Case Study

How a 400-Person Nonprofit Moved From Aging Servers to Microsoft 365

A nonprofit with several offices was running separate servers in each location and relying on VPN connections to share files. TCI moved the entire organization to a modern, cloud-managed Microsoft 365 platform, giving staff secure access to their files from anywhere while reducing the cost and complexity of maintaining old servers.

Organization: Nonprofit

Size: About 400 employees across multiple locations

Services: Microsoft 365 & SharePoint migration, device management, security, training

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nonprofit IT Services
400
employees across multiple locations
0
local domain controllers to maintain
1
cloud platform for files, devices and identity

The Challenge

Each office had its own on-premises servers, and staff shared files between locations over VPN connections. As the organization grew, that setup became slow, costly and hard to secure.

Aging Servers Everywhere

Multiple aging servers spread across different offices, all built on legacy Active Directory, increased both cost and risk.

Slow File Sharing Over VPN

Sharing files between locations depended on VPN connections, causing bottlenecks and an inconsistent experience from office to office.

High Costs

Backing up and maintaining server infrastructure in every location was expensive and time-consuming.

Security & Management Gaps

Security concerns across servers and computers, with limited central control over users and devices.

What TCI Did

A complete infrastructure modernization project centered on Microsoft 365.

Files Moved to the Cloud

Shared files moved to SharePoint and personal files to OneDrive, organized around how each department works.

Included: SharePoint Online and OneDrive for Business migration, folder redirection to automatically protect user documents, and a new SharePoint structure aligned with departmental workflows and security requirements.

Computers Managed Centrally

Every computer moved to Microsoft’s cloud-based identity and device management, so IT can secure and update devices from one place.

Included: transition from on-premises Active Directory to Microsoft Entra ID, Microsoft Intune enrollment, security and compliance policies on all devices, and migration of user profiles, application settings, Outlook configurations and browser data.

Strengthened Security

A full review of Microsoft 365 security, followed by stronger sign-in protection and email defenses.

Included: Microsoft 365 security assessment, Multi-Factor Authentication, Conditional Access policy review, Microsoft Defender configuration, and tenant-wide email and security controls.

Print from Any Location

Printing moved to a cloud service, removing another reason to keep servers in each office.

Included: Cloud print management replacing traditional print server dependencies.

Removing Old Servers

Remaining server roles were moved to the network, so offices no longer depend on local domain controllers.

Included: DHCP moved from legacy servers to network infrastructure, local domain controllers eliminated, and managed monitoring deployed at each location.

Staff Training Sessions

Department-by-department training so people felt confident working in the new environment.

Included: SharePoint, Teams, OneDrive and Microsoft 365 collaboration tools, plus document management and secure cloud collaboration best practices.

Before & After

Before

  • ✕Separate aging servers in every office
  • ✕File sharing between offices over VPN
  • ✕Costly backups and server maintenance
  • ✕Limited central control of users and devices

After

  • ✓Files in SharePoint and OneDrive, accessible from anywhere
  • ✓No dependence on local domain controllers or print servers
  • ✓Simplified backup and disaster recovery
  • ✓Devices and identities managed centrally in Intune and Entra ID

The Results

The organization moved from a distributed, server-based setup to a centralized, cloud-managed Microsoft 365 platform.

Access From Anywhere

Secure access to files from any location.

Better Collaboration

Improved collaboration between offices, working from the same files and tools.

Central Control

Centralized management of devices and user identities across every location.

Stronger Security

Enhanced protection through MFA, Intune and Conditional Access policies.

Lower Costs

Less reliance on physical servers, simpler backup and disaster recovery, and lower maintenance costs.

Happier, More Productive Staff

Increased productivity and user satisfaction.

The Business Impact

By partnering with TCI Technologies, the organization modernized its IT environment, strengthened its security and created a scalable foundation for future growth. Moving to Microsoft 365 removed the challenges of legacy infrastructure and gave staff secure, reliable access to their files, applications and resources from anywhere.

Planning a Similar Project?

Learn more about our Microsoft 365 & SharePoint Migration services, or talk to our team about what’s possible for your organization.

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