• Article

How to Use Boot Media with the Configuration Manager P2V Migration Toolkit

 

Updated: January 1, 2012

Applies To: System Center 2012 Configuration Manager, System Center 2012 Configuration Manager SP1

Use the information in this topic to run the boot media that is used to migrate to System Center 2012 Configuration Manager when using the Configuration Manager P2V Migration Toolkit. This process captures an image of your Configuration Manager 2007 installation and turns it into a virtual hard disk (VHD).

The Boot Media Migration Process and the VHD Capture Wizard

The Image Capture-only path is implemented through the boot media and the VHD Capture Wizard. The goal of this process is simply to automate the process of imaging your Configuration Manager 2007 installation, converting the image to a VHD, and saving the VHD to a location for safe keeping until the new server is up and running.

Before You Start

  • If you received .iso files instead of media, you must create the stand-alone media yourself by burning the .iso files onto a CD, DVD, or USB flash drive.

  • Ensure that you back up the server before running the boot media.

  • Perform disk maintenance (disk defragmentation and cleanup) on the server hard disks to reduce the time needed for the automated physical-to-virtual conversion process.

Information that You Need for the VHD Capture Wizard

The VHD Capture Wizard collects information for the image capture and VHD conversion process. This section lists the information you might want to have ready before starting the boot media and VHD Capture Wizard.

Be ready to provide the following information.

  • The drives to image for the VHD. Ensure that you know all drives that contain files related to Configuration Manager 2007, including the current operating system drive, the boot drive, and drives containing Configuration Manager data.

  • The location where you want to save the VHD. If this location is on a network drive, you will need the network credentials with permission to create the file and to save the file in that location.

To start the boot media

  1. Boot the server running the Configuration Manager 2007 site server you want to virtualize, and then choose the boot media as a boot option.

    The boot media loads the network stack and then starts the VHD Capture Wizard.

  2. On the Welcome page of the VHD Capture Wizard, click Next.

  3. On the Select Drives page, select all partitions where files related to Configuration Manager 2007 reside, and then click Next.

  4. On the Select Location page, specify the following settings.

    Important

    Ensure that there is enough disk space to save the VHD in the location you specify.

    - In **Folder Path**, click **Browse** to specify the location where you want to save the VHD. Create a new folder for the VHD, and then click **Save**.

  <div class="alert">


  > [!WARNING]
  > <P>Do not save the VHD to a drive you selected to virtualize in the previous step.</P>


  </div>

  5. Click Next. The virtualization process begins. Depending on the speed of your network and the size of the VHD, this process might take several hours.

  6. The Convert page displays information about the P2V capture and conversion process. When this is complete, click Finish. This exits the VHD Capture Wizard and reboots the server into the original operating system.

To validate that the partitions you specified are virtualized, check that the created VHDs reside in the location that you specified.

Troubleshooting

Use this section for information that can help you troubleshoot issues.

Image Capture-only Path Issue: Connection Fails When Saving the VHD to a Remote Location

Problem: If the connection fails to the VHD save location you specified on the network, on an external hard drive, or on another device, then the device drivers for the save location might be missing from the Windows PE boot image that was used to create your boot media.

Solution: Identify the missing device drivers. To identify the device drivers you need for connecting to the remote VHD save location, run the following command: ipconfig /all 

Provide this information to the person who created the boot media and request new boot media where the Windows PE boot image supplied by the Windows AIK includes the needed device drivers.

Here is the general process to create new boot media using Configuration Manager P2V Migration Toolkit.

  1. Add the device drivers that are needed to the Windows PE boot image that the Windows AIK supplies to the Configuration Manager P2V Migration Toolkit Win PE Creator Wizard. For information about adding drivers to an offline Windows PE image, see Add Device Drivers on an Offline Windows PE Image.

  2. Start Configuration Manager P2V Migration Toolkit and create new boot media by using the instructions in How to Create Boot Media for the Capture-only Path of the Configuration Manager P2V Toolkit.

Next Steps

When your new hardware is in place and you are ready to complete the migration process on the new server hardware, manually install Windows Server 2008 R2, activate the Hyper-V role, create a VM for your installation of Configuration Manager 2007, and then attach the VHD that you saved in the VHD Capture process.

Install System Center 2012 Configuration Manager on the physical computer or in a new VM that you create

At this point in the process, your server is configured and ready for a side-by-side migration. For detailed information about migration, including instructions for a side-by-side migration, see Migrating from Configuration Manager 2007 to System Center 2012 Configuration Manager.