Mac OS X Lion Server For Dummies®

Upgrading versus Migrating

Whether you're creating your first server or upgrading or migrating an older server, you start the installation in the same place, as described in the section “Performing the Lion Server Installation, Upgrade, or Migration,” later in the chapter. The differences between upgrading and migrating are significant, however.

There are also some things that aren't moved during an upgrade or a migration. But first, some basic differences:

• A New install is where you don't have an existing server. This includes installing on a blank drive volume and installing on top of a Snow Leopard client.
• An Upgrade is where you run the installer while booted from the older server, replacing an older server. If you go this route, make a backup of your older server first.
• A Migration is where the installer copies data from another server or hard drives or volumes onto the new hard disk. The old server and its data are retained intact. Migration is performed during the installation process, using a server assistant that launches when you select an option to transfer data from an existing server.

  Even if you use Mac OS X Server 10.6.8, migration is your only option if the server Mac is an older model not supported by Lion Server. (See Chapter 2 for a list of supported Macs.)

All three of these installation types are highly automated, using a server assistant. You can also do ...