File Services Migration Guide

Applies To: Windows Server 2008 R2

This document provides guidance for migrating the File Services server role, including data, shared folders, and operating system settings from the source server to the destination server that is running Windows Server® 2008 R2.

About this guide

The File Services Migration Guide provides step-by-step instructions for how to migrate the File Services role, including data, shared folders, and operating system settings from the source server to the destination server that is running Windows Server® 2008 R2. It includes information about migrating the following:

• Data and shared folders

• Local users and groups

• Distributed File System (DFS) Namespaces

• Distributed File System Replication (DFS Replication)

• File Server Resource Manager (FSRM)

• Group Policy settings that are specific to server message block (SMB)

• Group Policy settings for Offline Files (also known as client-side caching or CSC)

• Shadow Copies of Shared Folders

• Information about the server’s identity

Target audience

This document is intended for information technology (IT) professionals and knowledge workers who are responsible for operating and deploying file servers in a managed environment.

What this guide does not provide

This guide does not provide information or support for the following migration scenarios:

• Clustering migration for clustered server configurations

• Upgrading roles on the same computer

• Migrating more than one server role

• Migrating data across subnets

• Migrating Network File System (NFS) shared folders

• Migrating file servers by using File Server Resource Manager (FRSM)

• Migrating encrypted files from Encrypting File System (EFS)

• Migrating file allocation tables (FAT) and FAT32 file systems

• Migrating hardware and software installation for storage resources

In addition to these unsupported scenarios, you should understand the following migration limitations:

• If the hard disk drive that contains your data is physically moved from the source server to the destination server, file and folder permissions for local users are not preserved.

• Reparse points, hard links, and mounted volumes are not migrated when data is copied, and they need to be migrated manually.

• To facilitate migrating file and shared folder permissions, you must migrate local users and groups as part of the migration procedure. However, not all user and group attributes are migrated.

  For more information about the attributes of local users and groups that can be migrated, see the Local User and Group Migration Guide (https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkID=128751) on the Microsoft Web site.

Supported migration scenarios

This guide provides instructions for migrating an existing server that is running File Services to a server that is running Windows Server 2008 R2. This guide does not contain instructions for migration when the source server is running multiple roles. If your server is running multiple roles, it is recommended that you design a custom migration procedure for your server environment, based on the information that is provided in other server role migration guides. Migration guides for additional server roles are available on the Windows Server 2008 R2 TechCenter (https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkID=128554).

Supported migration scenarios include the following configurations or features:

• File server is joined to a domain.

• File server is in a workgroup.

• File server data and shared folders are located in a storage area network (SAN) or other external storage location that preserves data and shared folder permissions (except data for local users and groups.

• File server data and shared folders are located on the server disk (direct-attached storage) that is preserving data and shared folder permissions.

• Distributed File System Namespaces and Distributed File System Replication

• FSRM migration from Windows Server 2003 R2, Windows Server 2008, and Windows Server 2008 R2 to Windows Server 2008 R2

• Shadow Copies of Shared Folders

Supported operating systems

The versions of operating systems shown in the preceding table are the oldest combinations of operating systems and service packs that are supported.

The following situations are also supported:

• Newer service packs, if available, are supported.

• The Foundation, Standard, Enterprise, and Datacenter editions of the Windows Server operating systems used as source or destination servers

• Migrations between physical operating systems and virtual operating systems

• Both x86-based and x64-based migrations for Windows Server 2003 and Windows Server 2008 R2. (All editions of Windows Server 2008 R2 are x64-based.)

Roles that are running on Server Core installations of Windows Server 2008 cannot be migrated because there is no.NET Framework available on Server Core installations of Windows Server 2008.

Migration to a destination server that is running an operating system in a UI language (that is, the installed language) that is different from the source server is not supported. For example, you cannot use Windows Server Migration Tools to migrate roles, operating system settings, data, or shared folders from a computer that is running Windows Server 2008 in the French system UI language to a computer that is running Windows Server 2008 R2 in the German system UI language.

