Challenges

• Server consolidation – Migrating Servers from Legacy racks to a Host running Type 1 Hypervisor

About The Client

About The Client

A leading Web hosting services provider operating from New Jersey.

 

Preconditions

Migrate legacy rack servers with minimal downtime using P2V tools.

Our client chose to virtualize the entire legacy IT infrastructure because they were battling an inefficient system that was costing them more space and money. In addition, some of the critical factors we had to consider were time and a migration solution that would not amplify existing problems or cause unprecedented downtime. Therefore, choosing the right virtualization solution was essential, and we conducted a careful evaluation of both open-source and proprietary products and technologies. Ultimately, the number of servers to be migrated was close to 54, and this included web, mail, SQL, DNS, and application servers.

 

After exploring all available virtualization products and in consolation with the client. We suggested Hyper-V virtualization for the computing needs and IBM SAN for storage needs. Most of the servers were running Windows OS and we wanted to do a migration using P2V conversion. The conversion process was first executed in our lab environment using Virtual Machine Manager (VMM) and Disk2VHD utility. The converted VM’s were then verified for proper functioning and we demonstrated the P2V capability of our client. After this test run we started converting the VM’s using conversion tools and successfully migrated 54 servers to three different hosts in a month’s time.

 

The P2V conversion of VMs was carried out online, which means the source computer continued to perform normal operations during the conversion. Specifically, VMM created a copy of local NTFS volumes and data of VSS-aware applications. To achieve this, VMM leveraged the Volume Shadow Copy Service (VSS) to ensure that data was backed up consistently while the server continued servicing user requests. Furthermore, VMM used this read-only snapshot to create a VHD. As a result, choosing this conversion model allowed us to keep the source server available throughout the entire conversion process.

 

IT Infrastructure Optimization: By revitalizing their IT infrastructure, our clients significantly reduced expenditures on hardware, licenses, power, and cooling. As a result, this transformation delivered substantial benefits, including a 10:1 (or greater) reduction in hardware requirements and improved server utilization. Moreover, we implemented a failover clustering solution to ensure high availability for business-critical applications.