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trishmalloy's avatar
trishmalloy
Copper Contributor
Jan 24, 2019

Using same URL on old SP server as new SP server

Hello,   We currently have a SharePoint 2013 production server that I want to move to SharePoint 2019.  I don't want to do an in-place upgrade, I'd rather start clean, on a new VM.  Can you tell me...
sharepoint server
trishmalloy's avatar
trishmalloy
Copper Contributor
Jan 24, 2019

I'm wanting to set up the new server while the old one is in production.  Can I create a web application on a different server with the same URL?  How will I do the switch over when I want the new server to go live?

fainpablo's avatar
fainpablo
Brass Contributor
Jan 24, 2019
Yes, you can definitely create a web application with the same url on another farm. What you can do is edit your machine “hosts” file to bypass your DNS servers and be able to browse the sites on your new farm. Make sure you’re on the new one when doing changes.

Another option is to setup your new web application with a different URL and once you’re done with the configuration/migration create an alternate access mapping with the old url. You can read more about AAM here: https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/sharepoint/administration/configure-alternate-access-mappings

As soon as you finish (no matter which path you decided to follow) you can go ahead and replace the IP address on the DNS record as I mentioned before.
  • trishmalloy's avatar
    trishmalloy
    Copper Contributor
    Jan 25, 2019

    Hello Fainpablo,

     

    I appreciate your responses, thank you!!

    Wouldn't I just be able to leave the DNS IP Addresses on the VM's NIC blank, or do I have to edit the hosts file?

     

    Trish

    • fainpablo's avatar
      fainpablo
      Brass Contributor
      Jan 25, 2019

      The DNS settings on your VM NIC are for the VM DNS resolution. If you'd like to browse the new site from, for example, your laptop, then you'll need to edit your laptop's hosts file to point the old url to the IP address assigned to the new VM.

       

      Or, as I mentioned earlier, you can assign a different subdomain to your new site and after migration add an alternative access mapping with the old url.

       

      Let us know any other questions you have!

      • trishmalloy's avatar
        trishmalloy
        Copper Contributor
        Feb 08, 2024

        fainpablo - Thanks for your help with this. Here I am in 2024 referring to this article again! 🙂

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