Mixed server versions in a pool are not supported. Rolling upgrades for each server in the pool is not supported. In addition, because of the move to the 64-bit host server and the schema changes to the supporting backend databases, in-place migration is not supported.

After preparing Active Directory and installing the Office Communications Server 2007 R2 Edge Server and Director, the next step in the side-by-side migration is to deploy the first Office Communications Server 2007 R2 pool. If you are building an Enterprise pool, ensure that the back-end SQL Server is prepared before installing and configuring the new pool.

For details about the user experience during this phase, see User Experience During Phase 4 of Migration.

Prepare Back-End SQL Server Database if Necessary

Deploying Office Communications Server 2007 R2 Enterprise Edition requires a separate SQL Server to host the back-end database. For details about using Enterprise Edition, see the Deploying Office Communications Server 2007 R2 Enterprise Editiondocumentation.

When you deploy Office Communications Server 2007 R2 Standard Edition, you install SQL Server Express on the Standard Edition server. For details about Standard Edition, see the Deploying Office Communications Server 2007 R2 Standard Editiondocumentation.

If you are deploying an Enterprise pool, you need to prepare a SQL Server for the back-end database. For details, see Configure SQL Server for Office Communications Serverin the Deploying Office Communications Server 2007 R2 Enterprise Edition documentation.

  1. Ensure operating system updates are installed.The following operating system updates are prerequisites for deploying Office Communications Server 2007 R2 on any server computer:

    • Microsoft Knowledge Base article 953582, "You may be unable to install a program that tries to register extensions under the IQueryForm registry entry in Windows Server 2008 or in Windows Vista," at http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=131392 . You must install this update before you install the Office Communications Server 2007 R2 snap-in. This update applies to Windows Server 2008 and Windows Vista.

    • Microsoft Knowledge Base article 953990, “AV at mscorwks!SetAsyncResultProperties,” at http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=145380 . This update applies to Windows Server 2003 SP2 and Windows Server 2008.

  2. Install Office Communications Server 2007 R2 pool Front End Server.Install and configure the first Office Communications Server 2007 R2 pool, either Standard Edition or Enterprise Edition. For details, see the Deploying Office Communications Server 2007 R2 Enterprise Editiondocumentation and the Deploying Office Communications Server 2007 R2 Standard Editiondocumentation.

  3. Create test accounts and validate installation.We recommend that you use test accounts and pilot users to validate your installation. Move the test accounts to the new pool and validate the configuration before you move the pilot user group to the new pool. Move the pilot group and revalidate the functionality before moving the remainder of the production users as described in Phase 7: Move Production Users.

Archiving and Monitoring Considerations

If your environment requires compliance or monitoring features, before you move users to the new pool you must install, activate, and configure Office Communications Server R2, Archiving Server, to support the Office Communications Server 2007 R2 pool.

See Also