Advice on server migration.

mast3r

mast3r

mast3r

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Wilmslow, Cheshire
Hello All!

I am hoping you will be able to assist me plan a server migration and physical location move.

Current server is a 2003 SBS Box located here In the UK at site A, 200 miles from me, New server is 2008 Standard OR SBS I’m not entirely sure just yet, Likely to be on an ESXi build, this will be located in Guernsey.

I am set to fly over there this coming Sunday to start the installation and migration on Monday morning, as I am writing up my plan of action some things are a little hazy…

Can anyone please add to my list of things to do before my flight over,

1) Domain Details

2) Backup AD to import on other server (if can be done from SBS 2k3 to 2k8 stand)

3) Exchange info
A)Mail Boxes – How do i backup and Export in 2k3 (daft but it’s been so long since I’ve done this on a 2k3 box)

B) How do I make a backup of the Exchange server settings, IE, MX Records etc., Obviously there will be a new IP over in Guernsey so what will I need to be looking out for?

C) Ex-Merge Mailboxes – This will be a tricky one as the old server will still be online as I am over there getting the new server online, I’ll have to get someone to bring me the mailbox data over when the time is right.

4) List of Software to be re-installed, We have a BES Server installed in the UK on an XP Box, I think we will have another XP box mounted on ESXi for the BES Software, which I still need to buy!, I’ve never used this software, any pointers for me? Can I just take the XP Box from the UK over there with me?

5) Backup Exec installation and configuration on new server.


I should know all of this but it has been a while so I wanted to double check!
 
Those are some pretty fundamental questions, are you sure you are ready and prepared to make such a change on a live business server in 7 days time?
 
a1ex2001 said:
Those are some pretty fundamental questions, are you sure you are ready and prepared to make such a change on a live business server in 7 days time?
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winnerr.jpg


It's fair enough to have these sort of questions, but to be asking them a week before you're set to go to work :confused:

Usually you ask these sort of questions with enough time to then implement the answers in a test environment. I'd help answer the questions but it'd take half of my day to do them any justice, I suggest you start Googling and reading Microsoft documentation.

FAIL TO PREPARE etc etc

Good luck :p
 
Three years ago, this sort of migration is all i did, since moving jobs, i dont need to do any such work, now the time has come to get my hands dusty once again, im feeling slightly out of touch, i am sure once i am there ill be absolutely fine but i would like to document my procedures and have my back out plans written up, fail over solutions etc.

This was initially going to take place next month but the client needs it doing sooner, which is why i am here posting this.

I don't need to know HOW to do things, just the tasks of which need to be performed.


Thanks again.
 
mast3r said:
I don't need to know HOW to do things, just the tasks of which need to be performed.
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Sorry but really what is the difference bettween those two things?

I'm not trying to belittle your abilities I'm just not confident that you are ready to make what is a major change to a customers environment.
 
Ahh, that sounds rather contradicting.

I mean, i dont need to know the process of how to do the tasks, i just needed the bullet points of,
Backup AD
Ex-merge mail boxes when the users wont be working
Take note of file shares

Etc.
 
I'm almost positive AD can't just be backed up on an SBS2003 box and dumped on an SBS 2008 box

I assume you have read this thoroughly.

As with previous SBS setups, you need to (temporarily) add the new SBS box to the existing domain.

I hope you at the very least have a vpn between the sites.
 
I get nervous doing SBS 2003 to 2008 (soon to be 2011) migrations when I have both servers in front of me, never mind a plane journey apart.

I've done a dcpromo using a system state backup on a CD before but I've no idea how you could tie that into the SBS migration procedure (I was working on Server 2003).

I hope you don't have big mailboxes either. You can ExMerge the mailboxes out of the SBS 2003 server but exmerge can't make PSTs bigger than 2GB, so you have to chunk the mailbox into sections by date.
 
You, my friend, unfortunately, are going to be spending a little more time than you would imagine in Guernsey.

For example - 'Likely to be on an ESXi build'.. if you don't know this yet, you need to phone up your boss/client and cancel your plane ticket. Get back to the drawing board and plan it properly.

Sorry to be blunt about it, but you did ask.
 
If you want a your migration to be as pain free as possible - both for you and the client - then I'd recommend you look at this site and consider purchasing one of their 'Swing It!! ' migration kits

http://www.sbsmigration.com/

The kits start at a couple of hundred bucks which gives you 90 days support for for a single migration but you can use the kit as many times as you like.

The kit contains guides with step by step instructions taking you through the whole process from beginning to end. The kit also includes special custom tools which help with resource migration. The process is tried and tested and comes with online support if you get stuck.

