Hyper V VM move to new hardware

[autumn]

G day all

I'm at a bit of a loss with this. The server is working and the issue is left with the software guy now but I have questions.

I've installed a new server Hardware for a customer with Server 2022 Std and setup Hyper V. We have had several hard drives fail in the old server with has Server 2012 Std and Hyper V.

So shut the VM server down.
Move the VM drives to the new server, on errors on moving,
the VM itself wouldn't export so made a new VM and attached the VM drives in the same configuration as the original.
Start the VM up on the new hardware.
Windows Server has started fine and all the system looks fine
contacted the software support for them to test
They said everything looked ok
However this morning the customer said one part of their LOB software isn't working. Software support will fix it tonight.

So my question is
Shouldn't the VM server be seen as the same so why would their LOB software have an issue? Customer says their are always little glitches when anything is done with the server. How can a database be so touchy with basically a shutdown and restart?

Is there anything I should watch for when moving VM's? I have done a number of them without issues and I understand that this will be more due to the DB.

 

[YeOldeStonecat]

I've seen some licensing services with certain (oddball software)....bark when you move to new hardware.
They can make a hash when first installed on "computer A". And then if you say, clone the disk, to a new host...the hardware will be seen as different. Even on a hypervisor. And it will no longer match the hash the software first made.

I move "guests" from hyper-visor A to hyper-visor B...I just copy the VHDX files over to the new host, built a new virtual server around them...match or raise the CPU and RAM, assign the NIC...boom, done. Not much more effort than copying a few MS Word docs from one computer to another computer.

 

[autumn]

I've seen some licensing services with certain (oddball software)....bark when you move to new hardware.
They can make a hash when first installed on "computer A". And then if you say, clone the disk, to a new host...the hardware will be seen as different. Even on a hypervisor. And it will no longer match the hash the software first made.

I move "guests" from hyper-visor A to hyper-visor B...I just copy the VHDX files over to the new host, built a new virtual server around them...match or raise the CPU and RAM, assign the NIC...boom, done. Not much more effort than copying a few MS Word docs from one computer to another computer.

yep, this is basically my experience. I think this one is just a dodgy software/DB setup.

I'm at the point with software companies that just fix your software. This time we wording them up that we were going to move the VM last weekend and if they could check if all was ok. They were fine with that. However it looks like he said he logged in, he hasn't. Because he can't log in now. VPN is done at the router so no change there.

 

[Philippe]

assign the NIC

It can help to keep the same (virtual) MAC...

 

[YeOldeStonecat]

It can help to keep the same (virtual) MAC...

I haven't seen software that binds to a MAC in a long time...but yes, for some really wonky legacy software, it might be one that does that.

 

[John Kennedy]

Agree with what has been said so far. You did the right thing and about the only thing you really had any control over was cloning the MAC address, and that's likely not it. More likely something to do with some hardware unique ID the software created on install on the old server. So many software companies use wonky ways to lock down their old software to the license terms they sold them under. These days you're much less likely to find a problem like that simply because nobody sells perpetual licenses anymore.

 

[autumn]

Yep, don't even think it was a MAC thing, 95% of the software worked except for one area.

Just needed some reassurance that the process was sound. Which it sounds like it is. Just something with this software.

The software support has some improvements, I had a call from the client saying everything was slow/not working, about 1/2 hour later I get a message from the software support saying he's fixed the issue, which when originally talking to them they said they needed to restart the server.

Anyway....

Thanks again