Change ArcGIS Server directories to network share

[jvickreyRVB]

My end game is to migrate to another ArcGIS Server on another box and I read ESRI prefers you setup a network shared folder with full rights to the administrator account running AGS.  You then can use AGS Manager or ArcGIS Desktop to alter the path of the config-store folder and the 4 sub folders in server directories.  The config-store folder successfully changed to the network share.  However, I’ve tried many different times to change the directories folders with no success.  Mostly the errors are “Method argument cannot be null”.  Sometimes it’s “cannot use that folder because it’s in use by another site”.  I’m just out of ideas.  Does anyone have any advice or things to check for?  Ideally I need this working before Monday.  Thank you in advance!

[Scott_Tansley · Accepted solution]

It's a while since I did this.  You have to copy the local folders to the file share.  If you copy those folders while the windows service is running then the folders will have locks on them.  Have you stopped the service before copying?  If not then when you try to repoint the folders, the server will think the files are in use by a different process.

So, the way I would attempt this is:

• create the empty folders on the file share
• set the permissions for the windows service on the root
• share the root folder, and when you reference it from ArcGIS, always use the FQDN
• stop the service on the current ArcGIS Server
• copy the files, paste them into the folders you created earlier
• start the windows service
• from server manager change the folders one at a time and test each one as you go.

it is possible, but it'll be something like locks, permissions, or using a hostname instead of a FQDN that would typically stop it.

[jvickreyRVB]

Thank you Scott! I’ll give that a try and follow back up

[MichaelVolz]

Scott:

Any idea why the directories folders would be more problematic to make this change than the config-store folder?

[Scott_Tansley]

I know this differs to my earlier instruction, it seems that the server will move the content to the new location for all directories except cache:  

https://enterprise.arcgis.com/en/server/latest/administer/linux/editing-a-server-directory-in-manage... 

as I said, it’s been a while.

[GauravKumar1]

If you are looking to migrate your existing AGS to another box, i think the below link blog might help a lot. i did the same at my end and this works.

https://www.esri.com/arcgis-blog/products/arcgis-enterprise/administration/migrate-to-a-new-machine-...

Gaurav