DNS server migration from NT4 to W2K

[darren77uk]

Hi all,

Wonder if anyone can help, I wish to migrate our DNS which is on NT4 at present, we are migrating to a AD W2K environment.

I just rebuilt a W2K Adv. Server and I have copied the old DNS folder across, but is it as simple as that or should I be doing some sort of reg entries also?! Any input would help me in regards to migration.

Thanks in advance.

Darren

 

[Zelandakh]

In theory that is all you need to do - other than stopping the services on both servers before the copy and then restarting afterwards.

Microsoft didn't list this way as a migration, but they may do now - both OSs use jetpack as the database tool to hold the records.

 

[darren77uk]

Thanks for that Zelandakh, not really familar with jetpack.

 

[Zelandakh]

you don't need to be - I spoke to a leading authority on 2000 who says this is an undocumented "feature".

Stop the DNS service on NT, copy the folder. Install DNS on the 2000 server, stop the service, overwrite its DNS folder with the one from NT, start the service and you should be fine - works "most of the time".

 

[Jpoandl]

Not sure if this would work...but if the NT 4.0 server was a primary DNS server (holds the database), couldn't you make the 2000 server a secondary DNS server. Then synchronize the database with the 2000 server (This is how DNS servers replicate anyway...primary to secondary) Once the database has been verified to be good on the 2K server, configure this DNS zone as Standard Primary or Active Directory integrated.

What do you think... (Haven't tried this yet.) Joseph L. Poandl
MCSE 2000

 

[darren77uk]

The only problem there is that I have to make one live and bring one down, I can't have them both up at the same time, plus we are changing our IP subnet, as for some stupid reason the person who orignally set this up, has given our internal IP range of 200.200.200.0 which is a Brasilian IP Range. So I have to migrate that also to a 10.1.1.0 range.

I am also going to rebuild that machine that I am having DMZ connectivity problems with, to a 2000 machine, so hopefully that will illiminate the problem that I am having at the present time.

So you suggest that I should bring them both up and try from there?!

 

[Jpoandl]

(You could always manually recreate the DNS database. In this way, you could leave the current DNS server online. Install a 2000 server with DNS services. Manually duplicate the entries in the live DNS database (hopefully not too many entries. Then, start adding the new DNS server's IP address to a few client workstations...throught there TCP/IP properties. Remove the old DNS server. Make sure that connectivity is working on this test group. Once it seems like it is working, you can point everyone to the new DNS server.) ...just a thought. Joseph L. Poandl
MCSE 2000

 

[darren77uk]

Heya Joseph,

I joined the new DNS server onto the network, copied the DNS folder within Windows\System32 which had the old DNS entries.

Then just created an entry for the Forward Lookup and selected the files that were copied over.

I did he same for Reverse Lookup.

Finally I ran nslookup with the DNS Service started but disconnected from the network.

It seems to have taken well to the new DNS settings.

Thanks for your help guy.

Lets see if I can resolve this blasted problem for the DMZ.