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How to Move a Windows 2000 Installation to Different Hardware
View products that this article applies to.
This article was previously published under Q249694
Warning The issues that are discussed in this article and in the linked
articles are the most common problems and limitations that may appear when
you try to restore a backup to different hardware. Other issues may appear
because of differences in software and hardware configurations. Many of
those issues can be resolved through troubleshooting the particular
problems that occur, but there may be compatibility issues that limit the
success of the restoration of a backup to dissimilar hardware.
SUMMARY
This article describes how to move a Windows 2000 installation and the
programs that are installed on one computer to a different computer with
minimal down time. You can also use this procedure to replace a small
system/boot disk drive with a larger system/boot disk drive, or to restore
a Windows backup from a non-working computer to a different computer for
disaster recovery purposes.
Important This procedure is not recommended for domain controllers.
MORE INFORMATION
Windows Backup (Ntbackup.exe) can merge differences in hardware
configuration information between a source computer and a destination
computer and maintain critical registry entries that are unique to the
destination computer.
Windows Backup handles registry restoration operations by first querying
the following registry key in the registry of the destination computer:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\BackupRestore\KeysNotToR
estore
This registry key indicates to Windows Backup that certain registry keys
under the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM key should not be overwritten at the
time of restoration.
An entry that ends with a backslash (\) indicates a key that is protected.
Windows Backup does not restore any keys and values below that key. If the
entry ends with a backslash and an asterisk (\ *), Windows Backup merges it
and all its subkeys; that is, Windows Backup looks at the start values of
the keys in the backup set (the source) and the current registry (the
destination) to determine which key takes precedence. The key with the
lower start value takes precedence. If the start values are equal, no
change is made. This process ensures that all services and devices start
correctly after a system state restoration, even on dissimilar hardware.
For example, if the value of the following key on the backup set has a
lower start value, it takes precedence:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\Dhcp
If the value of the same key in the current registry has a lower start
value than the key you want to restore, it takes precedence.
Backup Current Result after restoration
------------------------------------------------------
DHCP Running: YES NO YES
DHCP Running: NO YES YES
DHCP Running: NO NO NO
Note Computers that are upgraded from Microsoft Windows NT to Windows 2000
will have the start value for
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\Tcpip = 0x02 in the
system state backup. New installations of Windows 2000 will have a start
value of 0x01 for the Tcpip service. This means that Tcpip settings will
not be restored from the backup unless the start values are equal. To
resolve this behavior, either change the start value to 0x01 on the source
computer before the backup, or change the start value to 0x02 on the
destination system before the system state restoration.
After you restart the destination computer, Windows Plug and Play handles
any minor differences in hardware configuration.
Things to Consider Before Deciding to Use this Procedure
Drive Letters and the %SystemRoot% Folder
For a complete migration to work correctly, the drive letters for any
destination volumes that contain a system state component and the
%SystemRoot% folder (the Winnt folder in Windows 2000) must be the same on
both the source and destination computers. This means that if Windows on
the source computer is installed in the C:\Windows folder and has Active
Directory (NTDS) and SYSVOL are installed on drives D and E, respectively,
the destination computer must have Windows pre-installed in a C:\Windows
folder and contain drives D and E before you can run the restoration
operation successfully. For additional information, click the following
article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
235478 Recovering from Failed System Drive with Non-Default %SystemRoot%
Folder
Hardware Abstract Layer (HAL)
The source and destination computers should be using the same HAL types to
get favorable results. Although matching HAL types is not a requirement,
the migration may not work correctly if the HALs do not match. To determine
the computer HAL type you are using on each computer:
Click Start, point to Settings, click Control Panel, and then double-click
System.
On the Hardware tab, click Device Manager, and then view the listing under
the Computer branch. Possible values for the system description and
associated HAL include:
ACPI Multiprocessor PC = Halmacpi.dll
ACPI Uniprocessor PC = Halaacpi.dll
Advanced Configuration and Power Interface (ACPI) PC = Halacpi.dll
MPS Multiprocessor PC = Halmps.dll
MPS Uniprocessor PC = Halapic.dll
Standard PC = Hal.dll
Compaq SystemPro Multiprocessor or 100% Compatible = Halsp.dll
The %SystemRoot%\Repair Folder
The Winnt\Repair folder that contains your source computer hardware and
software configuration files and the Setup.log file may not be valid for
the destination computer hardware. To update these files so you can make
the appropriate repairs in the future if you need to, perform an in-place
upgrade on the destination computer.
NTFS Volumes
You may have to start special filter drivers before you can restore files
that contain reparse points to NTFS volumes. To do this, restart the
destination computer after you restore the operating system. Examples of
these types of files include Remote Installation Services (RIS) images that
rely on Single Instance Storage (SIS), Remote Storage Server (RSS) files
that you are restoring to managed volumes, or other third-party services
that use reparse points and require filter drivers.
