Question

Windows 2003 to 2003 R2 Upgrade.

Asked by: kapara

I have 2003 installed on several severs.  I would like to use the DFS features only available in 2003 R2 which updates only the bits which have changed in files rather than replicating the entire file between DFS roots.  Do I have to perform a clean install on my servers or can I simply insert the CD and perform an upgrade?  The servers are domain controllers.

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Asked On
2006-09-01 at 04:03:16ID21975176
Tags

install

,

server

,

upgrade

,

windows

,

2003

Topic

Windows 2003 Server

Participating Experts
3
Points
500
Comments
6

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Answers

 

by: NAORCPosted on 2006-09-01 at 04:06:24ID: 17435962

you can just stick in the CD and upgrade.  It doesnt always work though, so make sure you have a solid backup before doing so (including system state backups and OS backups)

 

by: kaparaPosted on 2006-09-01 at 04:07:30ID: 17435991

why would it not work and what has happened adversly when doing this?

 

by: AnthonyP9618Posted on 2006-09-01 at 04:37:31ID: 17436127

There's always a chance for something to go wrong when upgrading or migrating servers, besides, a good backup solution should already be in place anyway.

As suggested above, you should be able to put the R2 disk in the drive and perform an in-place upgrade.  Once you have completed the upgrade on all the Domain Controllers you will want to raise the forest functional level to R2.

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/322692/

 

by: ombPosted on 2006-09-01 at 04:59:38ID: 17436238

Make sure you have installed SP1. Because R2 is based on Windows Server 2003 SP1, Microsoft says not to expect any problems beyond what you might find with SP1 (see link below). Also, make sure you use the upgrade-only release, which requires SP1 installed. R2 is delivered as an update that sits on top of Windows Server 2003 Service Pack 1. The R2 components fit on one CD, while another CD contains Windows Server 2003 SP1.

Another tip, when we upgraded from Windows Server SP1 to R2, we weren't prompted to restart. Additionally, nor were all of R2's components immediately installed on our system. After the R2 upgrade, check out "Manage Your Server" and it is likely that you may need to select options to upgrade to R2 functionality.

Useful reading, check out:

How to upgrade Windows Server 2003 with Service Pack 1 to Windows Server 2003 R2
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/912309

Windows Server 2003 Service Pack 1 application compatibility
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/896367

The official Microsoft Windows Server 2003 R2 Home page:
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsserver2003/default.mspx

Good luck!

20120131-EE-VQP-002

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