Preparing a project plan is not an easy task, especially
when it involves a large-scale technology change like a Windows NT to Windows
Server 2003 migration. Often, for IT pros, creating the project documentation
required to get a technology initiative underway is an onerous task. Since it
is our mission to give IT pros the tools they need to get their jobs done, TechRepublic
has created a project plan that does most of this work for you. You can preview the
Project Plan here first, and order a copy here.

Our Windows NT to Windows Server 2003 migration project plan
comes complete with a detailed breakdown of this project, as well as a
customizable, deliverable PDF that lets you add variables specific to your
organization. We’ve also included an Excel spreadsheet that will record and automatically
format your project milestone dates into an easy-to-read time line and a
template designed to give your team members guidance when migrating from NT 4.0
to Windows Server 2003. We’ve also included an Excel sheet that outlines the
main steps in an NT to Windows Server 2003 migration. (For Microsoft Project
users, we’ve included a Project version of that spreadsheet.) In addition, in
the Windows NT to Windows Server 2003 migration project plan, we include a
project cost/benefit analysis tool to help you calculate the project’s costs.

What’s included

This extensive project plan is too long to show here but
here’s some of what you’ll find in it:

Project description/vision

Here we outline the intention, scope, and expected
deliverables of the project. For the Windows NT to Windows 2003 Server
migration project, these include

  1. A
    goal to realize the administrative benefits of the new management
    technologies.
  2. The
    need to upgrade server hardware/OS in order to support a new business
    application.
  3. A
    deliverable called a “server architecture” containing
    information about the way in which the new environment will be arranged.

Project/business alignment

We give you the main focus points for a deliverable that
describes how the project aligns with
department, business unit, and company-wide goals. This includes:

  1. Reduction
    of time spent on administrative tasks over a one-year period, freeing up
    more time for highly paid IT resources to carry out more effective action.
  2. Reduction
    in the response time to administrative tasks, allowing the user population
    to be more productive.
  3. Reduction
    in downtime due to server software errors.

Estimated project cost

This section helps you estimate both the project’s benefits
and its costs. Some of the costs are:

  1. The
    cost of all software licensees associated with the project.
  2. Any
    additional hardware costs associated with the project.
  3. The
    cost of on-staff and consulting resources required for the project.

In addition, in the Windows NT to Windows 2003 Server
migration project plan, we include a project cost/benefit analysis tool to help
you calculate this.

Completeness and correctness criteria

This deliverable
contains the metrics by which the project manager will determine the success or
failure of the project as a whole and will include:

  1. QA
    verification of successful migration/recreation of appropriate users and
    user privileges.
  2. QA
    verification of the correct deployment of all servers (90 percent success
    rate expected).
  3. QA
    verification of valid execution (90 percent success rate expected) of new
    operations and administrative procedures.

Project milestones

We provide for you milestones that will mark the key points
on the project’s critical path. These include but are not limited to:

  • Team
    formed
  • Project
    planning complete
  • Preliminary
    design
  • Preliminary
    design test conducted with a small group of randomly selected users and
    the IT staff
  • Preliminary
    design reassessment complete
  • Communications
    schedule complete

Project risks

This project plan also lists common risks associated with a Windows
NT to Windows Server 2003 migration and includes metrics to help in estimating
project staffing. We also include Windows NT to 2003 Migration Risk Management
Matrix, a spreadsheet that includes many risks you should know of during this
upgrade, and includes room to add a few of your own.

There’s much more to the project plan than we can list here.
Click here to order a copy of the Windows NT to Windows Server 2003 migration project plan.