Streamlining Google Sites to SharePoint Online Migration with Cloudiway
Digital transformation often calls for seamless migration from legacy platforms to modern collaboration hubs. For organizations looking to move from Google Sites to SharePoint Online, the process can be daunting—unless you leverage a robust, dedicated solution like Cloudiway.
Why Migrate from Google Sites to SharePoint Online?
As businesses increasingly standardize on the Microsoft 365 suite, migrating existing sites from Google Workspace ensures unified document management, enhanced collaboration, and improved security. However, copying over years of web content, permissions, and embedded files is no small feat. That’s where Cloudiway’s Google Sites to SharePoint migration tool comes in.
How Cloudiway Handles Google Sites to SharePoint Migration
Cloudiway’s solution is engineered for enterprise-grade projects—not quick, one-off migrations. Here’s how the process unfolds:
1. Comprehensive Pre-Migration Planning
Consulting and Discovery: Every migration is scoped as a project, with a minimum two-week lead time. Cloudiway's experts guide you through prerequisites, timelines, and support options.
Authentication Setup: OAuth-based authentication is configured both on Google Workspace and Microsoft 365 sides. Two-step authentication and MFA must be disabled during migration.
Environment Whitelisting: Cloudiway whitelists your environment, ensuring its IPs can securely access your Google Sites. This is a manual step, repeated as needed throughout the project.
2. What’s Migrated
Cloudiway migrates Google Sites content to modern SharePoint Sites (Microsoft Teams also possible). The migration captures:
Google Site pages and structure (adapted from hierarchical to flat SharePoint page libraries)
Page content, including text and images
Embedded Google Drive documents and folders
Permissions and membership mappings (using a comprehensive mapping table)
Files in user Drives and Shared Drives (requires file licenses)
Key Points on Embedded Files:
Because Google Sites stores only file IDs for embedded content—with no owner info—Cloudiway must “impersonate” each Google user to locate and migrate their embedded documents. As a result, a file migration license is required for every user whose Drive content may be referenced by your sites. This enables auditing and access to these Drive files during migration.
If you’re not migrating all user Drives with Cloudiway, you’ll need to purchase Client Access Licenses (CALs) for the file migration engine.
3. Migration Steps in Detail
Connector Setup: Cloudiway’s platform connects to both source (Google) and target (SharePoint) environments through secure connectors.
Site Discovery: The tool automatically discovers new Google Sites in user and shared drives. The “Get Sites” feature compiles a list of sites to migrate. Shared Drives require the Cloudiway migration account to be a Reader.
Assign Target Connectors: Each Google Site is paired with a target SharePoint connector for mapping.
Customizations: Site names and URLs can be mass-renamed via CSV import/export for consistency and compliance.
Audit: Optional, but recommended. Cloudiway audits user Drives and drives embedded in sites, consuming file licenses. This process inventories: Site name, URL, author, modification date, number of pages, Drive document count, and more.
Pre-Processing: The tool creates the target SharePoint sites, libraries, and sets up the necessary web part for viewing migrated OneDrive files.
Migration Activation: After pre-processing, the migration process is queued. Progress and results can be monitored in real-time within the platform.
Delta Passes: The migration can be run multiple times. The delta feature migrates only changes/new content since the last pass. It does not sync deletions from Google Sites to SharePoint.
4. Limitations to Note
No migration is perfect. Cloudiway is transparent about what data and features may not transfer:
Only modern Google Sites are supported (not legacy “classic” sites).
Menus: Google’s hierarchical menus (unlimited depth) cannot be fully replicated. SharePoint menus are limited to two levels; deeper structures require manual recreation via web parts.
Other limitations: Site logos, Google Forms, page headers and footers, gadgets with no SharePoint equivalents, and page templates are not migrated. Structural elements like the site owners’ bar are not automatically recreated.
Manual menu recreation and post-migration validation are recommended for complex sites.
5. Authentication: Whitelisting Cookies
For modern Google Sites, cookies must be whitelisted prior to migration activities (site listing, auditing, pre-processing, and migration):
Use the “EditThisCookie” browser extension to capture authentication cookies.
Paste them into Cloudiway’s connector interface to authorize the required actions.
This step ensures secure, persistent access to all relevant Google Sites data.
Key Benefits of Using Cloudiway
Seamless Content Transfer: Automates the heavy lifting of moving complex sites and embedded content.
Preserves Permissions: Thorough mapping of user and group permissions ensures no loss of access control.
Flexible Delta Passes: Incremental updates ensure business continuity during phased migrations.
Audit and Monitoring: Provides visibility into all migrated items and real-time migration status.
Ready for a Worry-Free Transition?
Cloudiway’s solution demystifies Google Sites migration, delivering a structured, secure, and transparent approach. By handling every nuance—from file ownership and item mapping to post-migration deltas and real-world limitations—Cloudiway positions your organization to unlock the full potential of Microsoft 365 with confidence.
For a detailed walkthrough and tailored migration strategy, contact Cloudiway’s expert team today.
References: : Google Sites To SharePoint Migration Guide : Why File Licenses are needed for Google Sites Migration : Google Sites To SharePoint Migration: Limitations : Delta Pass During Google Sites Migration
Read More on Google Sites to SharePoint Online Sites Migration