Recovery of Windows to dissimilar hardware is possible. Here are some keys. 1) There is a process called an "In-Place" upgrade. This is a process that is run by booting to windows installation media after a server has been recovered. Then you go through the optoins as if to install Windows. However, after you press F8 to agree to the licenese agreement a new page will be displayed that will say "Windows is installed at C:\Windows" Do you want to repair it? You then need to press "R" and it will run through an install that will re-enumerate all the haredware but leave all the hardware in tact. Effectivly the restore was only used bring down the software compenents of the system and registry after the "In-Place" upgrade is done. 2) When performing a restore of a Windows server, especially to different hardware, it is very important that the server be loaded with the exact same service pack. So if you are recovering Windows 2003 Sp1 you need to build a server with Windows 2003 SP1. Then you start the restore, then finally you must have a CD with SP1 slipstreamed into installation image on the CD. Here is one link you that refers to the in-place upgrade. Go to this link and search for "in-place". http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;263532&Product=win2000 Also, if you need help creating a Windows bootable CD with the service pack slipstreamed into it here is a link to nLite http://www.nliteos.com/. That is just one of the many things this product can do. I have used this process to restore to completely different sytem board types (ACPI to MPS). Completly different vendors, DELL to IBM, IBM to HP and HP to DELL. Different CPU's, single to dual, quad to single. It works every time because the "in-place" upgrade basically ensures that settings for the current hardware replaces all the settings in the restored system and registry for the old hardware.
"Gill, Geoffrey L." <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: As it relates to trying to restore a system to "unlike hardware" what sort of results does anyone have they might like to share. I've got some folks wanting to push this requirement on me and, since I have never tested this, I'm not comfortable with it. Thanks, Geoff Gill TSM Administrator PeopleSoft Sr. Systems Administrator SAIC M/S-G1b (858)826-4062 Email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] --------------------------------- Get your own web address for just $1.99/1st yr. We'll help. Yahoo! Small Business.