Introduction

This chapter is about guiding you through the requirements and steps to upgrade older VMM versions to VMM 2016. We will start from the VMM 2008 R2 SP1 and end on current VMM 2016.

There is no direct upgrade path from VMM 2008 R2 SP1 or VMM 2012 to VMM 2016. You must first upgrade VMM 2008 R2 to VMM 2012, and then to VMM 2012 R2. VMM 2008 R2 SP1 -> VMM 2012 -> SCVMM 2012 SP1 -> VMM 2012 R2 -> VMM 2016 is the correct upgrade path.

The main reasons for upgrading might be different:

  • Evaluation copy has expired and you need to re-install or upgrade VMM:
  • New functionality and the necessity of managing hosts running on a newer version of Windows Server or ESXi. You can't manage, for instance, Windows Server 2016 hosts in VMM 2012 R2.
  • Product life cycle is coming to an end. Knowing the life cycle of your existing VMM helps you plan the upgrade and other infrastructure changes related to a virtualization platform including hosts, libraries, and so on. The following table shows you key dates for VМM versions 2008 R2 through 2016:

In short, mainstream support is almost complimentary and includes free non-security updates. You can even request design changes or new features with this support type. But when extended support starts, support becomes paid and non-security updates require additional hotfix agreements. Therefore, I'd recommend to plan VMM upgrade before the end of mainstream support.

The following upgrade notes will help you make the right decisions:

  • VMM 2012 cannot be directly upgraded to VMM 2016. Upgrading it to VMM 2012 SP1 and then to VMM 2012 R2 is required first.
  • VMM 2012 can be installed on a Windows Server 2008 server.
  • VMM 2012 SP1 requires Windows Server 2012.
  • VMM 2012 R2 requires a minimum Windows Server 2012 (Windows 2012 R2 recommended).
  • VMM 2016 requires a minimum Windows Server 2016.
  • Windows Server 2012 hosts can be managed by VMM 2012 SP1 and VMM 2012 R2.
  • Windows Server 2012 R2 hosts require VMM 2012 R2 or VMM 2016.
  • Windows Server 2016 hosts require VMM 2016.
  • Self-Service Portal has not been available since VMM 2012 SP1.
  • System Center App Controller is completely removed in SC 2016.
  • Citrix XenServer support is no longer available in VMM 2016.
To debug VMM installation, the logs are located in %ProgramData%\VMMLogs, and you can use the CMTrace.exe tool to monitor in real time the content of files including SetupWizard.log and vmmServer.log.

As discussed in Chapter 1, VMM 2016 Architecture, VMM 2016 is a huge product upgrade and there are many improvements. For more details on the new improvements, go through Chapter 1, VMM 2016 Architecture.

This chapter only covers VMM upgrade.

CRITICAL: If you have previous versions of System Center family components installed in your environment, make sure you follow the upgrade and installation. System Center 2016 has some new components in which the installation order is also critical. It is critical that you follow the following order:
  • Service Management Automation
  • Orchestrator
  • Service Manager
  • Data Protection Manager (DPM)
  • Operations Manager
  • Configuration Manager
  • Virtual Machine Manager (VMM)
  • App Controller
  • Service Provider Foundation
  • Windows Azure Pack for Windows Server
  • Service Bus Clouds
  • Windows Azure Pack
  • Service Reporting
Before we start, I would recommend you to go through Chapter 1, VMM 2016 Architecture, and pay special attention to the recipe Specifying the correct system requirements for a real-world scenario.
上一章目录下一章