop working until reconfigured. This means that as soon as you change the DNS settings, you should also update your or your client’s email software.
Advantages:
✅ Incoming emails go directly to the new mailbox
✅ You don’t have to wait for your email migration to complete before using your new mailbox
✅ Helpful if you’re having delivery issues with the old server
Downsides
⛔️ You (or your clients) may need to update email client settings right after the DNS change
⛔️ During the migration, your inbox will constantly change as data is still moved to the new account
⚠️ Given these disadvantages, we don’t recommend this approach when migrating emails for clients or when dealing with mailboxes that are heavily used.
Walkthrough:
1.Create the new mailbox(es) on your new mail server.
2. Change your domain’s DNS & MX settings so that they point to the new server.
➡️ Now new emails will be delivered to the new server.
3. In MailJerry, start a new migration.
4. For the “Existing Address”, select the account type and enter your old mailbox credentials.
5. Enter the IP address of your old mail server or your general server name.
‼️ Don’t use a server name that includes the updated domain – it won’t work anymore.
6. For the “New Address”, select your new providers account type and enter your credentials.
7. As server name, enter the mail server or IP address of your new provider.
✅ Here, it’s fine to use a domain-based server name.
8. Click on “Check Settings” .
9. If everything looks good, enable the auto sync and start your migration.
10. After the migration finished, don’t forget to disable the email service on the old mail server.
Our Tips:
What to Do Before Starting Your Migration
These tips have proven to be useful for our users and will help make your migration process smoother:
Tip 01: Update the TTL of Your DNS Settings
In your domain’s DNS settings, set the TTL of alle email related entries to the lowest possible value (usually 60 or 300).
✅ Advantage: The lower the TTL, the quicker DNS changes propagate. This helps to switch servers as DNS associated delays are reduced to a minimum.
Good to know: New TTL settings take effect after the current TTL expires.
Example: If your current TTL is 12 hours and you change it to 1 minute, it will take 12 hours before the 1-minute setting becomes active.
Tip 02: Use a General Server Address or IP Address
Avoid using server names that include your custom domain!
Instead, use…
- your mail server’s IP address or
- a general mail server address provided by your hosting provider.
Example: We usually use mail.mailjerry.com as server name to receive and send emails. However, we can also use mail.your-server.de (the general mail server address from our provider) or our IP address 78.46.5.205. Both are a better option for this kind of email migration.
✅ Advantage: When using a mail server address that is not associated with the domain you’re going to change, the auto sync or backup mode will continue to work, even after changing the DNS settings.
How to find the IP address / your providers general mail server address:
- To find your mail servers IP address, have a look at this tutorial.
- For your providers general mail server address, have a look at our list of provider settings or ask your email provider.
Tip 03: Don’t Forget to Disable Your Old Provider’s Mail Service
Most providers offer an option to disable your mail servers email services. If this option is available, disable MX / mail services once your migration is done and your old mailboxes are no longer needed.
Why should I do this?
Mail servers often deliver emails internally if they detect that the recipient is hosted on the same server system. This means that they ignore DNS settings. As long as the mail service is active on the old server, some emails might never reach your new inbox.
When should I disable my old server’s mail service?
We recommend to disable your old server’s mail services once your migration is complete and all users updated their email clients / email software. In the meantime, make sure to enable the auto sync to also migrate emails received internally.
Frequent QuestionsWhen Changing DNS / MX Settings
What is a TTL?
The TTL (Time to Live) defines how long a DNS record is cached and, therefore, defines how much time it takes until a DNS change reaches the end user. For example, if your DNS records has a TTL of 12 hours, it can take up to 12 hours until the new settings are used by all email clients.
After changing the DNS / MX settings, the auto sync doesn’t work anymore. What can I do?
This usually happens when using your custom domain name as mail server address and changing your DNS / MX settings after the migration.
If you do so, MailJerry tries to connect to your old account using your domain name. Since your domain doesn’t point to the old server anymore, MailJerry can’t connect.
To resolve the problem, start a new migration with the current mail server settings
And don’t worry about duplicates! MailJerry will only migrate emails that haven’t been transferred yet!
How can I edit / update my migration in MailJerry?
If you wish to change the settings of a finished migration, disable the auto sync and / or backup mode.
Now start a new migration with the updated settings.
MailJerry will check which emails were already migrated and skip those that are already stored in the new mailbox.
Which username should I use for migrations to MS 365?
When creating email accounts with Microsoft, a temporary email address ending with .onmicrosoft.com is used until you connected your domain to your MS 365 account (which requires to change your domain settings).
So if you wish to first migrate your data and then connect your domain, use this temporary email address as user name for the new account.
I have to transfer my domain as well. When should I do this?
When transferring your domain to a new provider, check with your old provider if your mailboxes remain active, even after transferring your domain.
If this is the case, transfer your domain while keeping the current DNS / MX settings. Next, perform the email migration and change the DNS / MX settings after the migration. For more details, see approach 01.
⚠️ Some providers automatically disable all email accounts once the associated domain was moved to another provider. In this case, first migrate your email data, then transfer the domain and change the DNS / MX settings (see approach 01).
