 |  |
Ask Dr. International
Column #20
In this 20th. installment, Dr. International discusses a new tool that will be available soon - Microsoft Cross Language Migration Tool (CLMT). CLMT allows the migration of localized versions of Windows 2000 Server to the corresponding English version of Windows Server 2003. Thereafter, you have the option of installing Windows 2003 Server's Multilingual User Interface (MUI) pack to allow the UI to be displayed in localized languages.
DISCLAIMER:
This tool does not guarantee the upgrade compatibility of all the applications that Windows 2000 and Windows Server 2003 family support. Some of your applications and hardware may not function correctly. It is not recommended for use on production systems unless you verify using a duplicate system that your system is fully functional after running this tool and sucessfully upgraded to the Windows Server 2003 family.
This tool does not include uninstall or roll-back feature. We recommend you to backup your data before running this tool. Test this tool in a non-production environment. It is highly recommended to avoid using this tool on critical servers such as domain controllers.
This tool is not supported by Microsoft Product Support Services (PSS), and is delivered "as is." Microsoft Corp. is not responsible for any loss or damage that this tool may cause. If you wish to submit feedback about this tool, you can send them to Dr. International.
On This Page
What is the Cross Language Migration Tool?
Microsoft Windows Server 2003 Cross Language Migration Tool (CLMT) enables customers to migrate systems running localized (German, Japanese, French, Spanish or Italian) versions of Microsoft Windows 2000 Server, Advanced Server, or Datacenter to the corresponding edition in the English Windows Server 2003 family. After the system is upgraded, Microsoft Multilingual User Interface Pack (MUI) can be installed to allow the UI to be displayed in localized languages.
Where can I find CLMT?
CLMT can be found under the \valueadd folder on CD1 of the Windows Server 2003 Multilanguage Pack version scheduled to ship in the summer of 2003.
What are the languages and platforms supported by CLMT?
CLMT only supports the upgrade/migration of x86 version of Windows 2000 Server (Server/Advanced Server/Datacenter editions) in the following languages:
| • | French |
| • | German |
| • | Italian |
| • | Japanese |
| • | Spanish |
to the corresponding edition of Windows 2003 Server (Standard/Enterprise/Datacenter).
What are the changes that CLMT makes to the operating system?
| • | All localized system folder names (e.g. %ProgramFiles% and %CommonProgramFiles%) are changed to English. For compatibility with applications that saves pathnames in private formats and/or files, this tool will create reparse points (you can see them as Junctions in the Dir command outputs) with all the localized folder names linked to the corresponding English names. However, this feature will only be available for systems that use NTFS file system for their system drive. When viewing a folder tree with Explorer or other tools, these reparse points will appear as hidden folders with localized folder names. Most operations to their contents will apply to the contents of the corresponding English folders. |
| • | The file names of all link files (*.LNK) that are created by the system will be renamed to English. However, file names of other link files that are created by applications or users will not be changed. |
| • | All references to the renamed folders in the system registry and all the link files (*.LNK) are updated appropriately. |
| • | The names and descriptions of system created user/group accounts are also changed to English (if applicable). See the readme.txt file accompnaying the tool for more details. |
| • | The system default UI language and the install language settings are changed to English in order to allow cross language upgrade. However, it doesn't change other language or location settings such as the default language for non-Unicode applications (also known as System Locale), language for Standards and Formats (also known as User Locale), and user's Location. All of these can be changed through the Regional And Language Options in the Control Panel. |
How to use CLMT to upgrade to Windows Server 2003?
Notes:
To make the necessary changes to the system, CLMT needs Full Control access privilege to the objects it changes. This tool will check if the current user account and the System account have full access to the objects it has to change. If not, it will stop and ask you to fix the problem before you can try it again.
If you have an access problem with the administrator account you are using to run this tool, please check the logfile that is in the %SystemRoot%\Debug directory and fix the problems reported before running it again.
To run the tool, please log in using an account with administrative privileges and browse the CD to the directory where CLMT.EXE is and run "CLMT.EXE" from a command line or double click the icon. We recommend to run this tool using the "Administrator" account. Remember, this account must have full access to the operating system.
The tool will check your system extensively before making actual changes. This may last several minutes. Once finished with the analysis of the system, the tool will pop up a dialog box asking you to confirm the system update. If you click the "Start" button, the tool will start updating the system and reboot the machine. Otherwise, the tool will exit without making any modifications to the system.
After rebooting the machine, please log in to the same user account as you used before. The tool will then automatically run again to complete the preparation. After CLMT finishes the preparation and closes the window, please continue to upgrade the system to the Microsoft Windows Server 2003 as soon as you can by invoking the Windows Server 2003 Setup from the CD or network share. Using the system or running applications after running CLMT but before upgrading it to the Windows Server 2003 may result in unpredictable behavior.
Where can I find out more about CLMT?
See the readme.txt file in \valueadd\clmt folder on the CD1 of Windows Server 2003 Multilanguage Version.