Prepare your Source Server for Windows Server 2012 Essentials migration

Updated: November 21, 2012

Applies To: Windows Server 2012 Essentials, Windows Server 2012 R2 Essentials

Complete the following preliminary steps to ensure that the settings and data on your Source Server migrate successfully to the Destination Server.

To prepare for migration

1. Back up your Source Server

2. Install the most recent service packs

3. Verify the network configuration

4. Evaluate the health of the Source Server

5. Run the Migration Preparation Tool on the Source Server

6. Create a plan to migrate line-of-business applications

7. Create a plan to migrate email that is hosted on Windows Small Business Server 2011 Standard

Back up your Source Server

Back up your Source Server before you begin the migration process. Making a backup helps protect your data from accidental loss if an unrecoverable error occurs during migration.

To back up the Source Server

1. Perform a full backup of the Source Server. For more information about backing up Windows Small Business Server 2011 Standard, see Managing Server Backup.

2. Verify that the backup ran successfully. To test the integrity of the backup, select random files from your backup, restore them to an alternate location, and then confirm that the restored files are the same as the original files.

Install the most recent service packs

You must install the latest updates and service packs on the Source Server prior to migration. If updates or service packs are missing, the Migration Preparation Tool will report the problem and ask you to install the necessary updates before proceeding.

Verify the network configuration

Before you can migrate your network to Windows Server 2012 Essentials, you must install and configure a router on your network and configure the Source Server to use one network adapter. When you are done, your network will look like the following figure:

Disable the VPN on the Source Server

If you are using a VPN on the Source Server, disable it.

To disable the VPN on the Source Server

1. Log on to the Source Server as an administrator, and then open the Windows SBS Console.

2. On the navigation bar, click Network, and then click Connectivity.

3. In the Tasks pane, click Configure a virtual private network in the task pane. The Set Up Virtual Private Networking Wizard opens.

4. Click Do not allow users to connect to the server by using a VPN.

5. The wizard disables the Routing and Remote Access service, closes port 1723 on the router, and removes the VPN configuration. When the wizard finishes disabling the VPN, click Finish.

Verify the settings for the DHCP Server role

Windows Small Business Server 2011 Standard is configured to run the DHCP Server role. However, Windows Server 2012 Essentials does not use the DHCP Server role, and you will eventually need to move the DHCP Server role to the router. During migration, you can manage the DHCP Server role from the Source Server or from the router, depending on your current network configuration:

• If you are running the DHCP Server role on the Source Server, we recommend that you continue to run this role from the Source Server during migration. After you have removed the Source Server from the network, move the DHCP Server role to the router.

• If your network already runs the DHCP Server role from the router, and it is running without issues, we recommend that you continue to run the DHCP Server role from the router during migration.

Evaluate the health of the Source Server

It is important to evaluate the health of your Source Server before you begin the migration. Use the following procedures to ensure that the updates are current, to generate a system health report, and to run the Windows Server Solutions Best Practice Analyzer (BPA).

Download and install critical and security updates

Installing critical and security updates on the Source Server helps ensure that your migration will be successful and helps protect your network during the migration process.

To check for the latest updates

1. From the Source Server, click Start, click All Programs, and then click Windows Update.

2. Click Check online for updates from Microsoft Update.

3. If updates are found, click Install updates.

Check the network reports for critical errors

You can generate network reports from the Windows SBS 2011 Standard Console.

To generate a network report

1. Open the Windows SBS Console.

2. On the navigation bar, click Reports.

   The list view displays the network reports that are scheduled for your server.

3. In the list view, click the network report for which you want to generate a current report.

4. In the tasks pane, click Generate report.

   The report appears in the details pane of the Windows SBS Console.

Run the Windows Server Solutions Best Practices Analyzer

You can run the Windows Server Solutions Best Practices Analyzer (BPA) to verify that there are no issues on your server, network, or domain before you start the migration process. The BPA collects configuration information from the following sources:

• Active Directory® Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI)

• The registry

• The Internet Information Services (IIS) metabase

The Windows Server Solutions BPA checks the following services and applications:

• Exchange Server

• Update Services

• Network configuration

• Windows SharePoint® Services

• Microsoft SQL Server™

To use the Windows Server Solutions BPA to analyze your Source Server

1. Download and install the Windows Server Solutions Best Practices Analyzer at the Microsoft Download Center.

2. After the download is complete, click Start, click All Programs, and then click SBS Best Practices Analyzer Tool.

3. In the navigation pane, click Start a scan.

4. In the details pane, type the scan label. The scan label is the name of the scan report, for example SBS BPA Scan 1Jul2012.

5. Click Start scanning.

6. After the scan finishes, click View a report of this Best Practices scan.

After collecting information about server configuration, the Windows Server Solutions BPA verifies that the information is correct and then presents administrators with a list of information and issues sorted by severity. The list describes each issue and provides a recommendation or possible solution. Three report types are available:

To view the description and the solutions for an issue, click the issue in the report. Not all of the issues that are reported by the Windows Server Solutions BPA affect migration, but you should solve as many of the issues as possible to ensure that the migration is successful.

Synchronize the Source Server time with an external time source

The time on the Source Server must be set to within five minutes of the time on the Destination Server, and the date and time zone must be the same on both servers. If the Source Server is running in a virtual machine, the date, time, and time zone on the host server must match that of the Source Server and the Destination Server. To help ensure that Windows Server 2012 Essentials is installed successfully, you must synchronize the Source Server time to the Network Time Protocol (NTP) server on the Internet.