I don't have any affiliation with the company just basing my recommendation on my experience using the kit to migrate a SBS2000 installation to SBS2003.

What I liked most about the process was the majority of it was performed offline, while the original server was still online, which meant the minimum amount of downtime for the client.

Hope this helps.
 
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Thanks for that buddy, If its an ESXi build that is not a problem, ill have that online in a few hours.

It has now been Confirmed and the Server has been ordered and will be delivered in the Morning.

I will have 4 Servers on this box now, a DC, TS, EXCH and a SQL server, then ill have 2 XP builds, for the BES and SONAS systems.

Ill be in Guernsey for 3 days, ill be done in 2 - 2.5 i estimate, the rest of the work will be held once we are up and running, then ill take a second trip with the mail data.
 
Exchange and SQL Server on the same ESXi hypervisor

Your brave!

Migrating 2003 to 2008 A.D, as mentioned above you need both up at the same time, same domain then dcpromo and transfer schema master!!!!! (FSMO roles)

Its not so bad though I would absolutely not run EXCH and SQL Server on the same ESXi box.

Short of a light use dev box I would never virtualise SQL Server period.
 
ThorpedoUK said:
Exchange and SQL Server on the same ESXi hypervisor

Your brave!

Migrating 2003 to 2008 A.D, as mentioned above you need both up at the same time, same domain then dcpromo and transfer schema master!!!!! (FSMO roles)

Its not so bad though I would absolutely not run EXCH and SQL Server on the same ESXi box.

Short of a light use dev box I would never virtualise SQL Server period.
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Can you image the strain those poor disks are going to be under. let alone the RAM.

to the OP I hope you have thought carefully about what server you are going to use for this as i wouldnt be looking at anyhting else than a dual quad with 12-24GB Ram and RAID 10 SAS OR SSD's ATLEAST! :) sorry to be blunt hehe
 
Thanks for that guys,

2003 to 2008 sbs is the plan for DC.

The server is:


Dell PowerEdge R900
4x Six-Core Intel Xeon E7450
96GB RAM
5x 600GB, SAS 6Gbps, 3.5-in, 15K HDD
VMware 4.1, 4 CPU - NOT ESXi

There maybe a Fiber SAN going in if the disks are under too much load.

I have a NAS to set up for backups over LAN so im sure i will have to be going down a fiber route at some point.
 
Angelos_n said:
Can you image the strain those poor disks are going to be under. let alone the RAM.

to the OP I hope you have thought carefully about what server you are going to use for this as i wouldnt be looking at anyhting else than a dual quad with 12-24GB Ram and RAID 10 SAS OR SSD's ATLEAST! :) sorry to be blunt hehe
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Are you just pulling these figures out of thin air? Where did he go through load/usage?

There's a lot of noob talking in this thread :p

YAH DEFINITELY NEED A BLADE SERVER WITH VMWARE XEN HYPER-V OS WITH 4EXABYTE DATA ARRAY ON FIBER CHANNEL SCSI ETHERNET FOR SURE
 
I didnt spec this Server...

It is a Racked R900, i suggested a Blade chasis with 4 blades for now but nope...

£20k? its more than £20k for the software alone buddy, VM, Backup Exec, SQL, SBS 2008, Server 2008 R2 Standard, BES etc.

This server web price - £81k, we paid far far less but more than 40k.

This is going to be installed in a new Estate house, for a VERY well known and wealthy individual from the UK, this server is also going to be running a some published apps, the SQL server is going to be used for WSS and some SUN Systems database, nothing heavy.

Thanks to all that tried to help.
 
mast3r said:
I didnt spec this Server...

It is a Racked R900, i suggested a Blade chasis with 4 blades for now but nope...

£20k? its more than £20k for the software alone buddy, VM, Backup Exec, SQL, SBS 2008, Server 2008 R2 Standard, BES etc.

This server web price - £81k, we paid far far less but more than 40k.

This is going to be installed in a new Estate house, for a VERY well known and wealthy individual from the UK, this server is also going to be running a some published apps, the SQL server is going to be used for WSS and some SUN Systems database, nothing heavy.

Thanks to all that tried to help.
Click to expand...

the owner is going to have a nice torrent and porn streaming box there. lol.
 
slylittlefox said:
Are you just pulling these figures out of thin air? Where did he go through load/usage?

There's a lot of noob talking in this thread :p

YAH DEFINITELY NEED A BLADE SERVER WITH VMWARE XEN HYPER-V OS WITH 4EXABYTE DATA ARRAY ON FIBER CHANNEL SCSI ETHERNET FOR SURE
Click to expand...

Yeh i did, it was more a way of a strong warning :), i just had an outburst ok :)
 
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