When to backup Content DB using SQL backup and when to backup site collection using PowerShell

Tags

Backup, SharePoint 2016, SharePoint 2019

We use Backup Content DB using SQL back up most likely for Migrations Option, meaning you are migrating from SharePoint 2016 to SharePoint 2019.

in that case, to migrate we use the command Mount-SPContentDatabase

So most likely this is used for migrations.

But if you use the Backup-SPSite option using PowerShell, then you may be moving your site collection in the same Farm from one web application to another and you can definitely move it from one Farm to another but within the same SharePoint Version, so this is not migration.

So the what do you want to do is …. what you will use..

Hope that helps understand things right.

SP 2010 –> SP 2013 Migration – Part 1

Finally, SharePoint 2010 migration step by step to SharePoint 2013, this will be a series of posts, here we are migrating content.

Prerequisites:

1. Get to understand both environments pretty well
2. Backup your SharePoint 2010 Web Application
3. Be patient J

Currently we are in SP 2010, what do we need from here…

Installation of SharePoint 2010 environment;

1. Windows Server 2008 R2
2. Domain Controller
3. SQL Server 2008 R2
4. SharePoint 2010

I am going to start with you from scratch, by creating a web application first in 2010;

1. Open Central Administration > Application Management > and under Web Applications, click Manage Web Applications;

   

2. Click the New buttom at top left, check the properties, if it is all ok, you can leave the same for now and click “Ok”

1. Now let’s create the Site Collection;

   

   

2. So below is the SharePoint 2010 Web Application from Team Site Template, and I added a text in the middle … so feel the difference after we migrate but this picture is going to show the difference as well, but I mean by adding text that basically content will be migrated.

   

3. Now, since we are done by creating the SharePoint 2010 Web Application, we need to take a backup and copy this backup to our SharePoint 2013 environment 😉

Note:

Type backup will be SQL Server Database [the MDF & the LDF ] .. v simple

Now we need to know what is the Database name from this web application;

1. Go to Central Administration > Application Management > and under Database, click “Manage Content Databases”

   

2. Make sure you select, your web application that you just created, and that below the “Database Name” will be the database that we need to take a backup from,

   

3. Now in order, to take the MDF & LDF copy, we need to stop SQL Server service,

   Note: if you don’t want to stop it, you can take another backup from SQL Server Management Studio and take backup by right clicking on the database name and the backup extension will be “.bak” this one you will not need to stop SQL Server service. So this screen shot below, is what happens when you take a copy from MDF & LDF without stopping SQL Server service

1. To stop the SQL Server service, as below, open the “Services” from the “Administrative Tools”,

1. They are sorted alphabetically, now stop SQL SERVER, take a copy of the MDF & LDF to somewhere outside of this VM to anywhere, then copy from this anywhere to paste inside SharePoint 2013 environment or VM

1. Now let’s go to SharePoint 2013 VM 😉 I hope you are enjoying like I am.. so below is what we should do to migrate.

What’s installed in SP 2013 environment;

1. Windows Server 2012
2. Domain Controller
3. SQL Server 2012
4. SharePoint 2013

And here I will start from scratch again; by creating first a web application but hey we won’t create a site collection, ok;

1. Click “Manage Web Applications”;

   

2. Click “New” again same as in 2010,

   

3. Its fine to leave everything as is for now and click ok,

   

4. Now we have a web application, don’t create a site collection,
5. Now open SQL Server Management Studio to attach the MDF & LDF,

   

6. You see below, I am attaching the same Database for the web application we create in SharePoint 2010,

   

   

1. Now let’s test the database before migrate, run Test-SPContentDatabase cmdlet to identify missing components along with potential errors and related warnings. Check the upgrade log and deploy any missing components and re run the cmdlet to verify.

   

2. Once tested, now we can mount it to the newly created web application, as below;

   

   

   

3. Now below, is how it will look like the first time, the reason for this, is the Visual Upgrade from SharePoint 2010 is deprecated, now in SharePoint 2013 it is Site Collection upgrade…

   

   TO BE CONTINUED …