Restoring Data to a Later Version of SharePoint Server

Following are the high-level steps to restore SharePoint data from an earlier SharePoint version to a later version of SharePoint Server:

1. Restore the content databases to a later version of SharePoint Server by following any one of the given restore methods:

   • Using the SQL Server Agent

     1. From an earlier version of SharePoint Server, back up the content databases using the SQL Server Agent.

     2. To restore the content databases to the SQL Server where your later version of the SharePoint Server resides, perform an out-of-place restore.

   OR

   • Using the SharePoint Server Agent

     1. From an earlier version of SharePoint Server, back up the content databases using the SharePoint Agent.

        Ensure to select the name of the SQL server client computer where SharePoint content databases reside.

     2. To restore the content databases to the SQL Server where your later version of the SharePoint Server resides, perform a WSS Web Application restore to a new configuration.

2. Use the following commands to upgrade the database to a later version of SharePoint Server:

   Test-SPContentDatabase content_database_name

   Mount-SPContentDatabase content_database_name -Web Application web_application_name

   For example:

   Test-SPContentDatabase WSS_Content_31436
   

   Mount-SPContentDatabase WSS_Content_31436 -Web Application http://v5apptest:3329
   

3. To restore the documents to a later version of the SharePoint Server, first enable the offline mining restore, and then restore the documents.