How to migrate a MS File Server VM that has Azure Files mapped for cold storage

Question

Hello there, I am looking for some guidance on a task that I have on hand. We have a Microsoft File Server Hyper-V VM On-premises, data is stored on the local machine as a Vhd. We have Azure Files setup for cold storage, files are synced via the Azure Files Agent. Now, we intend to migrate the File Server VM to a new hardware and also rename the File Server with a different name that is more appropriate to our naming convention. I am planning to do a Hyper-V export of the VM to the new hardware, along with the VHD. I am assuming that everything will be fine thus far because nothing is changing to the Azure Files configuration (to un-sync) - Please correct me if I am wrong. But, when I rename the VM either pre or post migration, I am not sure what could go wrong and what needs to be addressed before the server's name change, either on the Azure File Sync Agent end or Azure Files configuration end. I am guessing, because Azure File Server - Sync group is mapped to the hostname, I may have to remap the new Server hostname. Is that right ? Is there anything else that needs to be addressed / considered ? Is the approach ok ? I would greatly appreciate some guidance / inputs. Thanks Sreekanth

Answer 1

@Sreekanth Kannan Welcome to Microsoft Q&A Forum, Thank you for posting the query here!

It sounds like you have a good plan for migrating your Microsoft File Server Hyper-V VM to new hardware and renaming it. You are correct that the Azure Files configuration should not be affected by the migration itself, as long as the Azure Files Agent continues to run on the new hardware and the VHD file is still in the same location.

However, you are also correct that the Azure File Sync Agent is mapped to the hostname of the server, so you will need to update the mapping after you rename the server. Here are the steps you can follow:

Before you rename the server, stop the Azure File Sync Agent service on the old server.

Rename the server and make sure that the new name is resolvable by DNS.

On the new server, install the Azure File Sync Agent and configure it to use the same storage account and sync group as the old server.

Start the Azure File Sync Agent service on the new server.

Open the Azure portal and navigate to the sync group that is associated with the old server.

Click on the "Endpoints" tab and remove the old server endpoint.

Click on the "Add endpoint" button and add the new server endpoint.

Verify that the sync group is syncing correctly to the new server.

In addition to the above steps, you may also need to update any scripts or applications that reference the old server name to use the new server name instead.

Overall, your approach seems reasonable and should work as long as you follow the steps above. However, I would recommend testing the migration and renaming process in a non-production environment first to make sure that everything works as expected before doing it in production.

Rename a sync group

A sync group cannot be renamed. Its name is part of the URL with which the child resources cloud endpoint and server endpoints are stored and managed. Choose the name carefully when you create the resource.

Please let us know if you have any further queries. I’m happy to assist you further.  

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