# Cloning



## jdmp10 (Aug 11, 2009)

I had a question on cloning. I have a Dell Server running Windows Server 2003 Standard edition and I have already made an image of the C partition using O&O Disk Image 4 so it does have a proprietary file extension that O&O uses called .omg. 

My question is, the program does have a cloning tool as well but I want to clone a new hard drive, much larger then currently in use but would it be possible to install a new version of server, I was wanting to go to 2008 Standard edition but still have all the functionality of the 2003 with the SQL Databases, Active Directory settings, all intact but all under a 2008 environment.

If anyone can help me that would be great, thanks.


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## Elvandil (Aug 1, 2003)

Not quite sure I understand. A "clone" is an exact copy. Any version of anything that is cloned has to remain exactly the way it is on the original. You can't use a clone in any way to upgrade.


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## TheOutcaste (Aug 8, 2007)

Welcome to TSG!

You can clone Win2k3 to the new drive, then upgrade to Win2k8


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## jdmp10 (Aug 11, 2009)

TheOutcaste said:


> Welcome to TSG!
> 
> You can clone Win2k3 to the new drive, then upgrade to Win2k8


Thanks for the welcome. I appreciate both responses I got. I did not think about the upgrade option to Win2k8 after the clone probably for the most part because im not a big fan of upgrading when it comes to OS's, I like to install fresh copies on a blank formatted drive but if my only option is to upgrade then I will just have to do that especially if I want everything from the clone of Win2k3 to stay intact.

I have also been thinking about going a route completely different. I was thinking of getting Suse Linux now owned by Novell, they have a Enterprise version for servers and Windows clients can co-exist with a Linux server as long as the Client for Novell services I believe it is in the TCP/IP settings has been installed/enabled.

Do you guys have any thoughts on this? I do have to call Suse/Novell though to confirm this is even something that can be pulled off and what virtualization capabilities the Enterprise version of Suse Linux has built in.


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## jdmp10 (Aug 11, 2009)

Can anyone answer my question?


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## wedor (Nov 7, 1999)

Might take a while to get an answer since this is a forum for Windows Servers not Linux or Novell.


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## avisitor (Jul 13, 2008)

Well, is there a particular feature you're looking for in SLES? There are plenty of free Linux distros which can probably do the same things.


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## jdmp10 (Aug 11, 2009)

avisitor said:


> Well, is there a particular feature you're looking for in SLES? There are plenty of free Linux distros which can probably do the same things.


I am currently using Linux Mint on my home PC and I love it but its obvious from the built in features that its not meant to be used on a server and most linux distro's available are not intended for server use. There are only a handful of distro's I know available that are designed to be used on a server and Suse Linux Enterprise Server is very highly rated.

As far as looking for something particular, other then having very good virtualization built into the core of the OS, I cant put my finger on anything else specific that I would want it to have. Of course I want it to work well with Windows as well and I am not too worried about that since Linux has come a long way as far as it co-existing well with other environments. I just want a distro thats tried and true and has been proven to be a good solution for a server application.


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## avisitor (Jul 13, 2008)

Almost all of my non-Windows servers are running Ubuntu Server (I have few Slack and Debian ones left), so I just thought I'd plug that. Not that there's anything wrong with SLES, RHEL, etc. 

Any Linux distro will virtualize well. Even Windows does. I'm also going to plug VMWare ESX(i), Microsoft Hyper-V, and, of course, QEMU, for any serious virtualization. Most of the Virtual Machine hosts that I manage run ESXi (which is free).

I'm slightly confused why you're looking into a server that you don't yet have any application for. I can't really recommend much unless you have some uses in mind.


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## jdmp10 (Aug 11, 2009)

From my experience with Linux, if I had to compare and contrast Windows and Linux, Linux runs an infinite amount more smoother then any Windows I have ever used including the Windows 7 RTM. By smoother I mean its faster, much less dramatic in terms of lockup's, extended delays by the OS transitioning from one application to another, no real issues in terms of spam/viruses. 

