Overview
By default, the software restores/recovers data to the client computer from which it originated; this is referred to as an in-place restore. You can also restore/recover the data to another Client computer in the CommCell; several of these restore/recover types are defined below. For specific support information detailing which restore/recovery types are support by each agent, see the following:
In-Place Restore
Same Path or Destination
You can restore/recover to the same volume or folder in the Client computer from which the data was secured using a data protection operation. This feature is supported by all Agents except when retrieving data using the DataArchiver Agent.
Out-of-Place Restore
Same Path or Destination
You can restore/recover to another Client computer in the CommCell, using the same folder structure used in the Client computer from which the data was secured using a data protection operation.
Different Path or Destination
You can restore/recover to a different location within the same Client computer, or to another Client computer in the CommCell, to a different volume or folder from the one used in the Client computer from which the data was secured using a data protection operation.
Restore to Network Drive or NFS-Mounted File System
Besides restoring/recovering/retrieving data to a client computer’s local drive, you can also restore/recover/retrieve data to a UNC path (Windows) or NFS-mounted file system (Unix). This is similar to a cross-computer restore/recovery except that:
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The restored/recovered data passes through the client computer to the mapped share/file system.
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The computer that hosts the share or mounted file system need not be another client within the CommCell.
All data restored/recovered/retrieved to the shared directory assumes the security attributes (i.e., permissions) of the parent directory.
On Windows computers, UNC path of a shared drive can be specified. (e.g., \\servername\sharename). (A drive letter associated with a mapped drive cannot be specified.) The Windows logon information for this shared drive must be added in the Advanced Restore options dialog box.
On Unix computers, clients with NFS mounted to another machine can restore to that mount. (Click the Browse button to see if the mount is visible.). UNC paths are not supported in Unix.
Cross-Platform Restores
Same Operating System - Different Version
Restoring data associated with different versions of the operating system is supported. For example, you can restore file system data secured from a Windows 2000 client computer to a client computer with Windows 2003, or Solaris 7 to Solaris 8, etc.
NOTES
If you plan to do a full system restore on a Windows 2003 Server x64 platform, use an x64 iDataAgent for backup. You cannot do a full system restore on an x64 platform if you are using a 32-bit iDataAgent.
Different Operating System
When restoring data across different platforms, you should be aware of how the data is restored under certain circumstances. Whenever data is restored to an environment from which it did not originate, the data does not always assume its original characteristics.
Cross-Application Restores
Restoring data associated with different versions of software is supported.
Cross-application restores for library and list items to the same or higher SharePoint Server version are supported. But, cross-application restores of databases between different versions of SharePoint Servers are not supported.
SQL Server iDataAgent supports cross-application restore of databases from a lower version to a higher version (e.g., SQL 2005 to SQL 2008).