Manually Moving VMS from HOST to HOST WITH Shared SAS Storage

Hi,
Environment will be 2 Windows 2012 R2 Hyper-V servers.
They will be connect via shared SAS. These are two identical IBM servers with shared SAS storage
I am hoping to eliminate using MS Clustering of the Hyper-V servers just to keep things straight forward.
In the event, I had a complete failure of one of the physical server Hyper V hosts, I was hoping be able to manually add/import (not sure what the terminology is here) and run the virtual machines on the second host until the first is repaired.
If there is third party software that can do this, I would entertain it.
In VMware (I had two hosts and would manually remove them from inventory on one server and add them to a second server).
Ideally, if I could keep both Hyper-V hosts in a Windows Workgroup and as vanilla as possible.
Thanks in Advance,
G

Hi,
Sorry for the late reply. I have been researching all I can. And thanks to all for your patience and help!
Let's start with the hardware to help paint the picture:
2 @ IBM X3550 M4
1 @ IBM V3700
The two X3550's are going to be connected via 6GB SAS Cards (2/server for redundacy)
Current environment (residing on VMWare with older IBM Xseries servers DS3524 connect via SAS connections) 40 users total.
Windows servers are:
1 @ SBS 2011 (One and only AD/PDC)
2 @ Windows 2008 Servers that are CRM (these are Windows Member Servers)
5 @ Windows 2003 servers that are going to be replace with Windows 2008 Servers (these are Windows Member servers) (low usage servers)
Just to recap:
The current environment running VMware 4.1 has both IBM X3500 servers able to see a single 1.5 TB lun (SAS connected) presented by the DS3524.
Currently, in VMware, I can see the same LUN on both servers. I have all my VM's on HOSTA, if HOSTA should suffer a system board failure, I manually connect to HOSTB with the VMware client and add the VMs that I can see on the shared LUN
and add them to HOSTB.
My understanding is that its strongly recommend that my DC (not sure if they are implying PDC or BDC) on a physical server. My hesitation is now I have to introduce a DC to SBS 2011 and manage a physical server and deal with with SBS 2011's quirks.
So I was hoping that if I presented a LUN to both my HyperV hosts (In a Workgroup), and created on my VMs on hostA, if something went very bad with HOSTA, I could connect to HOSTB and "Import" them and manually start the VMs, especially since
SBS 2011 is sensitive.
The client is okay with some downtime, so if the process is supported and works, then I am okay with doing the work.
Clustering or even Replicas will add:
Complexity to the environment
Patching needs to be carefully planned as it would not look good to have to failover due to a Windows update on the primary host.
The tech's that support that environment will now need to know about Clustering and/or Replication ontop of the SAN stuff
I am looking at Veeam, Double-Take to see if they can work with 2 @ 2012 Hyper-V hosts configured in a Workgroup.
The SBS 2011 is the "hinge" that will make or break the success of this project. I personally love the way 2012 Hyper-V works, but it would be great if a physical server outside of the HyperV hosts was not required.
Thanks !
G

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This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no rights. Please remember, if you see a post that helped you please click "Vote as Helpful", and if it answered your question, please click "Mark as Answer".

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Hi everyone, was hoping for some help in something I am confused about
Currently I have SERVER1 running hyper-v 2012 R2
I want to move all my VMs (around 20) to SERVER2 also running Hyper-v 2012 R2
But I am confused on the best way to do this
1) should I just click on "MOVE" on SERVER1 to move to SERVER2?
2) Should I do an export and then import
3) should I setup replication from Server1 to Server2 and then do a failover?
4) or should I shut the VM down, copy the VHDX file and then create a new VM and use that VHDX
I just want to be cautious and use the best method to ensure it goes smooth and not worry about any corruption. Can anyone offer some advice?
thanks
It all depends on your environment and your current Hyper-V configuration.
I asume both servers are domain-member of the same domain and don't use SCVMM. If so, then make sure you do the following:
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Configure Live Migration and Migrating Virtual Machines without Failover Clustering
http://technet.microsoft.com/nl-nl/library/jj134199.aspx
Boudewijn Plomp | BPMi Infrastructure & Security
This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no rights. Please remember, if you see a post that helped you please click "Vote as Helpful", and if it answered your question, please click "Mark as Answer".

