Restore a backup on a other server

[wil4linux]

Hello,
I would like to say if it's possible to do a backup on my 1st server and restore this in my 2nd.

Servers have the same software configuration (not hardware) and they have the same name on network. It means that they can't be plugged at the same time...

What is the process to do this ?

Tkx

[Jay Mueller]

The easiest will be to move the databases and reconnect the front-end to the back end.

You can also use the SharePoint backup and restore.

[agitprop]

We went through this exact scenario a few months back, moving from a pre-production system to a final system. It was a huge headache. You need to make sure you run the appropriate STSADM commands for detaching the database (update the GUID for the site, for example), otherwise you'll see an endless stream of complaints from the new server about duplicate site IDs. This can be fixed after the fact, but I've still seen this problem persist. In the end, it worked, but we had to open a case with MS on some issues related to the move. One thing I have not attempted (yet) is attaching multiple content DBs to a site. *That* should prove to me most fun.

[Jay Mueller]

Our experience has been the same with the backup and restore of all the SharePoint products. This is one reason we rely heavily on clustered and fail over systems. The most important thing is the data; so if you have the data and some additional steps are required it's not a bad solution; however it would be nice if it took care of all the additional steps for you.

[churchman]

I was able to take our LIVE WSS 3.0 system, use the built in backup feature, then move the 10 site DB over to a development server, use the built in restore feature and brought the entire system backup under a new server, new domain, new structure with very little complication. Failed the first time, but then realized what needed to be identified in the restoration mode and 2nd time worked fine. All sites restored and all data intact.

[Jay Mueller]

churchman said:

I was able to take our LIVE WSS 3.0 system, use the built in backup feature, then move the 10 site DB over to a development server, use the built in restore feature and brought the entire system backup under a new server, new domain, new structure with very little complication. Failed the first time, but then realized what needed to be identified in the restoration mode and 2nd time worked fine. All sites restored and all data intact.

Thanks for posting an update; glad to see it worked!

[nickkirby]

Hello, forgive me for dropping on this thread, but it covers precisely what I want to achieve.

I am building my first sharepoint system just for me to store my writing notes and manuscripts. As part of my testing I want to restore the WSS_Content database from one system to another.

I've created a backup of the WSS_Content, built a new WSS3 server, choosing "Same configuration" tried to run through the installation process only to get this error:

Object WSS_Content failed in event OnPostRestore. For more information, see the error log located in the backup directory. SPException: Cannot attach database to Web application. Use the command line tool or Central Administration pages to attach the database manually to the proper Web Application

I am doing something wrong. I can understand that I've already a database called WSS_Content, however I tried removing that. Also, the db is empty. Can I not just run through a SQL import or something?

It's disappointing that backup seems so complex for such a great product.

Many thanks for any advice. It is most welcome.

Nick

[halford87]

what if you have sharepoint layed out as you want it without any data (ready to be used) but you want to move it all to another server, is this the same process and does it work??