Windows Server
United States - English
Home
Windows Server “8” Beta
2008
2003
Library
Forums
53 out of 86 rated this helpful - Rate this topic

Windows Server 2008 R2 Upgrade Paths

Updated: April 7, 2010

Applies To: Windows Server 2008 R2

This document outlines supported and unsupported upgrade paths for editions of the Windows Server® 2008 R2 operating system.

Unsupported Upgrade Scenarios

  • Upgrades to Windows Server 2008 R2 from the following operating systems are not supported:

    • Windows® 95, Windows 98, Windows Millennium Edition, Windows XP, Windows Vista®, Windows Vista Starter, or Windows 7

    • Windows NT® Server 4.0, Windows 2000 Server, Windows Server 2003 RTM, Windows Server 2003 with SP1, Windows Server 2003 Web, Windows Server 2008 R2 M3, or Windows Server 2008 R2 Beta

    • Windows Server 2003 for Itanium-based Systems, Windows Server 2008 for Itanium-based Systems, Windows Server 2008 R2 for Itanium-based Systems

  • Cross-architecture in-place upgrades (for example, x86 to x64) are not supported.

  • Cross-language in-place upgrades (for example, en-us to de-de) are not supported.

  • Cross-edition upgrades (for example, the Windows Server 2008 Foundation SKU to the Windows Server 2008 Datacenter SKU) are not supported.

  • Cross-build type in-place upgrades (for example, fre to chk) are not supported.

Supported Upgrade Scenarios

 

From Windows Server 2003 (SP2, R2) Upgrade to Windows Server 2008 R2

Datacenter

Datacenter

Enterprise

Enterprise, Datacenter

Standard

Standard, Enterprise

 

From Windows Server 2008 (RTM-SP1, SP2) Upgrade to Windows Server 2008 R2

Datacenter

Datacenter

Datacenter Core

Datacenter Core

Enterprise

Enterprise, Datacenter

Enterprise Core

Enterprise Core, Datacenter Core

Foundation (SP2 only)

Standard

Standard

Standard, Enterprise

Standard Core

Standard Core, Enterprise Core

Web

Standard, Web

Web Core

Standard Core, Web Core
noteNote
Windows Server 2008 RTM is marked as "RTM-SP1" because a user sees "Windows Server 2008 Service Pack 1" in the system information.

 

From Windows Server 2008 (RC, IDS, RTM) Upgrade to Windows Server 2008 R2

Datacenter

Datacenter

Datacenter Core

Datacenter Core

Enterprise

Enterprise, Datacenter

Enterprise Core

Enterprise Core, Datacenter Core

Foundation

Standard, Foundation

Standard

Standard, Enterprise

Standard Core

Standard Core, Enterprise Core

Web

Standard, Web

Web Core

Standard Core, Web Core

noteNote
Windows Server 2008 R2 will be the last version of Windows Server to support the Intel Itanium processor and associated OEM server platforms. For more information, see Windows Server 2008 R2 for Itanium-Based Systems (http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=188382).

Did you find this helpful?
(1500 characters remaining)
Community Content Add
Annotations FAQ
i want to upgrade windows 2008 to windows server 20008 R2

I am having windows server 2008 R2 standard 64 bit, this server hosts the DFS. I want to upgrade the OS to windows 2008 Enterprise 64 bit. please advise me regarding this and if there is any risk kindly advise.

thanks

Hi,
Cross upgrade is not allowed. PLease read this link: http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/dd979563(v=ws.10)

Pinoy Maximus

 

History
Upgrade of Windows Server 2008 Foundation to Windows Server 2008 Standard
How do I do it? Do I have to buy a license? If so where do I buy the license?
History
MarsharkServer
Marshark server
History
2008 Developer Upgrade
Is there an upgrade path from Windows Server 2008 developer to Windows Server Standard 2008 R2?
History
Upgrade a win svr 2003 ent r2 sp2 32-bit to win svr 2008 ent sp2 64-bit?
Current server is Windows 2003 Ent R2 SP2 32-bit and I would really like to do an inplace upgrade to Windows 2008 Ent R2 64-bit. Can I do an inplace upgrade or do I have to start from scratch?
History
Upgrade Windows Standard 2008 to Windows Enterprise 2008 R2

In both tables I can see it's possible to upgrade from Std to Enterprise, I just want to confirm if this is also valid for OEM products and how to proceed.

Thank you!

Patricia

History
Upgrading WS 2008 Terminal Server to WS 2008 R2
I know that when I upgrade the copy of WS 2008 Std 64 Bit to WS 2008 R2 that I have to Activate the install of WS 2008 R2.
The current server is also the Terminal Server License Server, my question:- After the upgrade, do I also have to re-activate the TS License Server, or does it maintain its activation during to upgrade phase.
If I do have to re-activate the License Server, what procedure do I have to follow??
History
Upgrade a win svr 2003 ent r2 sp2 32-bit to win svr 2008 ent sp2 64-bit?
Current server is Windows 2003 Ent R2 SP2 32-bit and I would really like to do an inplace upgrade to Windows 2008 Ent R2 64-bit. Can I do an inplace upgrade or do I have to start from scratch?
History
Windows Server 2008 R2 Enterprise needed for load balancing?

We want to upgrade our 2 Terminal servers (now 2003 version) to Windows Server 2008 R2 Standard (including new hardware). Our current servers have load balancing, we want to do the same in the new environment. Do we need to buy the (expensive) Enterprise version just for load balancing, we now get confusing information from suppliers. Some say it is not needed, others say Enterprise version is needed.


Thanks in advance, Oscar.

History
Can I use activation key received for Server 2008R2 (64bit) to activate Server 2008 (32bit)
Can I use activation key received for Server 2008R2 (64bit) to activate Server 2008 (32bit) without contacting MS Activation Centre. If not please advise me the procedure to handle this. please advise ASAP.

History
Need to upgrade my computer..
Is there any way to upgrade my windows 98 to something more efficient ?
History
Help Needed Windows 2008 server r2
I shall do my best to be more sociable and try to help out as much as i can, could anybody point me in the right direction as to what roles i need to add to windows 2008 server r2 and functions also just the basics to start out with please.

Thank you in advance


History
Upgrading a Hyperv base OS
My host contains 3-5 base HyperV machines. What are the dependencies of upgrading win 2008 to win 2008 r2
History