I'm in the process of upgrading our ERP system and migrating an older VMWare infrastructure from version 5/6 to new hardware running ESXi 8. Our main file server is on Windows 2016 with about 2TB of data. Rather than migrating the existing VM, I want to set up a new VM and just move the data over.
The file shares on the server are using Service Principal Names (SPNs), which is new territory for me since I've always accessed shares using straightforward paths like \serversharename. Currently, the mapped drives follow the format \spn-mycompanysharename, managed via Group Policy Objects (GPO).
I've done some research and here's my plan:
1. Build the new server.
2. Use RoboCopy to transfer files and permissions initially.
3. Create the share names on the new server and assign permissions.
4. Remove the "spn-mycompany" SPN from the old server using SetSPN -D.
5. Add the SPN to the new server with SetSPN -S.
6. Shutdown the old server.
7. Reboot a workstation to ensure drive mappings work.
I've informed users to log out before this transition. The server only hosts file shares, without any printer or web services. Does this plan cover everything, or am I overlooking something important?
5 Answers
You've got the right steps, but you might want to export and import the share permissions via the registry. Export the shares from HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINESYSTEMCurrentControlSetServicesLanmanServerShares on the old server and import that into the new one. This way, you won’t need to manually recreate the shares. Also, think about setting up a DFS namespace to simplify future migrations!
It's great that you have a solid plan! Just to add, during the cutover, consider blocking access to the old server to ensure nobody is using or modifying files at the last moment. You can also run a PowerShell command on the workstations to automatically remap drives, so users won't even have to think about it.
I prefer using a scheduled RoboCopy task to stage the migration. Initial copy for the main transfer, and then incremental copies after that until you're ready to make the final switch. Tools like Total Commander can help compare directories if you need to check for discrepancies in files.
If you're keeping the SPN, that should help with the drive mappings. This can save you from needing to remap manually. Plus, RoboCopy is fantastic for this situation! Just make sure to log the operations to track any errors.
Your plan sounds solid! Just remember to communicate with everyone about the cutover timeline, and you might want to perform a final check on file permissions before moving, so you don't accidentally carry over any clutter to the new server.
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