Note
Links to additional Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) can be found at the end of this guide.
The following article answers the most frequently asked questions about migrating SharePoint Online sites from one Microsoft 365 tenant to another with MigrationWiz.
In this migration type, each site is migrated as a single line item, along with its subsites, document libraries, site-level content, metadata, versions and permissions, and each site uses a Flex Collaboration license that covers up to 100GB of data.
For step-by-step setup instructions, see the SharePoint Sites to SharePoint Sites Migration Guide.
SharePoint Sites to SharePoint Sites Migration FAQs
This section of the article covers questions of autodiscovery, licensing, and general questions for this migration type.
Which sites does Autodiscovery find?
The site collections in the source tenant, almost the same list as the SharePoint Admin Center. Teams enabled sites, the Search Center, the Content-Type Hub, personal OneDrive sites and SharePoint Embedded containers (Loop, Copilot Pages, Designer) are left out. The root site (/) is included. The App Catalog is counted but not shown in the site picker (known issue). With delegated permission, only the sites the signed-in account can see are listed (up to about 1,000).
Why does the discovered count not match what I expected?
The excluded site types above are not counted, and the App Catalog is counted but hidden in the picker, so the count can be one higher than the sites you see. Compare with the SharePoint Admin Center site list. If you are using Delegated permissions, ensure that the service account being used for the source tenant is a Site Collection Admin or Owner of the source sites you intend to be autodiscovered.
How many licenses will a migration use?
One Flex Collaboration license per site for up to 100 GB of data. A larger site uses more licenses only if Maximum number of licenses to consume per item is more than 1.
Which licenses work?
MigrationWiz-Flex Collaboration, MigrationWiz-Flex Collaboration for Disti and MigrationWiz-Flex Collaboration-EDU/NP.
Does this affect my existing Google Modern Sites → SharePoint Sites projects?
Yes. They now need a Flex Collaboration license too. The rest of their behavior is unchanged.
Can I migrate the root site?
Only as a source, into a site under /sites/ or /teams/. The root site can't be a destination. Steps for this can be found in the SharePoint Sites to SharePoint Sites Migration Guide in the Autodiscover Sites section.
Can I migrate only part of a site, for example for a divestiture?
Yes. Click the filter icon on the site's line item, untick the subsites and libraries to leave out, optionally add Filter Folders (RegEx) patterns, and click Save Filter. Without a filter the whole site is migrated.
Can I send a site to a different site name?
Yes. Open the line item and change the destination SharePoint Site field. The source cannot be edited.
How do I see which sites are in the project and where they will go?
Look at the Source SharePoint Sites and Destination SharePoint Sites columns in the project's line items.
Can I add sites without autodiscovery?
Yes. Use Quick Add (one site) or Bulk Add (a template with Source URL and Destination URL columns). You can also download the discovery CSV, edit it and upload it through Bulk Add.
Can this feature be turned off?
No. It is available to every organization. The license requirement for SharePoint Sites destinations applies to every project.
SharePoint Sites to SharePoint Sites Troubleshooting
This section helps you troubleshoot issues that can occur during SharePoint site to SharePoint site migrations and explains how to resolve them.
| Symptom | Cause | Resolution |
|---|---|---|
| "I can't see Autodiscover Items" | The source is not SharePoint Sites, or the project is not a Document Project | Check the project's type and source type |
| Unable to start autodiscovery. | The request to start discovery was rejected | Retry. Contact support if it keeps failing. |
|
When using Delegated permissions: Discovery found fewer sites than expected |
The source uses delegated permission, so only the sites the signed-in account can see are listed (up to about 1,000) | Ensure the service account used in the source tenant is a Site Collection Admin or Owner of the source sites, or use Application permissions for autodiscover. |
| Discovery shows Failed: "Discovery completed, but the discovered sites could not be retrieved..." | The site list could not be read for an hour after the run finished | Start a new discovery |
| Site count differs from what the customer expected | Teams enabled SharePoint sites, Search Center, Content Type Hub, personal OneDrive sites and SharePoint Embedded containers (Loop, Copilot Pages, Designer) are left out; the root site is included. The App Catalog is counted but not listed in the picker (see Section 4). With delegated permission, only the signed-in account's sites are listed (up to about 1,000) |
Compare with the SharePoint Admin Center site list. Ensure the service account used in the source tenant is a Site Collection Admin or Owner of the source sites, or use Application permissions for autodiscover. |
| The Discovered count is one higher than the sites in the picker, or a site is missing from the picker and the CSV | The App Catalog, and sites whose address ends in /search, /appcatalog or /contenttypehub, are hidden from the picker and the CSV | Add the site with Quick Add or Bulk Add |
| Unable to load the discovered sites. | Temporary failure reading the run | Click the run's radio button in Discovery History to retry |
| No sites were found. in the site picker | The run found no sites that can be migrated | Check the source tenant URL and permissions, then start a new discovery |
| Unable to load this site's subsites and libraries. Please try again. in the filter panel | The site's subsites and libraries could not be read | Click Retry. Contact support if it keeps failing |
| Unable to save the filter. Please try again. | The filter could not be saved | Click Save Filter again. Contact support if it keeps failing |
| A subsite, library or folder was migrated that the customer didn't want (or the reverse) | The site's scope filter is not set as expected | Open the line item's filter and check the ticked subsites and libraries and the Filter Folders (RegEx) patterns |
| Line item fails with "The tenant root site can't be the destination..." | The root site was imported, so its destination is the root | Change the destination on the line item to a site under /sites/ or /teams/ |
| This entry is invalid. in Quick Add or Bulk Add | The URL has no site path | Enter a full site URL, for example https://contoso.sharepoint.com/sites/HR |
| Migration won't start because of licensing (SharePoint Sites or Google Modern Sites → SharePoint Sites) | No Flex Collaboration license available | Buy MigrationWiz-Flex Collaboration, Flex Collaboration for Disti or Flex Collaboration-EDU/NP licenses |
| Migration stopped once a site reached 100 GB | The license's 100 GB limit was reached and the project allows only one license per item | Raise Maximum number of licenses to consume per item: and run again |
| Discovery history shows Failed to authentication with AzureAD application with <app id>... | Source sign-in or app consent failed | Check the credentials, grant consent again, or switch to Application Permission |
Messages You May See
This section lists the messages you may see during migration and explains what each one means and how to respond.
| Message | Meaning and action |
|---|---|
| The destination site URL must be a site under /sites/. The tenant root site can't be the destination of a Google Modern Sites migration | Google Modern Sites projects only. Enter a destination under /sites/ |
| The destination site URL is required. / The source site URL is required | The line item has no URL. Enter it |
| You may have entered an invalid URL format. Please ensure that the URL entered has already been URL encoded | The endpoint URL is not valid. Correct it |
| This site is already a line item in this project. Selecting it again will not create a duplicate | Tooltip on Already added. No action needed |
Still need help?
Contact support and include:
- the project name and the line item that shows the problem.
- the exact message you see, copied as written.
- the date and time of the run or pass.
- a screenshot of the line item or screen.
Related Topics
- Teams Channel Selection Frequently Asked Questions and Troubleshooting
- Flex Collaboration License Frequently Asked Questions and Troubleshooting
- Version History Frequently Asked Questions and Troubleshooting
- Permission Fidelity and Re-sync Frequently Asked Questions and Troubleshooting
- Metadata Migration Frequently Asked Questions and Troubleshooting
- SharePoint Sites Site Level Content Frequently Asked Questions and Troubleshooting
- SharePoint Sites Sensitivity Labels and Encryption Frequently Asked Questions and Troubleshooting