Winding Down Windows Server 2003 in Your Organization

If you go to the end of the Server 2003 Windows Support web pages, you will see a clock that counts the days, hours, minutes and seconds until Server 2003 reaches the end of support July 14, 2015. At the time of this writing, which is only eight months away. Since the migration has on average between 8-12 months, if you have not already started their migration from Server 2003, you better start now. On July 14, 2015, strikes, Server 2003 will be supported. There will be no security patches, no support, and no chance to pass any type of audit, which could result in fines or even lawsuits.

But how big is the problem? Estimates vary, but many studies show that about one-third of all implementations of Windows Server are still running Server 2003. Given the number of Windows servers distributed around the world, this means a lot of implementations Server 2003.

Because there are so many distributions Server 2003? It could be due to the "if it is not broke, do not fix it" mentality, but I suspect another reason is that many organizations are simply unaware of the distributions. If you are using a phone of 11 years, every day, it will be evident that it is obsolete. However, a service running on an old server is much less clear. There are many systems that still use other applications on IIS 6.0 and earlier operating systems. As organizations not directly see or touch, are not aware of the service-specific host. This leads to the first order of business: the discovery of the implementations Server 2003 in an organization.

Discovery

For large companies, it is common to see the old infrastructure in branches, factories and oil rigs, where little Hands-On IT. Most estimates indicate that implementations Server 2003 are divided equally between implementations physical and virtualized deployments. So, the first step in migrating from Server 2003 to determine the number of physical and virtual servers with installations of 2003, in which they are located, how they are used, and what software is running on them. If an organization has a large percentage of implementations Server 2003 (over 20 percent), which should focus on modernizing their data centers. If an organization has a low percentage of implementations Server 2003, you can focus on the migration of workloads.

Some organizations already have a solution in the management of servers and have a detailed knowledge of each server. For example, you could use the Configuration Manager Microsoft System Center Operations Manager and System Center to manage their physical servers and System Center Virtual Machine Manager to manage virtual servers. Using the tools of management, these organizations can create reports distributed systems environment and architecture of the management server (which is probably 32-bit Windows Server 2003). They can also collect performance data, which is important when planning a migration because the migration will likely result in a virtual environment, in which (for example, CPU, I / S Memory operations per second IOPS) may be based measures the amount resources on real needs rather than just what the environment needs today.

It 'important to understand the functions of the operating system (for example, DNS, File, Print, IIS) applications and native operating system (such as Microsoft Exchange Server, Microsoft SQL Server) running on each server. Company management tools should be able to provide this information. However, if an earlier application is an executable file that is copied to a folder and launched by a user is logged in, you will not be informed. Thus, while the business management tools are great because automate the inventory process, still need the human element, in particular for older systems that are probably neglected.

If your organization does not have a business management tool that provides a complete inventory of all instances of the Windows Server OS, its use and applications, you can download the (MAP) free Microsoft Assessment and Planning Toolkit. This set of tools allows you to assess the current IT infrastructure of an organization in preparation for the migration of desktop, server and cloud. For example, it is possible to assess the availability of the operating system for a migration to Windows Server 2012, check the operating system configuration for virtualization, and determine the use of SQL Server Distribution. The MAP Toolkit does not deploy any agent in the environment. Instead, it is installed in a central location. Then remotely query the environment and able to also collect performance data periodically. After the MAP Toolkit has collected data for a sufficient period of time, you can create two reports can provide some information about the true extent of migration Server 2003

• Server Inventory Report. This report lists all currently deployed Windows Server instances and analyzes their hardware.
• Server Roles Report. This report specifies the roles that are installed on the servers.

Previously, I mentioned that the human element is needed to manually check systems. The human element is also required to assess the criticality of each deployment and its application. This assessment will not only dictate the resiliency required on the target platform but also help determine how and when the migration should be performed. For example, this assessment can help determine the maintenance window for when a migration can occur.

One of the most time-consuming aspects of a Server 2003 migration will be ascertaining if the applications will even run on 64-bit Server 2012 or Windows Server 2012 R2. If the application is a 32-bit application without any 16-bit code or any drivers, there's a good chance it will run on Server 2012 or Server 2012 R2, but is it supported by the vendor? If so, do you still have the install files and knowledge to perform a re-installation of the application on a modern OS? Or will you need to use a third-party tool such as AppZero, which can grab the application and its dependencies from Server 2003, put the application in a "bubble," then run it on a modern OS? If running the 32-bit application on Server 2012 or Server 2012 R2 isn't supported by the vendor, are you able to upgrade the application to a newer version and what does that upgrade entail?

Planning and Justification

Organizations need to know what direction they want their technology to be addressed (for example, you want to deploy a private cloud or public cloud). As part of the migration planning, they need to ensure that the migration was desired final suits his coach. If your organization does not have a technical director, now would be a good time to establish one. You should take the time to re-evaluate the real needs of their environment and design a solution with all the features available. To find the desired end state, it can be done, what needs to migrate the final architecture.

In order to design a solution that takes advantage of the capabilities available on Server 2012 or Server 2012 R2, you must first know about them. To evaluate the full range of skills can also lead to much simpler implementations.

Most of the changes in the operating system to Windows Server 2003 are not the parameters of existing functionality, but rather large revisions and completely new functional areas. The main new features include Server 2003 for x86 virtualization (Hyper-V), desktop virtualization (including virtualization session), Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) and Application Publishing (Remote Desktop Services). There have also been huge changes in Active Directory (AD), including granular security policies based on group membership, the ability to retrieve objects, federation with other organizations, the ability to publish web services enabling a single sign on users and pre-authentication (Web Proxy Application), and centralized network management (IPAM management IP address).

