upgrade from WIndows NT 4.0 to Windows 2003 Server

[Muhammad Shamroze]

Hello, There is server ML-530, in which RAID 1 is configured on OS, and Os is Windows NT 4.0 and I want to upgrade the server to windows 2003 so please can any body tell me that what steps should be taken while upgrading from windows NT 4.0 to windows 2003 server...please reply me soon..waiting for your reply thank you

[Alan_152]

A question I would ask you is "why do you want to do this, if NT4 does what is required?"

A direct upgrade is not supported. It might work, or it might not. There are too many variables to be considered. The proper procedure would be to wipe the system and install 2k03 fresh.

However, if you are dealing with a live application, or don't want to reinstall certain software, I would recommend the following:

1) do a full, cold system backup
2) perform an upgrade to Win2K server, correcting all issues noted in the upgrade wizard.
3) install all service packs, patches, driver upgrades, HALs, application upgrades, etc. Upgrade all file systems to the latest version of NTFS, and change them all to dynamic disks.
4) run the system for awhile to make sure there are no wierd surprises. Correct as needed
5) if satisfied at this step, do a full, cold system backup
6) perform an upgrade to win2k03 server, correcting all issues noted in the upgrade wizard.
7) install all service packs, patches, driver upgrades, HALs, application upgrades, etc.
8) run the system for awhile to make sure there are no wierd surprises. Correct as needed
9) if satisfied at this step, do a full, cold system backup