Archive for December, 2012

Upgrading a Windows Server 2008 R2-based Server Core Domain Controller or DNS Server to Windows Server 2012 hangs on blank screen

Server Core installations of Windows Server offer increased performance and higher availability, compared to their Full Installation and Minimal Shell couterparts. Once you get hooked on the idea of Server Core and have a couple of Server Core installations of Windows Server 2008 R2 running, you might even get the idea you can simply in-place upgrade them to Windows Server 2012.

In an ideal world you can, but unfortunately, due to a known issue, you cannot upgrade a domain controller that runs a Server Core installation of Windows Server 2008 R2 to a Server Core installation of Windows Server 2012. The issue is described in Microsoft Knowledgebase article 2734222.

The upgrade will hang on a solid black screen late in the upgrade process. Rebooting such DCs exposes an option in boot.ini file to roll back to the previous operating system version. An additional reboot triggers the automatic rollback to the previous operating system version.

Until a solution is available, it is recommended that you install a new domain controller running a Server Core installation of Windows Server 2012 instead of in-place upgrading an existing domain controller that runs a Server Core installation of Windows Server 2008 R2. Another option is to demote the Server Core installation and remove the DNS Server role. Then, you can successfully in-place upgrade the server, re-apply the DNS Server Role and promote the server again, but really… is that less work?

When a solution comes available, you’ll be the first to know.