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I did some browsing of the existing articles regarding this question but I couldn't find it so I apologize if I simply missed it.

My current setup:

  • 1 x 2008 R2 Hyper-V Cluster
  • 3 x Windows Server 2008 R2 Hyper-V host nodes
  • 1 x Fibre channel storage device housing all of the guest VMs (FC switch in between the storage device and the hosts, interconnecting them). There's about 2 TB of guest VMs in this "production-CSV".

I have 3 newer servers and an extra, smaller capacity FC storage device that I could use to temporarily house the guest VMS.

My goal is to upgrade my current 2008 R2 3-node hyper-v cluster to server 2012 R2, "using the same FC storage" (production-CSV) and expand to a 6 hyper-v node (3 newer servers + 3 current "older" servers). I have read many, many articles regarding this process and the steps seem pretty straight forward. This is what I was planning to do based on my readings:

  • Add temp-CSV to existing 2008 R2 cluster
  • Move guest VMs from production-CSV to temp-CSV using export/import (to minimize downtime)
  • Remove production-CSV from existing 2008 R2 cluster
  • Stand up new 2012 R2 cluster with 3 newer servers and production-CSV
  • Present temp-CSV to 2012 R2 (I think I can do that while the 2008 R2 cluster is still using it?)
  • Use Cluster migration wizard to transfer 2008 R2 cluster config to 2012 R2 cluster config
  • Export/Import guest VMs back to the production-CSV from temp=CSV
  • Evict 2008 R2 nodes from 2008 R2 cluster
  • Destroy 2008 R2 cluster
  • Reinstall old nodes with 2012 R2 standard and add to 2012 R2 cluster

Do I have this right? Am I making more work for myself then is necessary? Is there a way to do this without moving my guest VMs off the production-CSV?

Thanks for the help!

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First of all you won't be able to access a CSV from the 2008 R2 cluster and the 2012 R2 cluster at the same time.

Second, you should consider using SCVMM 2012 R2 (System Center Virtual Machine Manager) to migrate your virtual machines between the clusters. SCVMM will be able to move the VMs from the 2008 R2 cluster CSVs to the 2012 R2 cluster CSVs and upgrade the Hyper-V integration services in the guest operating systems.

One additional consideration would be to check the compatibility of your old servers with Windows Server 2012 R2 so you dont end up in an unsupported configuration. Also, you won't be able to achieve Live Migration between hosts with different CPU manufacturers.

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  • Can you buy SCVMM 2012 R2 separately from SCCM? There's no way I can purchase, no do I need SCCM in it's entirety and I assumed SCVMM is part of it. I see they have an evail you can download, will that give me full functionality for a one time use?
    – Steven Gedzyk
    Dec 12, 2014 at 17:24
  • Also, all my servers are Dell servers so the CPU manufacturer will most certainly be the same. I have newer models that I am transitioning to that are about a year old. The ones I am using now are a couple of years old.
    – Steven Gedzyk
    Dec 12, 2014 at 17:25
  • You can use SCVMM with full functionality during the trial period with should be more than enough to migrate VMs. By CPU manufacturer I mean Intel and AMD.
    – Chris
    Dec 12, 2014 at 23:11

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