We have been running WSS V2 for the past year on a remote server.    We now have WSS V3 on an inhouse server.   Can I reasonably expect to simply make a backup of WSS V2 and load that onto the WSS V3 server and all files and functionality will migrate?  Will the new WSS V3 search functions then work with the older WSS V2 folders or will I have to take some specific action to make that happen?

  Thanks for any ideas or guidance.

Microsoft's WSS site has all kinds of information on migration

http://technet.microsoft.com/windowsserver/sharepoint/default.aspx

but to cut to the chase, IF your "remote" server is pretty vanilla (you haven't added MS's application templates for WSSv2, or haven't extended WSS), you might be able to do just that.  If it was just pretty much straightforward lists and document libraries, you'll be lucky.  I did that myself last year (in beta of WSS) and the migration went very easily.

That said, you can and should do some simple tests, even with a virtual machine running WSSv3.  Not only to you want the migration to SUCCEED, you also want it to look right, and you may find that the WSSv3 sites work, but still look like V2 sites.  You'll want to be prepared to deal with that kind of thing.  So I'd really suggest grabbing those backups and bringing them into a virtual machine/lab world to do some testing.

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Dan Holme
Office & SharePoint Pro Community Leader
MVP (Windows Server - Directory Services)

Hello all,

Just wondering if anyone has had any experience migrating a sharepoint site from WSS 2.0 to WSS 3.0 at a hosted service provider?  I enquired at my service providers and received a couple of different responses.  The first response suggested that the the most reliable means was to simply build a new WSS 3.0 site based on content manually transferred from the WSS 2.0 site; while the second response suggested that while there might be a few hiccups, it "might" be possible to use SharePoint Designer 2007 to do a backup from the WSS 2.0 site account and then "restore" the site into a new WSS 3.0 site account at the hosting service provider.

While I'm thinking that the first route is reliable, it would definitely involve a large amount of work; while the second alternative "might" involve less work, although of course who knows in the end.  In either case though I'm thinking that it makes sense to establish the new WSS 3.0 account at the sharepoint hosting provider, while keeping the old WSS 2.0 account and site live, and then:

1. try the second approach first using SharePoint Designer 2007, keeping both sites running,

2. perform a manual/visual comparison of the new site and see if content came accross ok, and

3. if content largely ok, assess whether I can live with the "look" under WSS 3.0 from this (quick n dirty) approach to site migration, and gradually improve the look over time in the new WSS 3.0 environment.

If my thinking here is unrealistic, please feel free to let me know with any helpful suggestions.  As you probably gather, I'm not an IT Pro, but am  learning to use OOTB functionality in sharepoint for a non-profit that I'm associated with, as well as learning about sharepoint in general for potential use in my workplace.  TIA

Your thinking makes sense, but... 

I assume you've asked your provider whether they can do the upgrade for you?  OR whether they can do a backup of the existing site that you could then restore into the new site?

How many different lists & libraries are you talking about? (#, not size)

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Dan Holme
Office & SharePoint Pro Community Leader
MVP (Windows Server - Directory Services)