How to Restore Farms in SharePoint Server? [COMPLETE GUIDE]

backup and restore Farms in SharePoint 2013

Are you the one looking for how to restore farms in SharePoint 2013 but don’t know how to do so, then in this article learn how to do

Backup is very important as it ensures that you can easily recover your data if a failure occurs. The SharePoint farm is generally the lowest level in topology next to the server hardware.

Like if, you have one or multiple servers that have SharePoint installed and all the servers are connected through SharePoint and are joined to “SharePoint farm”.  Then SharePoint farm could be one server but still, it is the farm. There is only one farm per server you cannot have multiple farms. Thus, when there any issue on the farm you’re entire is at risk.

Farm-level recovery is generally performed when you face failure (moving SharePoint 2013 deployment from one farm to another, disaster, equipment failure, or data loss, etc) that includes the complete farm, or partial recovery of part of the farm impossible.

If you want to restore a partial part of the farm, a service application, a specific database, a list, or document library and specific document or you want to go with full recovery mode then go with a third-party tool.

But before you start restoring farms in SharePoint 2013, below have a look at the following information about how to recover farm in SharePoint:

  • Backing up the farm will back up the Central Administration and configuration content databases, but you cannot restore then using SharePoint Server tools.
  • One cannot back up from SharePoint 2019 one version and restore it to another SharePoint Server 2019 version. And this same rule applies to SharePoint Servers 2016 and 2013.
  • When you try to restore the farm via SharePoint Server, the restore process is unable to automatically start entire service applications. In this case, you need to manually start then with Microsoft PowerShell or Central Administration. Avoid using SharePoint Products Configuration Wizard for starting the services as doing so will re-provision the services and service proxies
  • Also, the identifier (ID) of every content database is reserved while you try to recover or reattach the databases with the inbuilt tools

Now below check out the different ways to restore farms in SharePoint 2013.

How to Restore Farms in SharePoint Server?

Method 1 – Use PowerShell for Restoring farm in SharePoint

Here you need to use Microsoft PowerShell to restore a farm. Follow the steps to do so:

  • First, confirm you are having the following memberships:
    • securityadmin fixed server role on the SQL Server instance.
    • db_owner fixed database role on entire databases that are to be updated.
    • Having the administrator group on the server on which you are running PowerShell cmdlets.
  • The administrator will use the Add-SPShellAdmin cmdlet for granting permissions in order to utilize SharePoint Server cmdlets.

Please Note – If in case you are not having permissions than contact the Setup administrator or SQL Server administrator for requesting permissions

  • Now open the SharePoint Management Shell.
  • And in the PowerShell command prompt type the below-given command:

Restore-SPFarm -Directory <BackupFolder> -RestoreMethod Overwrite [-BackupId <GUID>]

Here:

  • The <BackupFolder> is the path of the folder utilized for storing backup files.
  • And the <GUID> is a recognizer of the backup to restore from.

Well, if you will not identify the BackupId, then the most recent backup will be used and to view the backups for the farm. In the Microsoft PowerShell command prompt type the below-given command:

Get-SPBackupHistory -Directory <BackupFolder> -ShowBackup [-Verbose]

Here

  • The <BackupFolder> is the path of the folder utilized for storing backup files.

Well, you will not utilize a configuration-only backup for restoring content databases together with the configuration.

  • And for restarting a service application in the PowerShell command prompt, type the below-given command:

Start-SPServiceInstance -Identity <ServiceApplicationID>

Here <ServiceApplicationID> is the GUID of the service application.

Method 2 – Use Central Administration for Restoring Farm

Follow the steps given one by one to restore a farm via Central Administration

  • First, make sure the user’s account that is used for performing the procedure is a member of Farm Administrators SharePoint group.
  • Then, on the home page,> in Central Administration > in e Backup and Restore section > click Restore from a backup.
  • Now on the Restore from Backup — Step 1 of 3: From the lists of backups > choose Backup to Restore page, and choose the backup job that comprises the farm backup, > click Next. Well, about each backup > you can view more details by clicking the (+) next to the backup.

Please Note: If in case the correct backup job won’t appear, then in the Backup Directory Location text box > type the Universal Naming Convention (UNC) path of accurate backup folder, > click Refresh. You cannot use a configuration-only backup to restore the farm.