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import mx.rpc.events.ResultEvent;
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<mx:TileList id="profile1NewsAndSportAddLinksTilelist" fontWeight="bold" dragEnabled="
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It might be easy to solve these issues if you post your form.
Post your form if it doesn't contain any confidential information.
Nith

ITunes Fix for Manually Moving Music and other Media

Intro
Any iTunes 7.x user who manages their own music library outside of the "iTunes Music" folder might be able to tell you that iTunes DOES NOT respond well after manually moving tracks from one place to another on their computer systems. In fact, any file you move becomes immediately unplayable in iTunes. And, if you're anything like I am, losing several years worth of song rating metadata and playlists is not a good incentive for change. However, one thing others might not be able to tell you is that there's an easy workaround for the problem and you get to keep your playlists, ratings and other info. Read on to learn about the workaround.
About the Workaround
The workaround is a simple hack I devised after recently transferring a good portion of my music library between hard disks and running into problems with iTunes. The fix steps provided below are intended to circumvent the problems with iTunes and give users the freedom to move songs and other media files on their computers while maintaining the integrity of both the ratings and the playlists. Meaning you won't need to manually update the song locations in iTunes one-at-a-time, which, at version 7.02 is the only way to accomplish this task using the program.
Please be aware that not all information is retained using this workaround. What will be lost are the following: the "Recently Added", "Recently Played" and "Top 25 Most Played" iTunes Smart Playlists; any media file play counts; last played information; and possibly some other data used only internally by iTunes.
So, if you're comfortable parting with some metadata while keeping your cherished song ratings and playlists intact during file relocation, read on to learn how to use the workaround.
Workaround Steps
The following instructions walk step-by-step through the process of this workaround.
Note: All backslashes used in file paths have been converted to forward slashes so that they will adhere with MySpace XSS security validation checks. These altered paths can still be copy/paste into Windows Vista's Explorer program once the Username is changed to the User Account where the iTunes files reside.
Preparing for the Move
Before you move your files, do the following:
1. Close iTunes.
2. Create a backup copy of the following files:
iTunes Library XML (iTunes Music Library.xml)
Note: Vista users can find the Library XML at C:/Users/Username/Music/iTunes
iTunes Music Database (iTunes Library.itl)
Note: Vista users can find the Music Database at C:/Users/Username/Music/iTunes
Moving Your Files
This part should be self explanatory, but while you do it make sure to note the following two things:
1. The path where the files were previously stored (e.g. D:/Music).
2. The path where the files will end up (e.g. E:/Music).
Execute the Fix
After your files are moved, complete the following steps to implement the fix.
Note: Do not open iTunes during this process.
Hack the iTunes Library XML
Once the files are moved the Library XML file locations will be out of sync. Follow the steps below to update them so that they now reference the correct file locations.
1. Open the iTunes Library XML with a Text Editor with a Find/Replace function.
Note: Vista users can find the Library XML at C:/Users/Username/Music/iTunes
Tip: Do not try to do this with Dreamweaver if your Library XML is greater than 10MB.
2. Perform a Find/Replace using the following inputs:
Find: Path from Step 1 of Moving Your Files
Replace: Path from Step 2 of Moving Your Files
3. Confirm your results, and then save and close the Library XML.
Delete the iTunes Music Database
Hacking the iTunes Library isn't enough to fool iTunes. Like the Library XML, the Music Database also holds the file locations of all of the media stored within the program. And it's smart enough to wipe out the Library XML hack if iTunes is opened before completing this step.
Ensure you have backed up the iTunes Music Database (iTunes Library.itl) and delete the file.
Note: Vista users can find the Music Database at C:/Users/Username/Music/iTunes
Back in iTunes
Once the fix is in place you can now open iTunes again. You will notice that all of your playlists, music and other items have vanished. In order to recover them all (with the exception of the Smart Playlists mentioned in the About the Workaround section above) we'll need to import the hacked Library XML file back into iTunes.
1. Open iTunes and press CtrlShiftO or go to File > Import…
2. Navigate to and Open your modified Library XML (as pictured below).
3. iTunes will then begin importing the contents of the XML file (as pictured below).
Note: This process may take a while, depending on the size if your library.
Wrapping Up
Once the import process is complete iTunes will look almost exactly the way you left it, with the exception that some playlists have been duplicated and the number of songs may be a hair off. To fix this problem delete any duplicate playlists in the "Library" panel in iTunes. You can now test out the changes by selecting an item moved earlier and testing it out. All that's left from there is to let iTunes perform any automated analysis it needs to do and rock on.
Other OS

Holy Smokes:
I appreciate your detailed workaround post. My question is this: I use iTunes to keep everything organized (though I'm well aware of the shortcomings...) and can use the simple solution that Chris from CA posted, but I don't have room to consolidate everything. My read on consolidating is that you copy from wherever you have your music located (and right now my music is outside of the MyMusic/iTunes folder, as that backs up to my work server) and so you have to have enough room for all of your music to be copied (and then you delete it from its prior location). That's how Apple describes it in, e.g., http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=301748. I ain't go that kind of room. Is there any way to make the move to a completely different PC by following the simple option? From the posting I just linked it sounds like you MUST consolidate whether you use you iPod to move things or use an external drive.
Of course, I can use your workaround, but I thought I'd ask first. Many thanks.
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