To synchronize the Source Server time with the NTP server

1. Log on to the Source Server with a domain administrator account and password.

2. Click Start, click Run, type cmd in the text box, and then press ENTER.

3. At the command prompt, type w32tm /config /syncfromflags:domhier /reliable:no /update, and then press ENTER.

4. At the command prompt, type net stop w32time, and then press ENTER.

5. At the command prompt, type net start w32time, and then press ENTER.

Run the Migration Preparation Tool on the Source Server

You cannot perform a migration mode installation without first running the Migration Preparation Tool on your Source Server. This tool is designed to prepare your Source Server and domain to be migrated to Windows Server 2012 Essentials.

To run the Migration Preparation Tool, you must be a member of the Enterprise Admins group, the Schema Admins group, and the Domain Admins group.

To verify that you have the appropriate permissions to run the tool on the Source Server

1. On the Source Server, click Start, click Administrative Tools, and then click Active Directory Users and Computers.

2. In the console tree, click to expand your domain, click MyBusiness, click Users, and then click SBSUsers.

3. Right-click the administrator account that you are using for the migration, and then click Properties.

4. Click the Member Of tab, and then verify that Enterprise Admins, Schema Admins, and Domain Admins are listed in the Member of text box.

5. If the groups are not listed, click Add, and then add each group that is not listed.

• You might receive a permission error if the Netlogon service is not started.
• You must log off and log back on the server for the changes to take effect.

You can use the latest version of the Windows Update Agent to ensure that the server update process works properly.

Before you can install Windows Update Agent on the Source Server, you must first install Windows PowerShell 2.0 and Microsoft Baseline Configuration Analyzer 2.0.

You can use the latest version of the Windows Update Agent to ensure that the server update process works properly.

Before you can install Windows Update Agent on the Source Server, you must first install Windows PowerShell 2.0 and Microsoft Baseline Configuration Analyzer 2.0.

• To download and install Windows PowerShell 2.0, see article 968929 in the Microsoft Knowledge Base.

• To download and install Microsoft Baseline Configuration Analyzer 2.0, see Microsoft Baseline Configuration Analyzer 2.0 at the Microsoft Download Center.

• To download and install the latest version of Windows Update Agent, see article 949104 in the Microsoft Knowledge Base.

To install and run the Migration Preparation Tool on the Source Server

1. Insert Windows Server 2012 Essentials DVD1 in the DVD drive on the Source Server.

2. Open Windows Explorer, browse to the \support\tools folder of the DVD, and then double-click the sourcetool.msi file.

• If the Migration Preparation Tool is already installed on the server, run the tool from the Start menu.
• To ensure that you are prepared for the best possible migration experience, it is recommended that you always choose to install the most recent update.

The wizard installs the Migration Preparation Tool on the Source Server. When the installation is complete, the Migration Preparation Tool runs automatically and installs the latest updates.

3. In the Migration Preparation Tool, select I have a backup and am ready to proceed, and then click Next.

The Migration Preparation Tool prepares the source domain for migration by extending the Active Directory schema. After the task is completed, click **Next** to continue.

4. After preparing the source domain, the Migration Preparation Tool scans the Source Server to identify two types of potential issues.

   • Errors Issues found on the Source Server that can block the migration or cause the migration to fail. Follow the instructions in the error message to fix the issues, and then click Scan Again.

   • Warnings Issues found on the Source Server that can cause functional problems during migration. It is strongly recommended that you follow the instructions in the error message to fix issues before proceeding with the migration.

   After you fix or acknowledge all of the issues, click Next.

5. In the Migration Preparation Tool, click Finish.

6. When the Migration Preparation Tool finishes, you may be prompted to restart the Source Server before you can begin migrating to Windows Server 2012 Essentials.

Create a plan to migrate line-of-business applications

A line-of-business (LOB) application is a critical computer application that is vital to running a business. LOB applications include accounting, supply-chain management, and resource-planning applications.

When you plan to migrate your LOB applications, consult with the LOB application providers to determine the appropriate method for migrating each application. You also must locate the media that is used to install the LOB applications on the Destination Server.

You can fill in the following table as you collect LOB application information. A good place to start collecting information is to open Windows Control Panel, click Add/Remove Programs and look in the Program Files (x86) and the Program Files folders.

Create a plan to migrate email that is hosted on Windows Small Business Server 2011 Standard

In Windows Small Business Server 2011 Standard, email is provided through Exchange Server. However, Windows Server 2012 Essentials does not provide an inbox email service. If you are currently using Windows Small Business Server 2011 Standard to host your company’s email, you will need to migrate to an alternate on-premise or hosted solution.

Migrate email to Microsoft Office 365

If you have chosen to use Microsoft Office 365 as the email solution for your domain, see Migrate All Mailboxes to the Cloud with a Cutover Exchange Migration to start the email migration to Office 365. We recommend that you complete the email migration before you Install Windows Server 2012 Essentials in migration mode.

Migrate email to another on-premises Exchange Server

For information about how to migrate email to another on-premises Exchange Server, see Integrate an On-Premises Exchange Server with Windows Server 2012 Essentials. We recommend that you set up the new on-premises Exchange Server after you Install Windows Server 2012 Essentials in migration mode, and then finish the email migration before demoting the Source Server.