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In-Place Upgrade Server 2016 -> 2025

  • July 7, 2025
  • 5 replies
  • 950 views
C
Bit
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Hi!

As Server 2016 will go out of support anyways within the next year, I consider proceeding the upgrade before, as 2019+ support larger cluster sizes than 64 kb which should drastrically improve file system defragmentation and by that HDD performance.

The “wasted” should be less of a deal, as Commvault saves data in big chunks of 1+ GB anyways.

 

I assume that Commvault does not have trouble with the cluster size (the storage part in documentation is generally pretty “thin” regarding file systems, best practices etc.).

Sidenode: You should definitely add, that partitions/drives above 64 (actually more 63.5) TiB can’t be snapshotted with VSS, nor can chkdsk do anything on those.

 

But the main question: Is there any problems to in-place upgrade Windows Server 2016 to 2025?

It would be big pain to migrate all that data (we have one machine running all services/functions) to a new (pricy!) server as long as the hardware is still supported/maintained.

 

I’ve read and old thread that recommended doing things from scratch, but over time Commvault updated SQL database already (I guess it’s 2022 now? It looks like it doesn’t clean up the old ones).

 

Regards

 - Christof

Best answer by Pradeep

Hello ​@Pradeep 

I know that I can upgrade Windows itself, I was more questioning about any trouble it could make with Commvault.

We don’t run anything “complicated” like HA/cluster on it.

HI ​@CGI ,

As of now, we have not encountered any issues, however, as a preventive measure, we recommend proceeding with a Disaster Recovery  backup followed by the upgrade of the CommServe server.

This approach ensures readiness in case of any unforeseen issues during or after the upgrade.

5 replies

P
Vaulter
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  • PradeepVaulter
  • Vaulter
  • July 8, 2025

Hi ​@CGI,

Below article outlines supported in-place upgrade paths including from Windows Server 2016 → 2019 → 2022 → 2025—and mentions that for non-clustered systems, you can now jump up to four versions at once.
https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-server/get-started/whats-new-windows-server-2025

 

During the upgrade to any new Feature Release of the Commvault platform, it is expected to upgrade the underlying SQL Server to the latest supported version, which is currently SQL Server 2022.

This ensures optimal performance for all Commvault services and databases.

C
Bit
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  • CGI
  • Author
  • Bit
  • July 8, 2025

Hello ​@Pradeep 

I know that I can upgrade Windows itself, I was more questioning about any trouble it could make with Commvault.

We don’t run anything “complicated” like HA/cluster on it.

Ralph
Vaulter
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  • RalphVaulter
  • Vaulter
  • July 9, 2025

Hi ​@CGI,
well, I don’t know any customer which has done an Win2016 to Win2025 in place upgrade because

So without any experience your question is difficult to answer.

Thanks

P
Vaulter
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  • PradeepVaulter
  • Vaulter
  • Answer
  • July 11, 2025

Hello ​@Pradeep 

I know that I can upgrade Windows itself, I was more questioning about any trouble it could make with Commvault.

We don’t run anything “complicated” like HA/cluster on it.

HI ​@CGI ,

As of now, we have not encountered any issues, however, as a preventive measure, we recommend proceeding with a Disaster Recovery  backup followed by the upgrade of the CommServe server.

This approach ensures readiness in case of any unforeseen issues during or after the upgrade.

C
C
Bit
Forum|alt.badge.img+3
  • CGI
  • Author
  • Bit
  • July 14, 2025

Hi ​@CGI,
well, I don’t know any customer which has done an Win2016 to Win2025 in place upgrade because

So without any experience your question is difficult to answer.

Thanks

Hey Ralph!

It is bare metal. No real upsides on VM’ing it.

Migrating DB is totally not an option, as long as I get support for our current system. It’s too big and pricy. I also totaly refuse to trash working hardware without a reason and software upgrades usually aren’t.

Pradeep’s post will lead me: I’ll create an image of the OS drive, upgrade it and will see if everything runs smooth. If not I’ll pause backups, check with L2 support if it’s an easy fix or go back and explore other options.

Regards

 - Christof

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