Networker

Re: [Networker] OT - migrating a VM to a physical machine

2011-11-15 11:38:21
Subject: Re: [Networker] OT - migrating a VM to a physical machine
From: James T Proctor <jproctor AT USGS DOT GOV>
To: NETWORKER AT LISTSERV.TEMPLE DOT EDU
Date: Tue, 15 Nov 2011 10:37:43 -0600
Another option would be to look at http://clonezilla.org/  The price is 
right and might do what you want. 


Jim Proctor
Virtual Team Lead
USGS/NGTOC III
Rolla, Missouri
jproctor AT usgs DOT gov
(573)308-3521





From:   Michael Leone <Michael.Leone AT PHA.PHILA DOT GOV>
To:     NETWORKER AT LISTSERV.TEMPLE DOT EDU
Date:   11/15/2011 10:21 AM
Subject:        Re: [Networker] OT - migrating a VM to a physical machine
Sent by:        EMC NetWorker discussion <NETWORKER AT LISTSERV.TEMPLE DOT EDU>



> Have you thought about ghosting the system? 

I would need a Ghost server to do that, and I don't have one. And even 
finding a work around way to do it - storing the ghost image somewhere a 
ghost boot could get at it - wouldn't solve the problem of the hardware 
changing. Hopefully, pre-installing the drivers into the running VM before 

the full backup (or Ghosting, if I could go that route) would help resolve 

that, as I don't want to/ can't? do that.

Effectively speaking this is (I think) a Disaster Recovery Bare Metal 
Recovery to dissimilar hardware ...


> 
> 
> Jim Proctor
> Virtual Team Lead
> USGS/NGTOC III
> Rolla, Missouri
> jproctor AT usgs DOT gov
> (573)308-3521
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> From:        Michael Leone <Michael.Leone AT PHA.PHILA DOT GOV> 
> To:        NETWORKER AT LISTSERV.TEMPLE DOT EDU 
> Date:        11/15/2011 09:48 AM 
> Subject:        [Networker] OT - migrating a VM to a physical machine 
> Sent by:        EMC NetWorker discussion <NETWORKER AT LISTSERV.TEMPLE DOT 
> EDU> 


> 
> 
> 
> I realize this is a bit (OK, maybe a bit more than a bit ..) OT. But I 
> will be using Networker in the process, so I thought I'd ask here. 
> 
> VMware Environment: 6 host EX 4.1 U1 cluster. VM in question - Win2003 
> Enterprise, 32 bit 
> 
> My boss tells me that I need to convert this from a VM back onto a 
> physical machine - for licensing reasons, this needs to be a physical 
box, 
> apparently. And there's no budget for software designed for this purpose 


> (of course :-)).
> 
> So here's the big rub ... this VM is one of those mission critical VMs. 
> Ordinarily, what I might have done is do a sysprep of the VM, and - 
before 
> shutting it down - do a full backup using Networker. Then, I would do a 
> BMR (Bare Metal Recovery) of Windows on the new physical hardware. That 
> way, after the reboot at the end of the BMR, sysprep would run, find the 


> new disk controller drivers, etc, and not blue screen with inaccessible 
> boot device errors. 
> 
> However, my boss has vetoed that idea, since we can't take any chances 
> with the VM perhaps not working after the sysprep. If that BMR doesn't 
> work, then I would need to turn the VM back on. and we have no 
guarantees 
> that it would continue to work the same after the sysprep, etc. 
> 
> So my hands are tied that way. 
> 
> Then I thought - well, we could still do a BMR, but without the sysprep 
> first. I could install the drivers for the new disk controller, etc, 
into 
> the running VM. Do a regular full backup, shutdown the VM, and then do 
the 
> BMR to the physical box. It should recognize that the hardware has 
> changed, see the new hardware, see it has a driver for it, reboot 
> accordingly. Repeat until it's happy and boots normally. If absolutely 
> necessary, do a Windows Repair installation.
> 
> That way, either the physical box would work, and I'd leave the VM 
powered 
> off, or the physical box would fail, and I would power the VM back up. 
> Since the domain SID never changes, all should be happy.
> 
> I think that should work. Anyone ever done anything similar? The BMR 
> should just be: install same version of Windows onto physical hardware 
(no 
> need for updates) with same name and IP address, not as member of 
domain. 
> Install NW client (same version as what's in the VM). Do a full restore 
of 
> everything except the NW client program files folder. Reboot when 
> prompted. That should work as a BMR for a 32bit Win2003 box, yes?
> 
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