File services migration overview

The following topics contain step-by-step information about how to migrate File Services from a computer that is running Windows Server 2003 or later to a computer that is running Windows Server 2008 R2:

• File Services Migration: Preparing to Migrate

• File Services Migration: Migrating the File Services Role

• File Services Migration: Verifying the Migration

• File Services Migration: Post-Migration Tasks

Impact of migration on other computers in the enterprise

The content in this section describes the impact to the computers in your enterprise during migration.

Impact of data migration by copying data and shared folders

• The performance of your source server can be affected during the data migration. This can result in slower access to files that are stored on the server.

• At the beginning of the second phase of the data migration, all open files are closed, which can lead to data loss.

• During the second phase of data migration, clients are unable to access the file server.

Impact of data migration by physically moving data drives

Clients cannot access the file server from the moment the storage device is disconnected from the source server until it is attached to the destination server.

Impact on DFS Namespaces

The DFS Namespaces are unavailable at several times during the migration process. You should plan your migration when you can take the namespace that is hosted on the source server offline.

Impact on DFS Replication

The impact of migration activity on other servers in the enterprise depends largely on the configuration of the replication topology. Typically, DFS Replication is configured in a hub and spoke replication topology with multiple branch office servers (spokes) replicating with a single hub server. Depending on which server in the replication topology is migrated, and how the data is migrated, the remaining servers in the enterprise can be affected. Client workstations that are accessing data that is contained in the replicated folder on the server can be affected during the migration process.

Client computers may be accessing data in the folder that is being replicated by using DFS Replication. The replicated folder is often exposed to client computers as an SMB shared folder.

For more information about the impact of the migration process on client computers, see Impact of data migration by copying data and shared folders earlier in this document.

Permissions required to complete migration

This section describes permissions that are required to perform the migration.

Permissions required for data and shared folder migration

For data and shared folder migration, local Administrator permissions are required on the source server and destination server.

Permissions required to complete migration on the destination server

This section describes permissions that are required to perform the migration on the destination server.

Permissions required to migrate DFS Namespaces

For a stand-alone namespace, the user must be a member of the local Administrators group on the destination server.

There are three permissions options for a domain-based namespace:

• Option 1: Membership in the domain Administrators group

• Option 2 (if there are more than one DFS Namespace server):

  • Permission to administer all namespaces that are hosted on the source server

  • Member of the local Administrators group on the destination server

• Option 3 (if there is a single DFS Namespace server):

  • Permission to delete and create domain-based namespaces in the domain

  • Member of the local Administrators group on the destination server

Permissions required to complete migration on the source server

This section describes permissions that are required to perform the migration on the source server.

Permissions required to migrate DFS Namespaces

For a stand-alone namespace, the user must have membership in the local Administrators group on the source server.

There are three permissions options for a domain-based namespace:

• Option 1: Membership in the domain Administrators group

• Option 2 (if there are more than one DFS Namespace servers):

  • Permission to administer the all namespaces that are hosted on the source server

  • Member of the local Administrators group on the source server

• Option 3 (if there is a single DFS Namespace server):

  • Permission to delete and create domain-based namespaces in the domain

  • Member of the local Administrators group on the destination server

Permissions required for DFS replication

For DFS Replication, the user who starts the migration must be a member of the domain Administrators group. This permission is required to remove the source server from replication groups to which it belongs. If the permissions to administer a replication group have been delegated to a particular user through the DFS Management snap-in, that user can use the DFS Management snap-in to perform tasks such as removing the source server from a replication group. The user must also be a member of the local Administrators group on the source server and the destination server.

Estimated duration

The time that is required to complete migration depends upon your enterprise’s File Services configuration in your enterprise and the total size of all files and shared folders that you want to migrate.

See Also

Concepts

File Services Migration: Preparing to Migrate
File Services Migration: Migrating the File Services Role
File Services Migration: Verifying the Migration
File Services Migration: Post-Migration Tasks
File Services Migration: Appendix A: Optional Procedures
File Services Migration: Appendix B: Migration Data Collection Worksheets