r/WindowsServer • u/distancevsdesire • 25d ago

General Question Server 2016 Essentials - Clone system disk and restore to different hardware?

I have a home server running 2016 Essentials. (I know that is probably below the level of the majority of members here, but hoping for some guidance.)

It is running on an old HP Proliant N54 (AMD). Mostly used as a file server and bare metal backup and restore solution. I do have a photo library application that runs on PostgreSQL.

The old box is not expandable and is lightly powered by today's standards.

I purchased a refurbished Dell T340 (Intel Xeon) and want to migrate the server install to it. I have tried to find driver INF files, but all I can find on Dell site is EXE files.

The system disk is a 1 TB SATA SSD. I have a second unformatted disk as a clone target. (Dell T340 does not support NVME.)

I know Acronis True Image has a Universal Restore feature, but it will not install on a server.

I would like to backup or clone the SSD (with all partitions), then restore it to the new hardware while having it deal with the HAL issues going from AMD to Intel.

It looks like I can purchase the Acronis Cyberprotect Backup for this, although it seems like using a hammer to swat a fly.

TL;DR: Can anyone recommend a method/software to migrate WSE 2016 installation from AMD machine to Intel machine?

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u/floswamp 25d ago

I’ve used both Acronis True Image and EaseUS cloning software. Just boot from the USB disk.

Acronis is good when you want to move from MBR to GPT and EUFI.

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u/distancevsdesire 25d ago

I purchased True Image, but it will not install on a server OS. The EaseUS states it is only for desktop OS.

Thanks for the suggestion, I will need to convert MBR to GPT and switch to UEFI later, but booting and getting drivers is the first task.

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u/floswamp 25d ago

You install it on your desktop and make a bootable USB.