Moving Windows 2000 server to ProLiant server and IDE problem....

[David_435]

How can I move old instalation of MS Small Bussines Server 2000 from old server (IDE) to new HP ProLiant 350G3 Server with Active directory, Exchange and SQL settings? I wanted to try Norton Ghost, but HP ProLiant did not find any connected IDE disk at startup, so I could not clone them. And I afraid, that new server will not boot from SCSI device, because previous instalation of server boot from IDE. Please help....

[Leon Rosier]

Hi,

This is not going to work!!
Everything on your old system is configured to work with your old hardware, not with your new.
I don't think you will be able to do this without reinstalling the server.
I don't know SBS, but maybe it is possible to import your settings from your old computer on your new computer

Leon

[Zack Menendez]

David,

Been there and it ain't pretty. (In fact, that's what I'm trying to do again, which should work because I'm moving the whole RAID controller, but it won't because the newer rackmount servers don't accept 5V PCI cards!) Anyway, it is one of Windows 2000's fatal flaws that you can't do an easy transplant like that. What I had to do when transplanting a Domain Controller was do a backup of the system state volume, install 2000 fresh on the new system, and then restore the system volume. Went pretty much okay, but it was nerve-wracking and long. It did work, though.

Before trying anything, backup everything. :)

You can try this as a last-ditch effort:

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;Q292175

Take a look at this, too:

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=KB;EN-US;Q249694&ID=KB;EN-US;Q249694

Attached is a document that I got from Microsoft on how to recover a 2000 Server installation. Please try not to be scared by the title "Disaster Recovery." :) I followed these instructions and was able to make a successful transition - best of luck to you! And trust me, I wish there was a much simpler way to do a brain transplant like this!

Good luck,
Zack

[Chris DeLise]

I just went through this as well and gave up after three attempts. You'll probably have HAL ACPI issues, 0x7F STOP errors, and driver load issues. Your Smart Array card won't work in the old server and your IDE controller (or
another if you buy one) won't work in the new server. Major problem.

My solution: new SBS2000 install
Used ldifde to export AD
Used Exmerge to export and reimport exchange data.
Used Backup Exec to save/restore user data
Manually reset user groups and passwords,
because ldifde doesn't preserve groups or passwords.
Had issues with user profiles on client PCs, had to redo share permissions etc.
Had to manually ensure SBS2000 set as primary DNS (ipconfig /renew doesn't always do this).

There is a process to maintain AD by installing a plain vanilla W2K server (Not the one on the SBS2000 CD) on an spare machine,
dcpromo and join this to the domain as a
secondary domain controller. Transfer all
5 FSMO roles to the secondary server, then dcpromo the old SBS2000 and remove it from AD. Finally, run SBS2000 setup on the new server,
upgrading it to SBS2000. The AD forest will remain intact and SBS components can be added.
I lacked the vanilly w2k server disk so I didn't try this. Credit goes to Dana Becker, MSFT SBS MVP, try google for more details.
Also google for Jeff Middleton who has
several good articles on this topic.

Other good tools/references:
ASDI Edit
Q300956 - for performance ctr issues
Q255504 - Ntdsutil/FSMO roles
Q292509 - Exmerge
Q296592 - Renaming a W2K DC

My advice: Get good backups, set aside a long weekend to make the switch, and plan to keep the old server nearby (but off the lan) so you can compare settings while debugging the new system. Good luck!

Chris

[Robert Ghabel]

I have had good luck moving windows 2000 installations IF you install the drive controller and chipset controllers before you move the drive/array over to the new server. PnP will detect everything else, and when it comes down to it most everything else is trivial.
Good Luck
Rob