Hey guys! I've had my server running for couple months now, but last week it froze on me and was getting all sorts of error messages, so thought best thing is to do a server reinstall. Restarted, poped the WHS dvd in, select reinstall and away it went. That was the 1st attempt. (of many!)
It all went well, I booted it up for the first time, set it up, installed all the updates and PP1, but I found myself unable to remotely login through the remote desktop application ("Cannot connect to this computer") and when I used the WHS console from another computer it kept saying "invalid password" even though it wasn't. (I had used discover.exe to re-setup the computers and the password did accept before hand so don't know what that message as about!)
So I thought do the reinstall again, didn't have time to hunt around trying to fix the RDP problem. However this reinstall hung somewhere along the lines, I don't exactly know where because I was away but came back to a screen asking me to write a short essay on why the server was shutdown (like you do when you commence a reboot or shutdown on Windows Server OS's). As this installation was messed I couldnt continue, only alternative I could think of was...another reinstall.
For my 3rd attempt I remembered from reading on this forums that if there was a failed installation on your SYS disk, you won't be presented with the "Server Reinstall" option. I didnt try it, but I followed instructions that most gave to format the SYS disk, and i did it by popping a Windows Vista dvd in, booting off it, getting to the part where I could format/make new partions etc in the setup, and proceeded by formatting the C: SYS disk. After this was done, I rebooted, poped the Server disk back in and continued.
However no Reinstall option!! Only "New installation" and this was no good as obviously I had tonnes of data on board plus backups. I tried the setup once more by rebooting and still no reinstall option. What happened I thought to myself?? I had a brainwave where I thought maybe some files musta been left on the C: partition so rebooted with the Win Vista dvd, but this time deleted the C: Sys partion, restarted with the WHS dvd,and this time I get the "Server Restore" option. I thought great here we go, but reading the smallprint it said you will lose all your backups and non-duplicated data. No good then, think this is the option your supposed to get when your C: drive fails and you have to pop a new one in?
So thats where im at atm, where to go from here??I really don't want to shuttle my disks to another computer to back em up, firstly because its a chore, but secondly none of the computers have space to move all the server data across to! I just want the option of getting the server reinstall option up again and taking it up from there, any ideas??And also does anyone have any clues as to why the remote desktop function died after the windows updates?
When you boot from the installation media, at the point where you're asked what kind of installation you're performing you should have two options: "server reinstallation" and "new installation". Do you have both of those options?
Assuming you do, removing the C: partition as you did will have created a situation where WHS setup believes you're replacing your system disk. The warning you're seeing indicates that if there were files on your system disk that weren't in duplicated shares, you will lose them, and if there were components of the backup database on the system disk, you will lose the backup database as well. At this point, with no valid WHS installation, you may have no choice but to proceed.
An alternative method of recovery might be to shuffle disks around among your computers, removing all but the system disk from your server. (Copy any files on that disk in D:\DE\Shares to some other computer for the time being.) Then reinstall from scratch. Finally, for each disk copy any files found in <drive>:\DE\Shares back to the appropriate share on your server, then add that disk to the server's storage pool. I'm not on the WHS team, I just post a lot. :)
Ok i'm with you thats what I thought but with the "Server Restore" option if there were files still on the other disks, and backup data on other disks, shouldnt the setup reconfigure all the data as it would in a "Server Reinstall" ?? I didn't get the server reinstall option full stop if you read my post, even when I just formatted it and nothing else.