  • Then on the Restore from Backup — Step 2 of 3: Choose Component for Restoring page, choose the check box which is next to the farm, > click Next.
  • Next On the Restore from Backup — Step 3 of 3: In the Restore Component section > select Restore Options page, make sure in the Restore the following component list > the Farm appears

Now in the Restore Only Configuration Settings section, check the Restore content and configuration settings option is selected.

And in the Restore Options section > under Type of Restore > choose the Same configuration option the dialog box will appear which request you for confirming the operation > and click OK.

Please Note: If in case the Restore Only Configuration Settings section won’t appear, then the selected backup selected by you is a configuration-only backup. In this case, you should choose another backup.

  • Now click Start Restore.
  • And at the top of the Backup and Restore Job Status page in the Readiness section, you can view the general status of all recovery jobs. Now in the lower part of the page in the Restore section > you can view the status for the current recovery job and the status page updates automatically every 30 seconds. Well, you can update the status details by clicking Refresh. Backup and recovery are Timer service jobs. So, it might take a couple of minutes for the recovery to start.
  • Well, if any errors appear, you can analyze them in the Failure Message column of the Backup and Restore Job Status page. You can also locate more details in the log file at the UNC path that is specified in step 3.
  • And as the restore process was completed, you require restarting one or more service applications. Then in Central Administration, on the home page, in the Systems Settings section > click Manage services on the server. Then on the Services on Server page > start any services related to service applications that are needed to run by hitting on the Restart option in the Action column next to the service application.
  • Lastly re-establish any trust relationships.

Best & Easy Solution to Repair & Recover SharePoint Server 

If your SharePoint server gets corrupted or damaged then feel free to run the professional recommended SharePoint Repair Tool

This tool is designed with an advanced algorithm to fix various SharePoint errors and recover the database. It effectively scans the damaged database files and repairs it to recover inaccessible objects in MDF database files.

With this tool, users can also retrieve SharePoint databases like tables, indexes, documents, labels, and stored procedures from inaccessible MDF files. This software is incorporated with a simple and rich graphical user interface to offer easy SharePoint recovery.


Steps to Run the SharePoint Repair Tool

  • Firstly, download, install and launch the SharePoint Recovery Tool.
  • The interface screen displays two options to recover SharePoint data: ‘Complete Repair‘ and ‘Document Recovery‘. Select as per your requirement.

  • If you choose ‘Complete Repair‘, the screen will show the options for selecting and searching SQL Server (.MDF) files. Click on ‘Browse‘ to select a SharePoint database for repair.
  • If you do not know the actual path of the database which you want to repair, click on the ‘Find‘ to locate the MDF file in a specific drive.
  • After selecting the desired file initiate the scanning process.

  • After finishing the scan, the software would generate a tree of all SharePoint database tables and will display it in the left pane. You can select the table in the tree and can have the entire preview in the right pane. Then click on ‘Repair‘ to begin repairing for the selected database.
  • After clicking on ‘Repair‘, this dialog box will appear. Specify the SQL Server name or Instance name and the desired destination path.
  • Click on the ‘Browse‘ option to choose the destination path. And select the ‘OK‘ button.
  • Once this process gets completed, you would find a dialog box that displays this message ‘Recovered file saved at the desired location.” This shows that Recovery Process has successfully completed’.
  • Select the ‘OK‘ button.
  • You would find another dialog box that asks whether you want to attach the repaired database to the web application. If you click on the ‘Yes‘ button, the above dialog box will be displayed.
  • In the web application type URL, the name of the corrupt database and SQL Server Instance name.
  • Then select the ‘OK‘ button and proceed.
  • When the process gets finished, you would be able to access the repaired database by opening the web application.

Conclusion

So, this is all about how to restore farms in SharePoint 2013. I tried my best to list down the complete steps for restoring the farm in the SharePoint server.

Make sure to follow the steps given one by one carefully to avoid any further issues. Moreover, you can visit the Microsoft official website to learn more about it.

But if in case the manual solutions won’t work for you, then feel free to use the automatic SharePoint Repair Tool.

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