New Student Account Setup

• First Time User Account Activation
• Migrating Your Data After Graduation: A Student's Guide

First Time User Account Activation

Welcome to Arkansas State University!

Now that you have received your welcome letter with your A-State email address, you can activate your account by setting the password and completing the setup of Microsoft Authenticator.

Password Setup

First, let's get your password setup.

You will need both a computer/tablet and a mobile phone for this process

• From a web browser, visit www.outlook.com and select Sign in.
  
• On the sign in page, enter your A State email address.
  
• On the password screen, select Forgot my password.

  
  
  
• Enter your full A-State email address and verify the characters that are shown in the captcha and then click Next.
  
  
  
• On the verification page, your personal email address on file with A-State has been setup as your alternate email address. Click on Email to have a verification code sent to your personal email address. You can change this address after activating your account.

  
• Enter the verification code that you received and select Next.

  
• Enter your new password, confirm it and select Finish.
  

  The A-State password requirements must contain:
  • At least 15 characters and one capital letter, one lowercase letter, one number, and one special character
  • It also must NOT contain any part of your name or anything too closely related to A-State
  • It can also be set up as a passphrase

  
  
• Once your password is set, you can sign in and start using your account. Select the click here link to sign in.
  
• Enter your A-State email address and select Next.
  
• Enter the password for your A-State account and select Sign in.
  

Please keep your password secure, A-State will never ask you for your password

Microsoft Authenticator

• After signing in with your password, you will be prompted to set up Microsoft Authenticator 
  
  • On the "Let's keep your account secure" screen, click Next
  • 
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  • Download the Microsoft Authenticator app to your phone by either scanning the QR code below or by going to the App Store (iPhone/iOS) or the Play Store (Android)

aka.ms/mobileauthenticator

• • • After you download the Microsoft Authenticator app on your phone click Next on the computer

• • Open the app and make sure you allow notifications on your phone and then click Next on the computer

• • A unique QR code will generate on the next screen
    • Be sure to scan the code by using the Microsoft Authenticator app on your phone                           (select Scan QR code)

• • Once you scan the QR code, click Next on the computer
  • Microsoft will then generate a random number on the computer, go to your the Authenticator app and enter the number you see on screen

• • After you enter the number in the app, your A-State account will be successfully linked to your Microsoft Authenticator app, Click Done

• • The next page will show you have successfully added Microsoft Authenticator as a verification method, along with your personal email. Click Done and continue to your Outlook inbox

• You have now completed the setup for your A-State user account and finished securing your account with the Microsoft Authenticator.

OPTIONAL

• If you are not redirected back to the Microsoft portal or you receive an error message when you are redirected, just close your web browser and reopen it. Then go to myaccount.microsoft.com and sign in. You will not have to repeat the setup process.
• Once you have completed the sign in process, if you are not prompted to setup the Microsoft Authenticator, select My Account and then Security Info
  
  
• Then you should be prompted to set up the Microsoft Authenticator. If not, The Security info page will show all the authentication methods currently configured for your account. From here, you can change or delete existing methods or add new ones. 
  
  To change an existing method, select the Change option next to the method you would like to change. Selecting Delete will remove it from your account.
  
• To add new methods to your account, select the Add sign-in methods.
  
• Select Microsoft Authenticator and follow the prompts to complete the setup. (Phone is no longer an authentication method)
  
  

For further assistance, contact the ITS Help Desk at 870-972-3933 or stop by IT Support Services (itsupportservices@astate.edu). It is located on the bottom floor of the Dean B. Ellis Library, Room 149

Migrating Your Data After Graduation: A Student's Guide

Migrating Your Data After Graduation: A Student's Guide

When you graduate, your university Microsoft 365 account will be deactivated after a period of non-enrollment. To retain access to your files, emails, and other data, follow these steps to migrate your content to a personal Microsoft account.

Step 1: Prepare Your Personal Microsoft Account

• Sign up for a free Microsoft account.

Important: If your account ends in @outlook.com, @hotmail.com, or @live.com, you automatically have a personal Microsoft account.

• Ensure you have access to OneDrive (5GB free storage) and Outlook.com.

Step 2: Transfer Your OneDrive Files

1. Sync your school OneDrive locally using the OneDrive desktop app.
2. Sign in to your personal OneDrive and sync it to your device.
3. Use File Explorer to drag and drop files from your school OneDrive folder to your personal OneDrive folder.
4. Wait for the sync to complete.

Note: The Mover tool previously used for this task has been retired.

Step 3: Export Your Emails and Contacts

• In Outlook:
  • Go to File > Open & Export > Import/Export.
  • Choose Export to a file > Outlook Data File (.pst).
  • Select your mailbox and save the file.
• In your personal Outlook account:
  • Use the same Import/Export wizard to import the .pst file.

Step 4: Export Your Calendar

• In Outlook:
  • Go to File > Save Calendar.
  • Choose the date range and save as an .ics file.
• Import the .ics file into your personal Outlook calendar.

Step 5: Save Your OneNote Notebooks

• Open each notebook in OneNote.
• Use File > Export to save as a OneNote package or PDF.
• Re-upload to your personal OneDrive or OneNote.

Note: Learn how you can sign into multiple accounts on OneNote here.

Step 6: Sync Microsoft Edge Data (Optional)

• Sign in to Edge with your personal account.
• Use Sync settings to transfer bookmarks, passwords, and preferences.

Tips for a Smooth Transition

• Start early: Begin the migration before your account is disabled.
• Use a wired connection for large file transfers.
• Backup sensitive files to an external drive or cloud service.