Yes, 1TB over WAN, is a really challenge, normally we need build a base offline, and do synchronise online after that.

It is, but normally SAN shared simultaneously by multiple Servers, that makes things different.

SAN normally provide cache to ease it, and SAN is always random io pattern.

Yes, very fast, for multiple tables, you can also open several windows and download different table simultaneously.

yes, it's split the process into two step, and do it one by one, as I say, it's just a different strategy to do a work, depend on your...

Bcp can control batch size directly, write very fast, have very little disturb and burden to product database, after that you can copy data to the destine and do your...

You should use bcp

or maybe you defined some indexed view on your old 2005 instance, I do't think sql 2012 have that much memory difference to run a query, the most important...

or can you just make a query plan and attach it to your query?

yes, one partition by one partition.

what's your desktop database version, some time sql developer version have more optimize options than standard version.

did you try to set the database compatibility level to 90?

did you try the maxdop option?

yes, it is, only on the cost of more hardware, but how about just visualize your original old server by install VM os and improve its performance at same time?...

if you got better performance, it's just because you have a better hardware, virtual os does not come for free, but the overall productivity will increase, because you virtual provide...