How to Setup Office365 Exchange

Steps Required

This only pertains to users that are not on corporately controlled emails, as we will be bulk update those.

Log in to your self hosted Rackspace account: https://cp.rackspace.com
Create Office 365 tenant
Look for email from Rackspace with Office 365 Details
Login to https://office365.cp.rackspace.com/ with the details in the email Rackspace sent.
Add Exchange Online (Plan 1) license type + change quantity to reflect your needs.
Login to https://admin.microsoft.com then add the new users
Assign licenses to new users
Add custom domain via: Settings -> Domains
Update DNS via your domain vendor or contact us to update for you if we own your domain.
Validate your domain
Once everything is ready you will need to update the DNS records for your domain, or contact us if we own the domain.

Detailed directions are below…

Create a tenant ID

The tenant ID that you create is permanent. If you have an existing tenant ID for your Office 365 account, open a support ticket so we can transfer it for you.

Log in to the Cloud Office Control Panel using your Rackspace Cloud Office admin ID and password.
In the Microsoft Office 365 section, select Manage Office 365.
Enter a tenant name using only letters and numbers. A tenant is a unique name for your organization within the Office 365 portal. Your tenant name is your account ID on Microsoft’s systems. If the tenant ID that you enter is valid and available, a green check box appears next to the name.
Fill in the requested information. All fields are required.
Click Create Tenant.

Check your email for login details from Rackspace

Log in to the Office 365 portal

Log in to the Manage Office 365 at Rackspace Control Panel with the Global Administrator of your tenant.
In this portal, you can manage users (add or edit users, reset passwords, and edit assigned licenses) and licenses (add, edit, and remove licenses). If you need to manage any other settings, such as the Exchange Admin Center or the Security and Compliance center, click on Office 365 Admin Center on the left sidebar to be logged in to the Office 365 Admin Center automatically.

When you first log in, the Office 365 portal requires you to enter and confirm a new password. After you confirm the password, the only user who can log in to your Office 365 account is admin@{tenantName}.onmicrosoft.com, until new users are created.

After you create an Office 365 tenant. Follow the below steps to complete setup.

Add a domain in Office 365

The default domain in Office 365® is {tenantName}.onmicrosoft.com. Until you add your own domain to Office 365, any new users that you create contain the default domain name. To add a domain follow the steps below.

Log in to your Office 365 Control Panel.
From the left menu, select a drop-down menu labeled “More”.
Select Manage In Microsoft 365 Admin Center.
From the left menu, select Show All -> Settings, and then select Domains.
In the Domains section, click Add Domain.
Enter the domain name when prompted, and then click Use this domain.
You will be taken to a page titled “Verify that you own the domain.”

Add an Office 365 license

In the Manage Office 365 at Rackspace Control Panel, click on Product Catalog -> Select Microsoft365 on the left sidebar.
Scroll down and Select Exchange Online (Plan 1) and click Add Product.
Enter the number of licenses to match mailbox quantity required and select “Monthly” commitment option.
Click Add Product.
It may take a moment for provisioning to complete.

Add an Office 365 User

Log in to your Office 365 Control Panel.
From the left menu, select My Users.
Select Add User & complete new user form
Now assign a license to the newly added user (steps below)

Assign a license to a user

Log in to your Office 365 Control Panel.
From the left menu, select My Users.
Find the user you want to assign the license to and select Manage.
Select the license you’d like to apply to the user.
Click Save at the bottom of the page to finish the process.

Verify that you own the domain

This step requires you to log in to your domain’s DNS host portal. If you do not know what your DNS host is, see Find your DNS host.

Select the Add a TXT record to the domains DNS record option, and then select Continue.
Copy the TXT record information provided on the Verify domain page.
Log in to your domain’s DNS host portal.
Add the TXT record by using the information provided on the Verify domain page.
Save this change at your DNS host & allow 15-30 mins for your record to propagate.
After the TXT record fully propagates, select Verify in the Microsoft Admin Center.

After Office 365 verifies your domain and you are ready to use your services, you need to finalize your setup by configuring the remaining DNS entries for your Office 365 services.

Configuring DNS records for your Office 365 services

Use the following steps to configure the DNS records for your Office 365 services:

Log in to your Office 365 Control Panel.
From the left menu, select a drop-down menu labeled “More”.
Select Manage In Microsoft 365 Admin Center.
From the left menu, select Show All -> Settings, and then select Domains.
In the Domain section select the Domain you want to configure services for.
From the Domain setup wizard, select Continue Setup from the top menu.
On the Set up your online services screen, select I’ll manage my own DNS records and click Next.
When prompted, select the online services you want to configure. The selection is based on the current licenses that are assigned to your users.
After selecting your online services, click Next. This step requires you to log in to your domain’s DNS host portal.
Log in to your DNS host and copy the records from the table provided into your DNS host. Save this change at your DNS host & allow 15-30 mins for your record to propagate.
Once your new DNS records have propagated, go back to your Microsoft Admin Center & select Verify.

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