There are multiple ways you can migrate NSX-V to NSX-T.

The following standard migration modes are available:
  • Migrate NSX for vSphere
    • Fixed Topology

      Fixed topology migration is limited to the topologies supported in Fixed Topologies Supported for End-to-End Migration.

    • User-defined Topology

      User-defined topologies allow migrating any topology from NSX-V. You create the layer-3 topology on NSX-T and maps the NSX-v Edge Services Gateways (ESGs) and Distributed Logical Routers (DLRs) to NSX-T tier-0 or tier-1 gateways.

      There are two modes available when you choose user-defined topology:
      • Complete Migration
      • Configuration Migration
      • Configuration and Edge Migration (available in NSX-T 3.2.2 as a tech preview feature)

    The folowing screen shows the migration modes that are available when you select NSX for vSphere:

    NSX for vSphere migration modes

    The folowing screen shows the migration modes that are available when you select User-defined Topology:

    Available migration modes for user-defined topology

    The following table shows the type of migration for each mode:

    Mode Migration Type
    Fixed Topology End-to-end
    User-Defined Topology + Complete Migration End-to-end
    User-Defined Topology + Configuration Migration Lift-and-shift
    User-defined Topology + Configuration and Edge Migration Lift-and-shift. Supports HCX for workload migration.

    An end-to-end migration will migrate the whole NSX-V environment. A lift-and-shift migration will migrate configurations only, such as firewall or load balancer. After the configurations are migrated, you migrate workload VMs using vMotion and a layer-2 bridge between the NSX-V and NSX-T environments. You can also do a lift-and-shift migration using the advanced migration mode "Migrate Distributed Firewall (DFW)".

  • Migrate vSphere Networking

    In this mode, you migrate vSphere Distributed Switch (VDS) 6.5.0 and 6.6.0 to NSX Virtual Distributed Switch (N-VDS). For more information, see Migrating vSphere Networking.

  • Migrate NSX for vSphere with vRealize Automation

    Similar to the "Migrate NSX for vSphere" mode, you can select Fixed Topology or User Defined Topology. Before migrating a user-defined topology, you must check the vRealize Automation documentation to ensure that your version of vRealize Automation supports the migration of a user-defined topology. For more information about this migration mode, see Migrating NSX-V with vRealize Automation - Fixed Topology or Migrating NSX-V with vRealize Automation - User-Defined Topology.

The following advanced migration modes are available:
Note: If ESGs are present in the NSX-V environment, it is recommended that you choose the "Migrate NSX for vSphere" mode (or the "Migrate NSX for vSphere with vRealize Automation" mode if appropriate). This is the optimal way to migrate topologies with ESGs. When you choose the "NSX for vSphere" migration mode, you can still do a lift-and-shift migration if you choose "User-Defined Topology + Configuration Migration" or "User-defined Topology + Configuration and Edge Migration."
Important: If the migration mode involves the migration of ESXi hosts, note the following:
  • During the migration or before removing NSX-V, do not perform any lifecycle operation, or restart NSX-V Manager or vCenter server. Lifecycle operations include, but are not limited to, upgrading or patching vCenter server, NSX-V Manager or NSX-T Data Center, renewing certificates, or changing passwords.
  • NSX-V should be removed as soon as possible after the migration has completed successfully.
  • If you need to perform lifecycle operations, you must do so before the start of the migration.
Important: For all migration modes, you must run the migration from a single NSX Manager node. If you have an NSX Manager cluster, start the migration-coordinator service on only one NSX Manager and always access that NSX Manager's UI using its IP address or host name. Do not use the manager cluster's virtual IP (VIP).

Migrating a User-Defined Topology

In the Migrate NSX for vSphere mode, if you choose User Defined Topology, you have the following options:
  • Complete Migration - This will migrate everything (configurations, Edge Services Gateways, Distributed Logical Routers, hosts and workloads) in place without the need for additional hosts. The NSX-V load balancer will be migrated to an NSX-T load balancer.
  • Configuration Migration - This will migrate configurations only. After the migration, you can migrate the workload VMs using vMotion. The NSX-V load balancer will be migrated to NSX-T Advanced Load Balancer (ALB). This is the only way to migrate the NSX-V load balancer to ALB.
  • Configuration and Edge Migration (available in NSX-T 3.2.2 as a tech preview feature) - This will migrate configurations, bridge the NSX-V logical switches to their corresponding NSX-T segments, and migrate Edge nodes for north-south traffic cutover. You can migrate workload VMs after the Edge nodes are migrated. This mode supports the HCX V2T Migration Workload Mobility capability.
Note: In NSX-T 3.2.0 and 3.2.1, when migrating a single-site environment, the NSX-V load balancer will be migrated to NSX-T Advanced Load Balancer (ALB). Starting with NSX-T 3.2.2, The NSX-V load balancer will be migrated to an NSX-T load balancer.

Migrating a Cross-vCenter Environment to NSX Federation

Starting with NSX-T 3.2.1, you can migrate an NSX-V cross-vCenter environment to an NSX Federation environment in NSX-T. You must perform the migration from the Global Manager, choose the Migrate NSX for vSphere mode and select User Defined Topology. You can then choose either Complete Migration or Configuration Migration. Migrating a cross-vCenter environment to NSX Federation is not supported in any other migration mode. Also, in NSX-T 3.2.1, migrating a cross-vCenter environment to NSX Federation does not support migrating the NSX-V load balancer. Starting with NSX-T 3.2.2, The NSX-V load balancer will be migrated to an NSX-T load balancer.