If your deployment involves a migration from an existing ZENworks infrastructure, you should have gone through a pre-staging process, but your actual process for deploying to the end user communities should not be different. You still need to pilot and deploy in the same way as if this is a new deployment of ZENworks Configuration Management.
You should use the ZENworks Migration Wizard to perform the pre-staging activities, which includes migration of the following resources:
Application objects and source content. This includes all AOT/AXT-based objects and content, MSI-based objects and content, and Simple objects.
Image objects and image files.
Policy objects and applicable policy files (for example, Group Policy files).
Imported workstation objects.
All associations for application objects and policy packages.
The Migration Wizard can be found at the following locations:
%zenworks_home%\install\downloads\tools
https://servername/zenworks-setup/
It is important to note that if you are migrating from an eDirectory infrastructure (for user sources) to an Active Directory environment, you should take advantage of the migration capabilities built into the Migration Wizard for migrating associations. This allows you to migrate your existing eDirectory associations to Active Directory users, groups, and folders.
In addition, if you are migrating workstation objects, the wizard allows you to avoid the need for discovery of devices. After you have migrated your workstation objects into the ZENworks Configuration Management Zone, you can target them directly from there. In fact, we recommend that all existing ZENworks customers migrate their workstation objects even if they are associating applications and policies only to users in the user source. If workstations are not migrated, and you deploy the ZENworks Adaptive Agent to the existing ZENworks workstations, all applications and policies within ZENworks Configuration Management redeploy.
Some additional best practice recommendations for using the ZENworks Desktop Management Migration Wizard include:
If you migrate traditional ZENworks application objects as MSI files through the Migration Utility running on a Windows Vista device, the performance might degrade. For improved performance, run the Migration Utility on a Windows XP SP2 device.
While migrating applications that require the content to be uploaded to the content server, the migration might fail. Ensure that the port specified in the option while logging in to the migration destination zone matches the port configured during installing the ZENworks Configuration Management Server.
While migrating large applications that should be uploaded to the content server, the connection to the server might be lost, resulting in failure of the migration. Ensure that the option in the Web Client Configuration is set to in order to establish a persistent connection with the server.
While migrating applications, deselect the option if you do not want to upload the applications to the content server. Deselecting the option migrates the MSI applications as Install Network MSI, which installs the MSI from a network path. By default, the option is enabled.
If you use the Snapshot Manager in traditional ZENworks to create complex application objects with multiple changes such as Registry, INI, and File Copy, you should migrate the applications as MSI by disabling the option.
If you use the Snapshot Manager in traditional ZENworks to create application objects with single changes such as Registry, INI, or File Copy, or if the application object must be edited later, you should migrate the application as actions by enabling the option.
If an application is dependent on other applications, review the applications on which the dependency exists and migrate them as MSI or as actions dependent on the requirements, then migrate the dependent applications.
If the traditional ZENworks application objects use files that are hosted on the network share, you should map the network share on the device hosting the migration tool.
By default, the applications are uploaded to the content server during the migration. If the application files are located on a shared network and you want to continue using the network files, deselect the option.
If there are too many associations to be listed in the Migration Utility, select the option to reduce the time taken by the utility in listing the associations.
Application objects that have the AppFsRights attribute set in eDirectory are not listed in the Migration Utility. To list such applications for the migration, remove the AppFsRights attribute. For more information on removing attributes, search for the LDAP Attribute Remover article at the ZENworks Cool Solutions Community.
In addition to the ZENworks 7 Migration Wizard, ZENworks 11 Configuration Management also includes a migration tool that can be used to migrate data from an existing ZENworks Linux Management infrastructure. The tool can also be downloaded from the same setup page as the migration tool for ZENworks 7.
The ZENworks Linux Management migration utility helps ZLM customers migrate their ZENworks Linux Management zone to an existing ZENworks 11 zone. This involves migration of bundles, policies, devices and associations for devices to bundles and policies. As there is no concept of Catalogs in ZENworks 11, we you be migrating ZENworks Linux Management Catalogs as either Linux Bundles or Linux Dependency Bundles in ZENworks 11. In addition, you will be migrating ZENworks Linux Management policies (Remote Execute/Text File) as ZENworks 11 bundles with install actions as run script/edit text file actions.
It is important to note that you should always test your migration(s) in a lab environment first, before you begin your production migrations. You should also test everything that you want to migrate as well, it doesn't hurt and it can save you a lot of time when it comes time to touch the production environment. When it is time to perform your production migration, we suggest doing things in phases, and take it one manageable step at a time.
The ZENworks Linux Management object migration wizard migrates RPM/File/Image Bundles, Remote Execute Policy and Text File Policy, Settings, Devices and Assignments.
In short, the user experience with the migration tools that Novell provides are very similar, and accomplish what is required to get existing content and settings from one infrastructure to your new ZENworks 11 infrastructure.