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Did you use DFS for that server or just &quot;sharing things&quot;?... because using DFS (domain based) you will have the advantage of &quot;moving&quot; the &quot;server target&quot; (using different names) without affecting the path seen by users. (more details on <a href="http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc732863(WS.10).aspx" rel="ugc">DFS Step-by-Step Guide for Windows Server 2008</a>)<br />
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If there is a &quot;simple file sharing server&quot; and you have planned an &quot;inplace&quot; upgrade (of software or hardware) you could do a &quot;simple&quot; backup/restore (if you replace the hardware) or just install your new server with another name and after you copy all the data and shutdown the old server you could rename-it the new one as long you run only the &quot;file services&quot; on it (otherwise could me more complicated if you have on it DHCP, DNS or other services).
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Did you use DFS for that server or just "sharing things"?... because using DFS (domain based) you will have the advantage of "moving" the "server target" (using different names) without affecting the path seen by users. (more details on DFS Step-by-Step Guide for Windows Server 2008 [http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc732863(WS.10).aspx])

If there is a "simple file sharing server" and you have planned an "inplace" upgrade (of software or hardware) you could do a "simple" backup/restore (if you replace the hardware) or just install your new server with another name and after you copy all the data and shutdown the old server you could rename-it the new one as long you run only the "file services" on it (otherwise could me more complicated if you have on it DHCP, DNS or other services).

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Actually we DO of course have static IP's on all our servers. &nbsp;This seemed to work great!!! &nbsp;Thanks
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Actually we DO of course have static IP's on all our servers.  This seemed to work great!!!  Thanks

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I'm going to be replacing my fileserver (Server 2008) with different one and want to keep the name that is on the old one. &nbsp;I know from past experience that the Active Directory, DHCP, DNS server won't allow that. &nbsp;<br />
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Is there anyway I can replace the fileserver and have it with the same name. &nbsp;The AD, DHCP,DNS server is also 2008.
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I'm going to be replacing my fileserver (Server 2008) with different one and want to keep the name that is on the old one.  I know from past experience that the Active Directory, DHCP, DNS server won't allow that.  

Is there anyway I can replace the fileserver and have it with the same name.  The AD, DHCP,DNS server is also 2008.

Fileserver Name

Active Directory (AD) is a Microsoft brand for identity-related capabilities. In the on-premises world, Windows Server AD provides a set of identity capabilities and services, and is hugely popular (88% of Fortune 1000 and 95% of enterprises use AD). This topic includes all things Active Directory including DNS, Group Policy, DFS, troubleshooting, ADFS, and all other topics under the Microsoft AD and identity umbrella.

Active Directory

Windows Server 2008 and Windows Server 2008 R2, based on the Microsoft Vista codebase, is the last 32-bit server operating system released by Microsoft. It has a number of versions, including including Foundation, Standard, Enterprise, Datacenter, Web, HPC Server, Itanium and Storage; new features included server core installation and Hyper-V.