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dtoddc
Contributor
Contributor
‎03-04-2019 03:34 PM

Cloning a Windows 2012 Server with SQL 2014

I have a production MS Windows 2012 R2 server with MS SQL Standard Server 2014 installed that I would like to clone into for testing purposes -- to test for a potential upgrade of software.  I have VMware v6.5 (and using vSphere Web Client) in order to accomplish this task.

What I would like to know is the best method to accomplish this.  From my initial research, it seems that there are those that suggest using Sysprep before any cloning is performed.  But, remembering back to my workstation cloning days, I would have to turn off the "sysprepped" machine and keep it off forever.  Unfortunately, I cannot do that on this production server.  Any other suggestions?  Although starting from a clean install would probably work, it is not a true "apples to apples" comparison to the production server I am needing to upgrade in the future.

Also, I believe that the SQL Server would have some issues with the name change.  Would I have to run a command(s) in order to resolve any issues in relation to SQL?

Thanks in advance for any help or suggestions you can provide.

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3 Replies
ThompsG
Virtuoso
Virtuoso
‎03-04-2019 07:42 PM

Hi dtoddc and welcome to the community!

As long as you are not planning on introducing this server back onto the same network as the production server then I don't see any issue with cloning as you propose. Just make sure they never see each other - not actually as issue for each other but more from the prospect of clients updating the wrong SQL instance.

Clone then move to an "offline" network to complete your testing.

In the past I have also taken our backups (OS and SQL) and restored them to an offline network. This tested not only the upgrade but also my recovery processes at the same time Smiley Wink

Kind regards.

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dtoddc
Contributor
Contributor
‎03-05-2019 08:12 AM

Thanks for your response, Glen! Smiley Happy

Your suggestion sounds doable.  I will start the process of implementing this suggestion and present the results here later.

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dtoddc
Contributor
Contributor
‎03-18-2019 08:02 PM

I wanted to let everyone know that after I followed the instructions provided, most everything worked.


Some words of advice:

  • Remember to power on the clone machine WITHOUT the network cord powered on.
  • Removed the cloned server from the domain and add to a fake workgroup
  • Using regedit, perform a search for the server that was cloned -- and replace it with the name of the new server.
  • Also, allow the cloned server to access DHCP for an IP address

That's all that worked for me!  Hope it helps others.

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