Hello!

I am thinking about transferring from Ensim to Cpanel. I know this can be done in at least two ways, by either converting my active HD from Ensim to Cpanel (less downtime), or by having my current drive (Ensim) set as slave, while installing Cpanel to a new master drive and importing the sites.

The reason why I am unsure about the first procedure, which to my knowledge will result in less downtime, is because I've had issues with my server lately, causing the server to stop responding to services (http://forums.rackshack.net/showthread.php...&threadid=22377). I feel more secure that the problems are eliminated if installing Cpanel to a clean server and importing the sites.

However, before ordering Cpanel and starting the transfer process, I should inform my customers about the upgrade. There are a few things I guess I should be confident in before going through the transfer process:

1. What happens to the different user names? Will the account administrator use the same username and password for logging into his/her Cpanel as he/she used for logging into Ensim Webppliance? Will the regular (non-admin) users keep their usernames and passwords also?
2. Will the upgrade affect MySQL usernames?
3. I am currently running virtual DNS on Ensim. I guess it's better to run name servers on separate servers, but for now, can virtual DNS be used on Cpanel also?
4. Some of my users have uploaded their sites through Front Page, using Front Page server extensions. Will these sites continue to work after converting to Cpanel?

Anything else I should take into consideration before deciding wether to switch or stay? Any common questions from clients regarding Cpanel which I should include in the email I send them before switching?

I guess these are quite a number of questions. I would appreciate all feedback. Thank you!

Just to add: I've been searching 'round these forums, but can't seem to find the questions answered anywhere. I do apologize if they have been asked before. If so, I would appreciate a link to the appropriate thread.

If not, feedback is still appreciated

bear, mounting it as a second drive is not a very good option IMO, as the whm cannot import the sites from the second drive. Installing over ensim works quite well. You will just need to go clean the ensim off your box when you are done. Or you can also get a second server pre-loaded with cpanel, and use the copy from remote server script to copy from your ensim box.

Option # 2 is the quickest, installing over ensim will have less downtime, less moving etc.

Pimpenstein: Thanks for your comment. I am still searching for answers on the questions above though. Having two servers crashing occasionally is really making me want to hurry to migrate, either to Ensim Pro or to Cpanel.

Can I migrate from Ensim Pro to Cpanel later on if I decide to go with the Pro first? Cpanel is quite new to me, and I am a bit concerned about all the security issues people keep talking about in various forums (though I guess I don't know really well how serious they are).

If you get a second server you can transfer your ensim 3.x sites to the new cpanel server over the network from the WHM.

After the DNS filters down you can cancel the first server.