Hyper-V Server 2016 to 2019 in-place upgrade failing

Question

I have a test server (Dell Poweredge R710) running the free Hyper-V Server 2016. It's a very simple standalone setup - no shared storage (although it is domain-joined).

I am trying to do an in-place upgrade to Hyper-V Server 2019 - I'm shifting all our Servers to 2019, and it would make things easier for patching, etc, if this one was on the same version. When I run the installer from the command line it fails, and looking at the log file shows this as the cause:

<CompatibilityInfo BlockingType="Hard"/><Message Text="You have the Remote Desktop Virtualization Host (RDVH) role installed on this server. After you upgrade, you won’t be able to add the RemoteFX 3D video adapter to virtual machines."/>

It's just a test server running the standalone VMs I use for trying things out, so it's not a, RDVH host, and RemoteFX is not used or relevant.

Anyone know how to get around this? I could of course do a clean install but that's extra hassle.

Thanks

Answer 1

The much simpler / safer method is to export / copy the VHDs to removable, clean install the new OS, patch fully, add hyper-v role, import virtual machines.

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Answer 2

Hi,

Yes, I could do but as I say it's only a test server so I'd rather go with the quicker / easier upgrade option if possible - if the VMs get broken it isn't a major issue.

Thanks

Answer 3

Sounds good then, I'd check the logs for clues.
https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/troubleshoot/windows-client/deployment/windows-setup-log-file-locations

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Answer 4

It's the RDVH role issue - which apparently was included in Hyper-V Server 2016 but not 2019. What I don't know is how to get around that (the role is not needed).

Answer 5

Probably the work-around is to clean install it.

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