Chapter and Appendix Overview

This self-paced training course combines notes, hands-on procedures, and review questions to teach you the process by which installations using Windows NT can be migrated to Windows 2000. It is designed to be completed from beginning to end, but you can choose a customized track and complete only the sections that interest you. (See the next section, "Finding the Best Starting Point for You," for more information.) If you choose the customized track option, see the "Before You Begin" section in each chapter. Any hands-on procedures that require preliminary work from preceding chapters refer to the appropriate chapters.

The book is divided into the following:

• "About This Book" contains a self-paced training overview and introduces the components of this training. Read this section thoroughly to get the greatest educational value from this self-paced training and to plan which lessons you will complete. The "Getting Started" section of "About This Book" provides detailed steps that must be completed to configure your test network in preparation for the practices in this book.
• Chapter 1, "Introduction to Windows 2000 Migration," provides an overview of the process of moving a Windows NT network into Windows 2000. Key concepts that underpin the migration process are introduced and described. This chapter also considers the range of possible starting and ending scenarios when a migration is undertaken. Finally, the range of Windows 2000 products is set out.
• Chapter 2, "Project Planning," describes the project planning concepts inherent in a migration. It identifies the factors to be considered when deciding how to perform a migration from a particular starting position. Key roles to be played by members of a migration team are also identified, along with project planning and management documents to be produced as the migration progresses. The importance of setting goals and managing priorities is emphasized. This chapter also discusses the importance of a Test Facility in a migration, and describes how such a facility can be provided.
• Chapter 3, "Assessing Your Current Infrastructure," sets out the tools and techniques that are to be used in the initial phase of a migration. You will learn how to assess the hardware, application, security, and personnel aspects of an installation with a view toward planning the later stages of a migration.
• Chapter 4, "Assessing Your Network Infrastructure," focuses on the way in which networks in a given installation are configured. The network environment is crucial to the migration process in terms of identifying the changes that have to be made to it during the migration and the steps to be taken to ensure continuity of service during the migration. The tools and techniques that you use to assess a network are described, along with issues that are particularly relevant to the migration process.
• Chapter 5, "Active Directory Design and Migration," sets out the relationship between Windows 2000 Active Directory services and Windows NT domains. The principles of Active Directory are explained with respect to the migration process. This chapter also teaches you how an existing Windows NT domain arrangement can be consolidated and/or restructured during the migration. The planning issues relevant to Active Directory are discussed, along with the advantages and disadvantages of different restructured migration end points. Finally the process of deciding the order in which Windows NT domains should be migrated is discussed.
• Chapter 6, "Performing an Upgrade," describes the steps to be performed to upgrade a Windows NT domain to Windows 2000. The importance of an upgrade strategy and recovery plan is emphasized. The order in which servers in a Windows NT domain should be upgraded is discussed, along with mechanisms for maintaining file replication during an upgrade. The pre-upgrade tasks to be performed before a server is upgraded are discussed. You will also practice the upgrade of a Windows NT primary domain controller.
• Chapter 7, "Transitioning an Upgrade to Native Mode," deals with the stages a system will pass through as it moves from Windows NT to Windows 2000. You will learn how the user profiles are managed during an upgrade, and how to test them in an upgraded environment. You will also learn how Windows NT and Windows 2000 policies interact, and how to manage these during a migration. Finally you will learn how to convert a Windows 2000 mixed-mode domain into native mode, once there are no Windows NT domain controllers remaining in the domain.
• Chapter 8, "Developing a Domain Restructure Strategy," considers the restructure process as applied to a number of Windows NT domains. The restructure process is described, along with reasons why particular restructuring techniques are to be applied. The creation and use of a pristine environment is set out. You will learn the difference between intra- and inter-forest restructures and the situations in which each is applicable. Finally you will investigate the way in which users, computers, and resources can be moved or copied between domains as a restructure is performed.
• Chapter 9, "Restructure Tools," describes the tools which are used to perform the various forms of restructure described in Chapter 8. Each of the tools is identified, along with the situations in which each is to be used. In this chapter you also learn of the importance of the Domain Naming Service (DNS) to the migration process, and how DNS is managed before, during, and after a migration. Finally you will make use of migration tools to move or clone objects in practice scenarios.
• Chapter 10, "Post-Migration Tasks," identifies tasks to be performed once a migration has been completed. You will also learn how to optimize migrated servers, delegate control to organizational units, create any customized support tools required in the migrated environment, decommission Windows NT servers which are no longer in use, and finally ensure that the migrated environment is secure.
• Chapter 11, "Troubleshooting Windows 2000 During and After Migration," details a number of tools and techniques that you can use to investigate and attack problems that arise during the migration and upgrade of systems. You will be shown how to deal with failed domain upgrades, problems with applications after migration, network service failures, and client connectivity and security issues. Finally you will learn how to plan for failures and the importance of prioritizing potential faults.
• Chapter 12, "Business Continuity," shows how to minimize the risks that accompany a migration and ensure that the production environment is not put in jeopardy by the migration. It describes what data should be backed up before a migration and backup issues specific to the migration process. You also find out how to protect your system configuration in the event of problems.
• Appendix A, "Questions and Answers," lists all of the questions from the book, showing the page number where the question appears and the suggested answer.
• Appendix B, "Deploying Windows 2000 on Client Workstations," is a brief summary of some of the techniques available when migrating Windows NT workstations to Windows 2000 Professional systems. Each of the tools that can be used to upgrade or replace client systems is described.
• Appendix C, "Recommended Reading," identifies useful books that can provide additional reference material dealing with Windows 2000 and the migration process.
• Appendix D, "Recommended Web Sites," provides the Internet URL and description of a number of online resources that provide information concerning Windows 2000, migration from Windows NT, and helpful third-party tools.
• The Glossary lists and defines the terms associated with your study of Windows 2000, Windows NT, Active Directory, and the migration process.