Roaming Profiles

[Guest]

I am currently transitioning an entire network from a Windows NT Server
domain with Windows NT Workstations to Windows 2003 AD with Windows XP Pro
Workstations. (All new hardware) The old network has had many different
techs managing it over the years and is in pretty rough shape. I want to
start AD fresh and do not want to migrate the NT user account data but I am
concerned about their current roaming profiles and mapped home directories.
Does anyone know of a good tech article to assist in my roaming profile and
user directory migration planning?

Thanks in advance.

 

[Shenan Stanley]

I am currently transitioning an entire network from a Windows NT
Server domain with Windows NT Workstations to Windows 2003 AD with
Windows XP Pro Workstations. (All new hardware) The old network has
had many different techs managing it over the years and is in pretty
rough shape. I want to start AD fresh and do not want to migrate the
NT user account data but I am concerned about their current roaming
profiles and mapped home directories. Does anyone know of a good tech
article to assist in my roaming profile and user directory migration
planning?

Personally (in the case you describe) - depending on the size of the
network - I would not move the profiles. The data in them? Sure. That is
a copy or move command. I would create the user accounts with some
consistent methodology, inform the users of any change in their
username/password and when it was going to occur (ie: when they get their
new computers since they are going from NT to XP workstations..) and then, I
would move their data to their new home drive, their data (not their actual
profile, just their my documents, favorites and (God forbid) their email
data if they had that on their roaming profile.

Why am I saying this? We are not talking a gentle change anyway - for the
adminn or the user. Windows XP is nothing like Windows NT workstation - in
looks, abilities or reactions. Windows 2003 AD is SO much different than
Windows NT domain. Why bring the corrupt old into the pristine new and
tarnish what you have?

Of course that is my opinion, and it could be a timely and costly one if you
don't know how to script and automate many things - will be even if you do..
hah But I truthfully don't think it would be more costly than other
alternatives and I think the end-result would be much cleaner.

 

[Guest]

Shenan,

Thanks for the input and I agree with not bringing over the roaming
profiles… way too messy and begging for corruption. Bringing over the user
directories will be a little manual but fairly straight forward and clean.

E-mail in general should not be an issue. I have their new Exchange 2003
server up and have successfully tested exmerge to export/import mail from
Exchange 5.5. The biggest challenge with mail will be finding their archived
..pst's and possibly PAB's (Yes Outlook 97).

Everything else is pretty easy. The new servers are all up in a new domain
and running along side the old NT domain, I created a sys-prepped ghost image
for the new workstations for easy rollout, created a script to add all their
printers, and used the Office Resource Kit to create default Outlook profiles
so I don’t need to configure each outlook client individually.

Testing all went well so it's time to cross my fingers and pull the trigger.

Thanks again

Rob

 

[Guest]

For the issue concerning archieved emails: place the emphasis entire upon the
user.

Advise them that should they have any archived files, then it is in their
interest to make sure that their files are moved to a directory which you
nominate.

Make the job easier for yourself. They know where it is, if not too bad as
it would be lost to them otherwise.

As for technical information etc, start here:

http://www.microsoft.com/technet/prodtechnol/windowsserver2003/migration/default.mspx