Upgrade Help!

[John]

Just wanted some guidance. We currently are running a Win NT Domain with
Exchange 5.5. It is becoming a problem, DuH!! right. Anyways, to upgrade
to Win2000 Active Directory, would I go about creating another Server as a
Backup Domain Controller with nothing else on it. Promote it to Primary
Domain Controller. Then Pop a Win 2000 CD in and Upgrade it to 2000 and put
it in Mixed Mode? So then the 2000 Active Directory and NT Domain can both
run at the same time.

Now when I do this, my Users will see nothing because it will all be
happening behind the scenes correct? Then I can build a Exchange Server 2000
add it to the Active Directory and then all I need to do is move my
Mailboxes and Users over to the Active Directory side, correct? Do I need
to do anything on the workstations once I go to Active Directory?

Which tools do I use to move the mailboxes and users? Am I going in the
right direction here?

Any help appreciated.

 

[joe.beaulieu]

Hey John, I am going through the same process myself. I built a new
DC and put it in Native Mode right away. You can use the Active
Directory Migration Tool to do all of this (except the Exchange part).
It will migrate your users, groups, computers (and their profiles,
which to me was critical) and do security translations on file serves
etc. I imagine you will get more directed help from somebody at Msoft
that watches this board, but my first and best recommendation would be
to grab the ADMT off of the Microsoft site, install it in a test
environment and beat it up. You will see what it does and how it
works. It is invaluable. Otherwise you are going to each computer and
migrating profiles manually. It will get ugly very fast if you have
any significant number of users.

HTH

Joe

 

[Danny Sanders]

Otherwise you are going to each computer and

migrating profiles manually. It will get ugly very fast if you have
any significant number of users.

Actually John, if you perform an upgrade as you detailed you will be OK as
far as user profiles are concerned. What you are doing is "upgrading" the
domain to Win 2k and what Joe is talking about is "migrating".

You should be aware that migrating to Win 2k requires you to put your AD
domain in native mode. In native mode NT 4.0 BDC can not replicate with AD
DCs. If you have the need for a NT 4.0 BDC on the network after you move to
AD upgrading is the way to go.

hth
DDS W 2k MVP MCSE

 

[John]

Well,

From what I have read, if we try the upgrade, we can run in Mixed Mode,
instead of Native Mode. Which if for some reason along the way there is a
problem or something isn't working right, we can turn off that 2000 Server
and promote one of the BDC to Primary and be right back where we started. Is
this right?

 

[Danny Sanders]

Yes

DDS

Well,

From what I have read, if we try the upgrade, we can run in Mixed Mode,
instead of Native Mode. Which if for some reason along the way there is a
problem or something isn't working right, we can turn off that 2000 Server
and promote one of the BDC to Primary and be right back where we started.
Is this right?

 

[Hank Arnold]

If you haven't already committed to W2K, you should consider Windows
2003. You are "upgrading" from a *REALLY* obsolete/unsupported OS to one
that is just unsupported.

BTW, I should talk.... Our domain is W2K and I'm dubious I'll be able to
justify management to upgrade to 2003 any time soon......... :-(

Regards,
Hank Arnold