File server migration toolkit without dfs

Select Start scan. The page updates to shows when the scan is complete. Figure 2: Inventorying servers. Select each server to review the shares, configuration, network adapters, and volumes that were inventoried. Storage Migration Service won't transfer files or folders that we know could interfere with Windows operation, so you'll see warnings for any shares located in the Windows system folder. You'll have to skip these shares during the transfer phase.

For more info, see What files and folders are excluded from transfers. On the Add a destination device and mappings page, the first source server is listed. Type the name of the server or clustered file server to which you want to migrate and then select Scan device. If migrating from a domain-joined source computer, the destination server must be joined to the same domain.

You can also click Create a new Azure VM then use the wizard to deploy a new destination server in Azure. This will automatically size your VM, provision storage, format disks, join the domain, and add the Storage Migration Service proxy to a Windows Server or Windows Server destination.

Map the source volumes to destination volumes, clear the Include checkbox for any shares you don't want to transfer including any administrative shares located in the Windows system folder and ensuring that the Azure Files Sync checkbox is set for any volumes or shares that are cloud tiering with Azure File Sync, and then select Next.

You can map these volumes to any destination volumes, and you can map multiple NetApp CIFS volumes to the same destination volume. New root folder paths are created to avoid any folder overwrites or collisions, and then shares are created at the correct level. The Shares detail pane shows the folder structure you're about to create.

Figure 3: A source server and where its storage will be transferred to. Add a destination server and mappings for any more source servers, and then select Next. On the Adjust transfer settings page, specify whether to migrate local users and groups on the source servers and then select Next. This lets you recreate any local users and groups on the destination servers so that file or share permissions set to local users and groups aren't lost. Here are the options when migrating local users and groups:.

Migrated user accounts are disabled on the destination and assigned a character password that's both complex and random, so you'll have to enable them and assign a new password when you're finished to keep using them. This helps ensure any old accounts with forgotten and weak passwords on the source don't continue to be a security problem on the destination. Select Start transfer to start transferring data. The first time you transfer, we'll move any existing files in a destination to a backup folder.

For destination servers running Azure File Sync with cloud tiering, this backup option is not supported. We otherwise fully support Azure File Sync with cloud tiering and include updated transfer information details in Windows Admin Center. This blog is part 1 of a 2-part series. To see part 2, click here. With various flavors of Windows Server operating systems going out of support this year, I have found myself with a decent number of file server migrations from one system to another.

It is also generally very quick as there is no need to copy terabytes of data from one server to another. When the need arises to duplicate the data for the migration to the new server, I always go back to old faithful— Robocopy Robust File Copy for Windows. Robocopy has existed since NT4 days in , so this is likely not the first time you are hearing of it.

Back then and until , it was available with the Windows Resource Kit download. Beginning in and thereafter , it was bundled with both desktop and server operating systems starting with Vista and Server There are quite a few options when it comes to file server migrations using Robocopy, and you might not know where to start.

Be careful with some of the options if you are just trying it out, as some of them move the data deleting the files and folders in the source location or the target location. Over the years of usage, I have found this syntax the one I keep going back to over and over again:. I typically always run Robocopy from the new file server as:. There are multiple advantages to that I have found over the years. This copies subdirectories, including Empty ones.

This is where the true value of Robocopy comes into play. If it only copied the files in the top-level shared folder, it would not be of much value. Why not navigate to both location and copy-paste the files from location to location? This parameter copies all file info. All file info includes:. The question arises here of if the file or folder no longer exists in the source location, why would I be trying to copy it to the target.

Furthermore, why would I want to delete a file that never existed in the first place. This is the second place where Robocopy really shines. I usually create a scheduled task to run a batch file that includes the Robocopy lines to run. With this in mind and with the above parameters, the first execution of the job will take a while as it has to do the initial copy of all the data.

However, when it runs the next time I usually set it to run daily after business hours , it will look at the source and compare it to the target, and if the file has not changed, it will not do anything with it. If the file in the source is newer, it will overwrite the file in the target.

If the file in the source has been deleted since the last run of the job, the same file in the target will be deleted automatically as well. For an actual file share migration, I set this up about a week in advance, look at the logs it generates, troubleshoot any issues, and let it run daily until the scheduled cutover date. There, that was easy enough! Now that the root has been exported, some edits to this data is required before import.

Because the root configuration needs to be imported into the Fabrikam domain, this must be manually modified. The modified portion of the namespace file will look like this:.

The remainder of the file will remain untouched, for reasons which will be discussed below. This file should be saved I named it publicrootmodified. The import process will overwrite any DFS configurations in the target namespace. Please ensure you enter the path of a root you are prepared to replace. You have the option to configure additional namespace servers in the DFS Management tool either before or after you import the configuration file.