Checklist · 9 minute read
The office IT relocation checklist
Used on every moveEverything that has to happen, in order, from the day the lease is signed to the first Monday in the new building. The list we use on every move.
By Nate Weigel, Protection Director · September 2026
Sunk cost is real. A backup server you bought last year deserves a plan before it goes in a dumpster because a move made it convenient.
Server or cloud, honestly Gold Star survey"Another great job by Midwest IT. Our company just loves your fast response to our issues."
Client, 2024 surveyMore from the survey wallBefore you sign
Ask the landlord which carriers already serve the building and whether fiber reaches the suite. Ask where the demarcation point is and whether there is a lockable room with power and cooling for a rack. The answers change the cost of the move more than the rent does.
Ninety days out
- Order the internet circuit. Six to twelve weeks is normal. This is the single most common cause of a bad move-in day.
- Walk the space with your IT provider. Decide the rack location, cabling routes and drop counts per room, and where wireless access points go.
- Give the electrician and cabling contractor the drawings with those decisions on them.
- Inventory what you have: every device, every line of software, every vendor contract with an address on it.
Sixty days out
- Decide what moves and what retires. Anything due for replacement within a year should not be moved twice.
- Plan the phone port. Numbers move on a date you choose; the old address stops ringing on that day and not before.
- Order replacement hardware so it can be configured before the move.
- Tell every software vendor that stores your address, and every carrier, the new address and the date.
Thirty days out
- Confirm the circuit install date in writing. If it has slipped, arrange a temporary connection now.
- Configure and test the new gear in the shop, not in the new building.
- Publish the move-week plan: who is on site, which vendor arrives when, who to call.
- Back up everything and test a restore. A move is a bad time to discover a backup problem.
Move week
- Rack and cabling go in first, then internet, then phones, then desks.
- One person coordinates every vendor touching the network.
- Test each desk before the person sits at it: network, phone, printer, the software they use most.
- Keep the old office live for a short overlap if the lease allows. It is the cheapest insurance there is.
After
Update Google Business Profile, the website, email signatures, letterhead and every directory listing with the new address. Cancel services at the old address on the day the overlap ends, not before. Hold a short review: what went wrong, what to do differently next time.
Proof it works
The stories where we did this, and what the clients said afterwards.
The cross-town move, on time and under budget
Trades · New constructionA new shop, then a new office, planned from the PDF of the drawings
Hospitality · Wi-FiA marina, a hotel, a pool and a restaurant, ready for the Fourth of July
Order the internet circuit the week the lease is signed. Carriers take six to twelve weeks. Nothing else on a move fails as often.
The relocation checklist From the shopEvery piece of gear we ship was configured and tested on a bench in Pell Lake first. Problems found here cost an afternoon. Problems found in your server room cost production.
The second-host storyQuestions this guide gets asked
How far ahead should we involve IT in an office move?
Ninety days is comfortable. Sixty is workable. Thirty means overnight shipping and overtime.
The full answerWhat is the most common thing that goes wrong?
The internet circuit is not ready. Order it the week the lease is signed.
The full answerShould the server move with us?
If it has years of life left, yes, carefully. If it is due for replacement, replace it into the new building rather than moving it twice. We will tell you which.
The full answer
"As always, efficient, non-intrusive and complete!"
Kurt, concrete supplierMore from the survey wall- A technician who knows your setup takes every request. Not a dispatcher, not a queue.
- Every closed ticket is surveyed and a partner reads every response.
- 99.5% of surveys come back positive.
- Family-owned since 2005. 21 years in the same corner of Wisconsin, not going anywhere.
"Service is excellent, quick to respond and quick to complete. Thank you!"
Cheri, small businessMoving in the next year?
We will walk the space with you, whether or not you hire us for the move.
Talk to a partnerTalk to a partner, not a sales script.
Tell us what is going on. A partner will call you back the same business day, look at what you have, and tell you honestly whether we are the right fit. No pricing pressure, no pitch deck.