vCenter 5.5 (SUSE Linux) - migrate to new server

[andydcliff]

I'm looking for any best practice guides/ steps to migrate vCenter to a new server. I'm using the vCenter appliance update 1.

I can only find the guide for Windows hosted vCenter.

To complicate matters the root password for the old server has been lost.

Thanks in advance.

[daphnissov · Accepted solution]

You may want to check out my article in which I cover this exact type of migration, the overall process, and some caveats.

[andydcliff]

Thanks. Looks very helpful at first glance.

I'll have a read through.

[andydcliff]

I've built the new vCenter server, same version and build.

It sounds like I just need to add the current ESX hosts into the new Datacenter/ Cluster I've created.

From my understanding, this shouldn't require any downtime and the networks and Datastores will move across with the hosts?

[daphnissov]

That's true, unless you're using a vDS, in which case you must migrate to a vSS first.

[andydcliff]

Thanks. All went without a hitch.

[jprovine7]

I thought you said the VDS didn't have to be turned to a standard switch before migrating

[jprovine7]

Did you have standard or virtual distributed switches

[daphnissov]

OP is doing a swing migration and not an upgrade-migration to the appliance.