How to Fix Missing Exchange Migration Bad Item Limit using PowerShell
Question details
The user needs to set a bad-item limit or approve skipped items for an Exchange migration batch, but the option is no longer available in the Exchange admin center interface.
- Product
- Microsoft Exchange
- Device & OS
- not provided
- Scenario
- Migrating mailboxes using the Exchange admin center where large or corrupted items need to be bypassed without failing the batch.
- Observed behavior
- The bad-item or skipped-item limit setting is missing from both the old and new Exchange admin center graphical interfaces, requiring an alternative configuration method.
Ensure you have the necessary administrator permissions in Exchange Online and that the Exchange Online PowerShell module is installed and connected on your device.
Use Exchange Online PowerShell to Approve Skipped Items
Since the GUI option has been removed, you must use PowerShell cmdlets to manage bad item limits and approve skipped items for migration batches.
Large or corrupted items may be automatically skipped by the on-premises Exchange server during a migration batch. To prevent the migration from failing or stalling, you can manually approve these skipped items or configure a custom bad item limit using Exchange Online PowerShell.
Open PowerShell as an administrator on your computer and connect to your Exchange Online environment using the Connect-ExchangeOnline cmdlet.
To approve previously detected skipped items for all users in a specific migration batch, run the command: Set-MigrationBatch -Identity MigrationBatch01 -ApproveSkippedItems (replace 'MigrationBatch01' with the actual name of your batch).
If you need to explicitly define the limit during batch creation or modification, append the -BadItemLimit parameter to your command followed by the desired integer.
Once the migration completes, expand the skipped items in the migration reports to view their details and identify exactly which messages or corrupted files were left behind.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Why is the bad item limit missing from the Exchange Admin Center?
Microsoft has removed the bad item limit configuration from both the classic and modern Exchange admin center graphical interfaces to streamline the UI. Advanced migration settings must now be configured using Exchange Online PowerShell.
What happens if a migration batch hits the default bad item limit?
If the number of skipped, large, or corrupted items exceeds the configured bad item limit, the migration batch will stall or fail. You must use PowerShell to approve the skipped items or increase the limit to resume the migration.
How do I find the identity name of my migration batch?
You can find your migration batch name by navigating to the Migration tab in the Exchange admin center, or by running the Get-MigrationBatch cmdlet directly in Exchange Online PowerShell.
Do skipped items mean my email migration failed entirely?
No, skipped items simply indicate that specific large or corrupted emails were not transferred. The rest of the healthy mailbox data usually migrates successfully. You can review the skipped items report post-migration to see exactly what was left behind.
