I'm in the process of upgrading my file servers from Windows Server 2019 to 2025. I recently moved my old virtual machines over with the goal of upgrading them gradually. Currently, my file server runs a 50GB VHDX for the OS and a 1.3TB VHDX for the data, with everything organized in a Shares folder mapped to different network drives. The setup is straightforward, with no complex features like DFS, but I do have deduplication enabled.
In the past, I've successfully set up new servers with fresh VHDX files, using robocopy to transfer everything. My thought now is, could I create a new server with just the OS, shut down the old one, disconnect the data drive, and connect it to the new server? I'm worried about how deduplication might affect this process. If needed, I could turn it off temporarily during the switch. Should I just stick with the robocopy method? Also, I have a similar question about moving SQL Server 2019 under the same circumstance.
5 Answers
You can definitely just pick up that VHD and move it to the new VM without any drama. No need for tedious file transfers!
Honestly, why not just go for an in-place upgrade? That’d save you time and hassle!
I've done the same thing successfully! Just remember to keep the original server's name and IP when you set up the new one. Renaming the old server temporarily to something like "xxxFS1-Old" is a great call. You'll have to remap the shared drives, but NTFS permissions should follow along fine.
And yeah, if the deduplication question is on your mind, I've seen it work fine without issues when repointing to the new VM.
So how reliable is that old hard drive going to be? Just curious about the risk. Did you upgrade just the OS or the physical servers too?
Just to clarify, we updated the physical servers to brand new hardware, not just the OS. So, I'm not worried about drive failure here.
That approach should work fine! You can even easily migrate the shares from the registry, making it a breeze to avoid remapping them. Just check on the deduplication; it's best to turn it off temporarily while you switch everything over. If it's not too complex, you could also consider cloning the OS disk for an in-place upgrade to ensure everything's compatible before you reattach the data drive.
Yeah, just turning off deduplication while you make the switch is a solid plan. When it’s ready on the new server, you can turn it back on without problems.
If everything's straightforward, you likely won't have issues with the deduplication. Just ensure you have everything backed up, and you should be good to go!
Good idea! Make sure you have those shares documented or export the registry to make remapping easier. Deduplication shouldn't cause any hiccups.