Networking
When you restore a backup, either to the original computer or to another
computer, you may experience problems with networking components. For
additional information, click the following article number to view the
article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
810161 Network Adapters Are Missing or Incorrect in Device Manager After
You Run NTBackup to Restore System State Data
Move a Windows Installation
Important: To back up and restore the system state data so that devices
work correctly after you restore the data, install hotfix 810161 before you
back up the source system, and then install the hotfix on the destination
system before you restore the system state data. If the hotfix is not
available, follow these steps to make the changes manually:
Start Registry Editor.
Locate and then click the following subkey:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\BackupRestore\KeysNotToR
estore
Right-click Plug & Play, and then click Modify.
In the Value Data box, delete the CurrentControlSet\Enum entry.
Quit Registry Editor.
Now follow these steps to back up and restore the Windows 2000 installation
from one computer to a different computer:
On the source computer, log on as Administrator, and stop all services that
you typically stop before performing a backup.
Using Ntbackup.exe, back up the system\boot volume, the system state, and
associated NTDS and SYSVOL volumes, if applicable.
On the destination computer, perform a new installation of Windows by using
the same product type that matches the source computer. Make sure that the
drive letter and %SystemRoot% folder names match those of the source
computer. If you are using a non-default (Winnt) folder name, click the
following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge
Base:
235478 Recovering from Failed System Drive with Non-Default %SystemRoot%
Folder
After the new installation is completed , log on to the destination
computer as Administrator. If the system you want to restore is a domain
controller, press F8 on the Start menu, and then click Directory Services
Restore mode before you log on as Administrator. Using Disk Management,
create, format, and assign drive letters to any additional volumes that may
be required to hold a system state component (for example, SYSVOL, Active
Directory, or Active Directory Log files). Make sure that all drive letters
match those of the source computer.
Make a copy of the Boot.ini file in the root of the system partition. This
copy may be required in a later step.
Start Ntbackup.exe, on the Tools menu, click Options, click the Restore
tab, and then click Always replace the file on my computer. Restore the
system\boot volume, the system state, and associated volumes from the
backup that you performed earlier. Make sure that you select the option to
restore them to the "original location."
Note To have access to all removable media (tape or magneto-optic [MO]
disk) from the source system after the full system restoration is complete,
you must also click Restore Removable Storage Database under the Advanced
button before you start the restoration.
After the full restoration is completed (and before you restart the
destination computer), replace the Boot.ini file with the copy that you
made in step 5. This is only necessary if the ARC path in the restored
Boot.ini file is different from the source Boot.ini file. Finally,
disconnect the network cable to avoid name conflicts if the source system
is still online.
Restart the computer. Log on as Administrator and initiate an in-place
upgrade by running Winnt32.exe from the I386 folder on the Windows CD-ROM.
This refreshes the Setup.log and registry files in the %SystemRoot%\Repair
folder.
Note If the computer does not restart after restoration because of HAL
mismatches, perform an in-place installation to make repairs. To do this:
Restart the computer from the installation media. On the "Welcome to Setup"
screen, press ENTER as if performing a new installation. When the licensing
screen appears, accept the licensing agreement. Setup will then search for
previous installations to repair.
When the installation that is damaged is found, press R to repair the
selected installation. Setup re-enumerates your computer's hardware
(including HAL) and performs an in-place upgrade while maintaining your
programs and user settings. This also refreshes the %SystemRoot%\Repair
folder with accurate information that you can use for typical repairs if
they are required in the future.
Note In Windows NT 4.0, user profiles are stored as a subfolder of the
%SystemRoot%\Profiles folder. In Windows 2000, if the installation is an
upgrade, the existing profile path continues to be used. In new Windows
2000 installations, a "Documents and Settings" folder is created on the
same volume as the Windows 2000 installation to hold user profiles. If the
source system was an upgrade from Windows NT, after the restoration, the
original profiles are used. However, after an in-place upgrade is
performed, you may have to change the profiles paths in the registry back
to %SystemRoot%\Profiles by modifying the keys under the following path:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\ProfileList
For additional information about user profiles, click the article numbers
below to view the articles in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
214653 How to Set the Path for the All Users Profile
228445 User Profile Storage in Windows 2000
After the upgrade is completed and you are sure that everything works, you
can remove the source computer from the network and connect the destination
computer in its place.
Note The difference between the time of the backup and the time of the
restoration to the new computer may affect the computer account on the
domain controller. You may have to join a workgroup and then rejoin the
domain.
For additional information, click the article numbers below to view the
articles in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
162797 Trust Relationship Between Workstation and Domain Fails
240240 Programs Do Not Work After Restoring Computer with Backup
233427 Files and Folders Not Backed Up Using the Ntbackup.exe Tool
237556 How to Troubleshoot the Windows 2000 Hardware Abstraction Layer
Issues
305356 Windows XP Prompts You to Re-activate After You Restore Your
Computer
318715 A Network Adapter Is Missing in Device Manager After a Full Restore
292175 How to Perform an In-Place Upgrade of Windows 2000
Subbu
This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no rights.
