Hello, We have two 2003 DC's and one Exchange 2003 server all in the same domain. We are going to transition the DC's to 2008 and the exchange to 2010. What is the best transition scenario for this situation? 1. Transition exchange 2003 to exchange 2010 first and then transition the domain controllers. This scenario will demand exchange 2010 to work with the 2003 dc. 2. Transition the domain controllers first and then transition exchange. This scenario will demand the import of 2003 extensions in the 2008 domain controller. Thank you in advance. Bart

first you should perform the active directory transition from wind0w 2003 to windows 2008 R2 for the Active Directory transition please have a look to this link is good and detailed with exchange aspect as well http://blogs.dirteam.com/blogs/sanderberkouwer/archive/2010/05/26/transitioning-your-active-directory-to-windows-server-2008-r2.aspx Then you should perform exchange 2003 transition http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb124008%28EXCHG.140%29.aspxhttp://www.virmansec.com/blogs/skhairuddin

I would upgrade the domain controllers first however - leave the functional level of the domain at 2003 until after you have upgraded exchange. from what I have found there is an issue running exchange 2003 sp2 or lower in a 2008 r2 native domain. http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ee338574(EXCHG.80).aspx

Hello, For AD, you have to upgade to AD DS 2008: http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc731188(WS.10).aspx Once upgraded, you will be able to introduce new 2008 DCs. I would recommend proceeding like that: Add the 2008 DCs and make them DNS and GC servers Transfer FSMO roles to one of the new 2008 DCs Demote the old DCs after making sure that all is okay with AD replication by running dcdiag on DCs you have For Exchange, refer to that: http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ff805040.aspx More here: http://social.technet.microsoft.com/Forums/en-US/category/exchangeserver This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties or guarantees , and confers no rights. Microsoft Student Partner 2010 / 2011 Microsoft Certified Professional Microsoft Certified Systems Administrator: Security Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer: Security Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist: Windows Server 2008 Active Directory, Configuration Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist: Windows Server 2008 Network Infrastructure, Configuration Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist: Windows Server 2008 Applications Infrastructure, Configuration Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist: Windows 7, Configuring Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist: Designing and Providing Volume Licensing Solutions to Large Organizations Microsoft Certified IT Professional: Enterprise Administrator Microsoft Certified IT Professional: Server Administrator Microsoft Certified Trainer

Hello, For AD, you have to upgade to AD DS 2008: http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc731188(WS.10).aspx Once upgraded, you will be able to introduce new 2008 DCs. I would recommend proceeding like that: Add the 2008 DCs and make them DNS and GC servers Transfer FSMO roles to one of the new 2008 DCs Demote the old DCs after making sure that all is okay with AD replication by running dcdiag on DCs you have For Exchange, refer to that: http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ff805040.aspx More here: http://social.technet.microsoft.com/Forums/en-US/category/exchangeserver This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties or guarantees , and confers no rights. Microsoft Student Partner 2010 / 2011 Microsoft Certified Professional Microsoft Certified Systems Administrator: Security Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer: Security Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist: Windows Server 2008 Active Directory, Configuration Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist: Windows Server 2008 Network Infrastructure, Configuration Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist: Windows Server 2008 Applications Infrastructure, Configuration Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist: Windows 7, Configuring Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist: Designing and Providing Volume Licensing Solutions to Large Organizations Microsoft Certified IT Professional: Enterprise Administrator Microsoft Certified IT Professional: Server Administrator Microsoft Certified Trainer

Hi Bart, How are things going? I just want to check if the information provided was helpful. We can transition either AD or Exchange first, but it is recommended to transition AD first. Build a 2008 DC first, transfer roles as Mr X mentioned, then transition Exchange. Once transition finished, uninstall Exchange 2003, then demote the Windows 2003 DC. If there is any update or concern, please feel free to let us know. Best Regards, Aiden