Not to mention if you compare hardware specs to hardware specs, the same server running any distro of linux will run better, performance wise then any version of Windows ever has with the same machine. Probably the biggest area Linux is lacking is in software support, mainstream software that is but im not going to be running any sort of specific application that would require a piece of software that I cant find a Linux equivalent to.

I have read though that Suse Linux and even its free counterpart openSUSE's hardware requirements are a bit steeper then other Linux distro's but the server im looking into is going to be powered by a Intel Xeon X5550 CPU with no less then 6 to 8GB of 1333MHz RAM so it should fly with those specs. As far as the virtualization goes, the main thing I need it to work with is a ERP solution we have that is MS SQL based, so unless there is something built-in within Ubuntu Server or Suse Linux that can emulate MS SQL databases or accept them to run as if they were running in a Windows environment then thats great.


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## avisitor (Jul 13, 2008)

Let me start out by saying that I'm a huge Linux fan. I run lots of Linux servers for many clients. I also run many Windows servers. Many coexist on the same networks. However, Linux is not for everyone...

Once you get it working, Linux is rock solid. However, getting it working (especially some server components) isn't always easy. I've spent countless days troubleshooting obscure bugs, compiling kernels to make "this" work only to have "that" break, etc. I actually pulled the plug on a certain project that started out using Linux that got effectively nowhere after months of problems, troubleshooting, etc. I got most of what was needed done in a week on Windows. It's been working ever since.

If it's just a LAMP server, or something similar, that you're looking for, play around with Ubuntu Server. It does a bunch of things right out of the box (similar to Roles on Windows Server). Try it out on a VM. You can go from start to a working LAMP server in about 15 minutes.

There's quite a bit of FOSS ERP software. Maybe you'd be able to find something that you like.

Obviously some thing you need to consider is how switching to a Linux server will effect your business. If it requires you to retrain your users, it might not be worth it. While it may be free (as far as licensing costs), it definitely has a price.

That's just my $.02 worth.


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## jdmp10 (Aug 11, 2009)

avisitor said:


> Let me start out by saying that I'm a huge Linux fan. I run lots of Linux servers for many clients. I also run many Windows servers. Many coexist on the same networks. However, Linux is not for everyone...
> 
> Once you get it working, Linux is rock solid. However, getting it working (especially some server components) isn't always easy. I've spent countless days troubleshooting obscure bugs, compiling kernels to make "this" work only to have "that" break, etc. I actually pulled the plug on a certain project that started out using Linux that got effectively nowhere after months of problems, troubleshooting, etc. I got most of what was needed done in a week on Windows. It's been working ever since.
> 
> ...


Thanks I appreciate the response. As far as the user end, the users are still going to be running Windows machines and our ERP solution is the only thing that we are going to be using and its back end is a SQL database and I know there are alot of open source SQL applications available for Linux but they the problem with that would be for our SQL developer who seems to only be familiar with MS SQL Server. I will have to get a Ubuntu Server VM running in Virtual Box and see all the features.

I just checked out Ubuntu Server, it looks like its only intended to be runned on 64-Bit AMD CPU's which is not what I have. I will have to see if they make it in anything else other then that.


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## avisitor (Jul 13, 2008)

It's available in both 32bit (x86 or i386) and 64bit (amd64) flavors. AMD64 just means the 64bit version. It'll run fine on a 64bit Intel.

EDIT: Links: 32-bit: http://mirrors.us.kernel.org/ubuntu-releases/jaunty/ubuntu-9.04-server-i386.iso and 64-bit http://mirrors.us.kernel.org/ubuntu-releases/jaunty/ubuntu-9.04-server-amd64.iso

I also wanted to clear up something that was incorrect. You do not need the Client for Novell Services installed on your clients to access a SLES server. It's for the much older Novell NetWare.


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