A thorough discussion of all windows operating system capabilities to new since Server 2003 is beyond the scope of this article, but there are many articles that discuss the new features of Windows Server 2008, Windows Server 2008 R2, Server 2012 and Server 2012 R2. The key point is to ensure that this research is conducted.

This search is useful for another aspect. If you do not have Windows Server Software Assurance (in this case you are entitled to the new version), you'll always be the corporate checkbook to pay for the new version, and in this case, you probably need to justify the purchase and viewing ROI. Taking the time to identify the new features in Server 2012 or Server 2012 R2 can help you identify the added value of the new operating system will bring to the organization. For example, you might be able to delete some third-party solutions and their capabilities are provided natively on Server 2012 or Server 2012 R2.

Migration

There's no direct upgrade path from Server 2003 to Server 2012 or Server 2012 R2. Even if such an upgrade existed, nearly every Server 2003 deployment is 32-bit, whereas Server 2008 R2 and later is 64-bit only—and it's not possible to upgrade between architectures. This means any type of direct upgrade (or even a multi-hop upgrade) is likely out of the question. Instead, you should concentrate on migrating services. Ideally, there's some spare resources in your organization, so you can migrate services from the source OS to the new target while both are available. The alternative would be backing up the application and role states to a file, performing a clean installation of Server 2012 or Server 2012 R2, then restoring the application and role states, but this might not even work in all scenarios. For detailed information about the upgrade paths, see Evaluation Versions and Upgrade Options for Windows Server 2012 or Upgrade Options for Windows Server 2012 R2.

There's no single migration solution that will migrate all the services. Instead, each service has its own migration approach. Let's walk through the approaches to migrate six major services often found in Server 2003: AD, DNS, DHCP, file services, print services, and IIS. (For information on how to migrate other types of services, see Migrate Roles and Features to Windows Server 2012.)

AD. Providing you have followed best practices, your domain controllers (DCs) don't run any other software, which means the existing domain and forest will be prepared for Server 2012 or Server 2012 R2. In this case, you need to create new DCs running Server 2012 or Server 2012 R2, migrate the Flexible Single-Master Operation (FSMO) roles, migrate any certificates or other items, then decommission the Server 2003 DCs. To introduce Server 2012 DCs, the forest (and therefore the domains) must be Windows Server 2003 mode. For detailed guidance on migrating DCs, see Upgrade Domain Controllers to Windows Server 2012 R2 and Windows Server 2012.

DNS. If you're hosting DNS on Windows, you're likely integrating it with AD and your DNS servers are DCs. Therefore, when you migrate AD, the DNS configuration will move as well. It's important to remember to migrate any DNS server configurations, such as forwarding. If the DNS servers will be hosted on new IP addresses, you need to make sure that you update any static IP configurations and all DHCP configurations. To avoid this time-consuming task, most organizations will change the IP addresses of the new servers to that of the old servers once the old servers are retired.

DHCP. DHCP scopes provide the IP addresses given to clients, along with their IP configuration (e.g., gateway, DNS server). To migrate DHCP scopes, the best option is to export the scopes from the Server 2003 instance, then import them to the Server 2012 or Server 2012 R2 instance. Full details on this approach are available in the TechNet Networking Blog post "Steps to move a DHCP database from a Windows Server 2003 or 2008 to another Windows Server 2008 machine." If there is any delay in the DHCP scope export and import and a risk of IP address reuse, you can configure the DHCP server to check if an IP address is being used before it's allocated by enabling address conflict detection.

File Services. There are two parts to migrate file services: storage and moving actions, then update all references to the data stored in the stock. If you intend to reuse the server names, no change in the reference. However, this practice is not common, since it can be difficult and time consuming to identify each location where the paths are used. Best solution for migration management and long-term leverage DFS namespaces. These abstracted logical namespaces provide redirection shares specific files, which is invisible to the end user. With DFS namespaces, a new logical namespace, which initially has links to file servers Server 2003 is created.

Then it performs the task of updating references, which can take months. Once the DFS namespace is used by all clients, data and actions can be migrated to the target and the DFS link updated to point to the new R2 Server 2012 or Server 2012 file server is also required the actual data and the rate of migration. Microsoft has a complete set of tools for migrating file services, including integration with DFS. For more information about migrating file services, see Migrating Files and storage services in Windows Server 2012.

Print Services. Like file services, printer configurations and shares must be migrated from the source server to the target server. In addition, you'll need new printer drivers that are 64-bit and compatible with Server 2012 or Server 2012 R2 as well as with modern clients. Microsoft has a print migration wizard and command-line tool you can use for migrating printer services. You can download these tools from the Migrate Print and Document Services to Windows Server 2012 web page.

IIS. If all you have running on IIS 6 are basic HTML pages or Active Server Pages (ASP), you can copy the content to the IIS version running on Server 2012 or Server 2012 R2, then update the DNS records to point to the new IIS server. However, organizations typically have more complex configurations. The good news is that you can use a migration toolkit named Web Deploy 3.5. If you need to migrate websites to Microsoft Azure websites, there's a separate tool available named Azure Websites.

Besides migrating the core OS roles, you might have to migrate applications such as SQL Server and Exchange Server. The exact process to migrate applications is application-specific but here are some good references to start with:

•    SQL Server—Supported Version and Edition Upgrades
•    Exchange Server—Upgrade from Exchange 2007 to Exchange 2013
•    Other server applications—AppZero