Dr Hu

I have an easy single domain NT4 migration to do, but am getting confused with all the associated crap that goes with it......

I have an old NT4 PDC well below spec for W2003 and an even older BDC!

I have bought a shiny new server and need to replace the PDC with this new machine:

So in my mind I was going to load NT4 on the new server as another domain BDC, let it replicate a few times to pick up the names/accounts - pull it & upgrade to W2003.......

BUT - do I really need to do the NT4 bit? - won't my clean w2003 server not just act as a member server (admittedly without AD) and replicate the accounts over anyway? - then I can just pull the PDC & BDC offline and then rename the new server the old PDC's computer name to keep the home folder location share name the same? (can you easily rename a w2003 domain server?) then promte to AD.

plus on the old PDC (seperate IDE drive) is 120gb of 170+ users home folders split into departments. now I know unfortunately I am going to break all the shares on these folders as I pull the data off the old server onto the new one to put onto the new servers RAID 5 array - any easy way of preserving the share permissions....? (I dont think there is)

Client PC's are mainly XP, with a few 2K and a couple NT4.0
I also have a MS Proxy server & another member server - so will run in mixed mode for a while, but I want the new W2003 server to do all the donkey work.

Any advice from anyone who has actually atempted this gladly recieved........

Puff The Magic Wagon!

iTrader: (2)

There was a good article on this in PC PRO 2 months ago - but I didn't read it in depth as didn't/wouldn't apply to me!

Will try & dig it out if you can't get a copy.

Dr Hu

Hi Puff,

Yes - I read that actually - it was that article which said to make in NT4 first, then upgrade.....

Not sure if it still seems the easiest way to do it though really...

Dr Hu

boing.....

ScoobyJawa

OTOH yes you have to do the NT4 bit. (although going on 2k not 2k3)

If you just install 2k/2k3 then the associated domain options won't be there during/post install, you'd have to start the domain from scratch again, but if you load it as a PDC first, it just pulls the old domain info into Active Directory when you run dcpromo.

Its IMHO easier to load NT4, make it BDC, then promote it to PDC, install 2k or 2k3 and make it the DC. If you want to run NT still you'll need to run it in mixed mode, otherwise make it 2k/2k3 only and upgrade all your other boxes and add them into the new 2k/2k3 domain obviously making another 2 or 3 DC's too. Or if you run mixed you can still run the 2k/2k3 DC with the old BDC's too.......

HTH