How to Upgrade to a Highly Available VMM Management Server
Updated: May 13, 2016
Applies To: System Center 2012 - Virtual Machine Manager
If you are running VMM 2008 R2 SP1 on a node of a cluster, you can use this procedure to perform an in-place upgrade of the VMM server to a highly available VMM management server that is running System Center 2012 – Virtual Machine Manager.
Before beginning the upgrade process, review Planning Considerations for Upgrading to VMM.
Membership in the local Administrators group, or equivalent, on the computer that you are configuring is the minimum required to complete this procedure.
Warning
To avoid any loss of important data, before you upgrade VMM, we highly recommended that you perform a full backup on your VMM database.
To upgrade to a highly available VMM management server
On the node of your cluster that is running the VMM server, start the Microsoft System Center 2012 Virtual Machine Manager Setup Wizard.
To start the Microsoft System Center 2012 Virtual Machine Manager Setup Wizard, on your installation media, double-click setup.exe.
Note
Before beginning the upgrade of VMM, close any open programs and ensure that there are no pending restarts on the computer. For example, if you have installed a server role by using Server Manager or have applied a security update, you may need to restart the computer and then log on to the computer with the same user account to finish the installation of the server role or the security update.
On the main setup page, click Install.
On the setup dialog box, click Yes to confirm that you want to upgrade your existing VMM installation to System Center 2012 – Virtual Machine Manager.
Click Yes on the dialog to confirm that a cluster node is detected and that you want to upgrade VMM on the server and make it highly available.
On the Features to be upgraded page, click Next.
Note
All items will be selected and you cannot clear any of the selections.
On the Product registration information page, provide the appropriate information, and then click Next.
On the Please read this license agreement page, review the license agreement, select the I have read, understood, and agree with the terms of the license agreement check box, and then click Next.
On the Join the Customer Experience Improvement Program (CEIP) page, select either option and then click Next.
On the Microsoft Update page, select whether or not you want to use Microsoft Update, and then click Next.
Note
If you have previously chosen to use Microsoft Update on this computer, the Microsoft Update page does not appear.
On the Installation location page, use the default path or type a different installation path for the VMM program files, and then click Next.
Note
You cannot use the file location of the previous installation of VMM server.
The computer on which you are upgrading to a highly available VMM management server is checked to ensure that the appropriate hardware and software requirements are met. If a prerequisite is not met, a page appears with information about which prerequisite has not been met and how to resolve the issue. If all prerequisites have been met, the Database configuration page appears.
For information about hardware and software requirements for VMM, see System Requirements: VMM 2012 and VMM 2012 SP1.
On the Database configuration page, verify the information for your existing installation of VMM management server is correct, and click Next.
Important
If the account that you are logged in as to perform the upgrade does not have access to the SQL Server on which the VMM database for VMM 2008 R2 SP1 is located, then you must select Use the following credentials and provide credentials that do have access to that SQL Server.
On the Cluster configuration page, In the Name box, type the name you want to give to this highly available VMM management server implementation. For example, type
havmmcontoso.Warning
Do not enter the name of the failover cluster or the name of the computer on which the VMM server is installed.
You use this clustered service name to connect to this highly available VMM management server using the VMM console. Because there are multiple nodes on the failover cluster that have the VMM management server feature installed, you need a single name to use when you connect to your VMM environment by using the VMM console.
If you are using static IPv4 addresses, you must specify the IP address to assign to the clustered service name. The clustered service name and its assigned IP address are registered in DNS. If you are using IPv6 addresses or you are using DHCP, no additional configuration is needed.
After you have configured the cluster settings, click Next.
On the Configure service account and distributed key management page, type the domain account and password that will be used by the System Center Virtual Machine Manager service. You must use a domain account for a highly available VMM management server.
Warning
Choose your service account carefully. In some circumstances, depending on what you choose, encrypted data, like passwords in templates and profiles, will not be available after the upgrade and you will have to re-enter them manually. For more information, see Choosing Service Account and Distributed Key Management Settings During an Upgrade.
Under Distributed Key Management, specify the location in Active Directory to store encryption keys. For example, type
CN=VMMDKM,DC=contoso,DC=com.You must use distributed key management to store the encryption keys in Active Directory for a highly available VMM management server. For more information about distributed key management, see Configuring Distributed Key Management in VMM.
After you have specified the necessary information on the Configure service account and distributed key management page, click Next.
On the Port configuration page, provide unique port numbers for each feature and that are appropriate for your environment, and then click Next.
Important
The ports that are currently assigned are unavailable. These port values cannot be changed without uninstalling and reinstalling VMM.
On the Self-Service portal configuration page, click Next.
This page is only displayed if the VMM Self-Service Portal is installed on your VMM server. We do not recommend that the VMM Self-Service Portal be installed on the same computer as the highly available VMM management server.
On the Upgrade compatibility report, review the information and do one of the following:
Click Cancel to exit upgrade and resolve the noted issues.
Click Next to proceed with upgrade.
On the Installation summary page, review your selections and do one of the following:
Click Previous to change any selections.
Click Install to upgrade the highly available VMM management server.
After you click Install, the Installing features page appears and upgrade progress is displayed.
On the Setup completed successfully page, click Close to finish the installation.
To open the VMM console, ensure that the Open the VMM console when this wizard closes check box is selected.
For information about connecting to a highly available VMM management server by using the VMM console, see How to Connect to a Highly Available VMM Management Server by Using the VMM Console.
To install a VMM management server on an additional node of the cluster, see How to Install a VMM Management Server on an Additional Node of a Cluster.