Migrate from Server 2012 R2 Essentials to Server 2022 Standard

Quickpath 21 Reputation points
2021-11-03T15:44:34.33+00:00

I need to be able to do a server migration from Server 2012 R2 Essentials to Server 2022 Standard (since the will basically be no "Essentials" version of Server 2022). The upgrade won't work since I'm attempting to go from Essentials to Standard. I can upgrade to Standard 2012 R2 using the evaluation key, but since it won't activate the migration to 2022 won't work (it fails at 3%). Is there any way to do this without having to purchase a 2012 R2 Standard license before I do the Server 2022 upgrade? Seems that Microsoft forgot about this kind of situation since they basically abandoned the "Essentials" version. I can always do a clean install, but the amount of work that will be done and the down-time is a lot of hours.

Windows Server 2012
Windows Server 2012
A Microsoft server operating system that supports enterprise-level management, data storage, applications, and communications.
1,529 questions
Windows Server Migration
Windows Server Migration
Windows Server: A family of Microsoft server operating systems that support enterprise-level management, data storage, applications, and communications.Migration: The process of making existing applications and data work on a different computer or operating system.
408 questions
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  1. Dave Patrick 426.1K Reputation points MVP
    2021-11-03T23:29:49.197+00:00

    need to upgrade first to 2012 R2 Standard

    to convert you can
    Dism /online /Set-Edition:ServerStandard /ProductKey:xxxxx-xxxxx-xxxxx-xxxxx-xxxxx /AcceptEula

    then do the in-place upgrade to 2022

    That's unlikely to work. They generally support a single version jump so 2012 R2 to 2019 would be as good as it gets.

    --please don't forget to upvote and Accept as answer if the reply is helpful--

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  1. Quickpath 21 Reputation points
    2021-11-03T22:41:13.493+00:00

    One thing I haven't tried is the order in which some of this was done. I can attempt to update the AD schema first and then see if the 2022 upgrade works, but I'm not hopeful. I'm almost certain I'll get the version to version error message.

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  2. Dave Patrick 426.1K Reputation points MVP
    2021-11-03T22:44:14.61+00:00

    You cannot upgrade to Server 2022 from Server 2012 R2 Essentials

    Yes, you would not want to try that any way. An in-place upgrade is risky enough not to mention a domain controller. Hardware that old is also not likely to support Server 2022. Check it here and with server manufacturer.
    https://www.windowsservercatalog.com/

    --please don't forget to upvote and Accept as answer if the reply is helpful--

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  3. Quickpath 21 Reputation points
    2021-11-03T22:45:36.267+00:00

    Also, I want to do an in-place upgrade - I don't want to have to replace the server if I can help it. I'm basically cloning the drive to a new one so that I can keep the original drive if the upgrade fails and ends up hosing the OS. Once I switch from Essentials to Standard I can't go back even if I wanted to, so I had to put the original drive back in after my failed attempt. So I'm back to square one. I'm just hoping to find a way to do this because I have about 20 servers I need to do this for sometime before next year.

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  4. Dave Patrick 426.1K Reputation points MVP
    2021-11-03T22:59:37.08+00:00

    Seems very problematic and unlikely the hardware supports this but give this a go if you must.
    https://server-essentials.com/support/in-place-upgrade-of-windows-server-essentials-2012-r2-to-windows-server-essentials-2016-on-the-same-hardware

    --please don't forget to upvote and Accept as answer if the reply is helpful--

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