I've been out of town every week except 2 so far this year so the blogging has taken a back seat while my spare time is taken up with migrating the site onto a new Server 2008 Hyper-v environment. Apart from building the new DC, SQL Server, MOSS App server and WFE, I can also run up a few other virtual machines to try out Performance Point, Data Protection Manager.

I created 2 new web applications on the WFE (this VM has 8Gb dedicated and 2 cores) and installed the Fantastic 40 templates and the End User Training on each.

There are a few possible approaches for moving the main site content. I chose to just move the site collection content database by using SQL backup/restore and create a new web application using this restored content db. Because this is a new AD I had to change the dbo to the application pool of the web application and reset the site collection administration account. Then it was a matter of finding all the 3^rd party solutions I had installed and correcting all those absolute URL's I had placed in the content. I plan on the new site using forms based authentication so I'm using another url for the NTLM zone.

I have cut over the DNS for www.wssdemo.com (The SilverLight demo isn't working on the new server yet). That will have to wait until next week as I'm off to Auckland again this week. It is only an hour flight but I have already managed to read 5 novels on the plane this year. I'm trying to get through all the Lee Child books this year and number 6 will be Killing Floor.