Aryson SharePoint Server Recovery: Step-by-Step Recovery & Best PracticesSharePoint is a central hub for collaboration, document management, and internal web sites. When SharePoint data is lost, corrupted, or becomes inaccessible due to hardware failure, accidental deletion, or migration issues, a reliable recovery strategy is essential. Aryson SharePoint Server Recovery is a commercial tool designed to help administrators extract, repair, and restore SharePoint data from corrupted databases, backups, or dismounted content stores. This article provides a clear step-by-step recovery workflow and practical best practices to minimize downtime and data loss.
What Aryson SharePoint Server Recovery does (brief overview)
Aryson SharePoint Server Recovery is primarily used to:
- Recover corrupted SharePoint content databases (MDF/LDF) and site collections.
- Extract site content, documents, lists, libraries, and permissions from damaged databases.
- Export recovered data to usable formats (e.g., SharePoint-compatible packages, PST, CSV, or file system).
- Support various SharePoint versions (on-premises editions) and common database corruption scenarios.
Before you begin — prerequisites and preparation
- System & software requirements
- Ensure you have a Windows server or workstation that meets Aryson’s minimum CPU, memory, and disk requirements.
- Install prerequisites such as .NET Framework versions if required by the Aryson build you’re using.
- Have SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS) available for database attachment/inspection.
- Gather access and artifacts
- A copy of the corrupted SharePoint content database (.mdf/.ldf) or a database backup (.bak).
- Farm and site collection details (site URLs, site collection owners).
- Admin-level credentials for the SQL Server instance and SharePoint farm (if restoring directly back).
- Make safe copies
- Always work on a copy of the database files or backups. Never run recovery against production files.
- Store a checksum or confirmation that the copy matches the original so you can revert.
Step-by-step recovery using Aryson SharePoint Server Recovery
1) Acquire and install the tool
- Download the latest Aryson SharePoint Server Recovery installer from the vendor.
- Install on an isolated recovery workstation or VM (not on production servers) to avoid accidental writes.
2) Launch and choose the source
- Open the application and select the source database type:
- Attach .MDF/.LDF files, or
- Load a .BAK backup file.
- Point the tool to the copied database files.
3) Scan the database
- Choose scan mode:
- Quick scan for minor corruption.
- Deep/Advanced scan for severe corruption.
- Start the scan and monitor progress. The tool parses database pages, reconstructs damaged structures, and locates SharePoint site content.
4) Preview recoverable items
- After scanning, use the preview pane to inspect recovered sites, lists, libraries, documents, metadata, and version history.
- Verify important items (site collections, critical libraries, permissions) are present in preview.
5) Select items and export options
- Choose what to recover (entire site collection, selected sites, lists, or individual files).
- Select an export format:
- Export to a SharePoint-compatible structure (often as a folder hierarchy ready for re-import).
- Export to PST/EML/CSV/file system for archival.
- If available, export directly back into a target SQL/SharePoint environment (use caution and ensure compatibility).
6) Configure advanced options
- Preserve metadata (created/modified timestamps, version history) where the tool supports it.
- Map recovered user accounts to current farm accounts if original SIDs no longer exist.
- Set overwrite rules for existing items in the target location.
7) Execute recovery/export
- Start the export. Depending on size, this can take from minutes to many hours.
- Monitor logs for errors. Save logs for auditing and troubleshooting.
8) Validate recovered data
- If exporting to a temporary SharePoint environment, attach the recovered content database using SSMS and mount the site collection in SharePoint for manual validation.
- Verify documents open correctly, version history is intact, permissions behave as expected, and links or web parts are functioning.
9) Post-recovery steps
- If data is validated, plan a controlled migration back to production or a final restore process.
- Reconfigure search indexing and services so recovered content is crawled.
- Notify stakeholders about recovered items and any losses or changes.
Troubleshooting common issues
- If some items are missing after scan:
- Run a deeper scan mode.
- Check for very old versions or detached archived databases.
- If user permissions appear incorrect:
- Map original user SIDs to current accounts or recreate missing accounts temporarily.
- If web parts or custom solutions fail:
- Ensure corresponding custom assemblies or features are deployed in the target SharePoint farm; otherwise pages may show errors.
- If the tool fails to open database files:
- Confirm files are not still locked by SQL Server. Attach a copy or use a detached file set.
Best practices for SharePoint recovery and prevention
- Regular backups: Implement frequent, automated backups of content databases and configuration databases. Test restores periodically.
- Maintain a secondary recovery environment: Keep a standby SharePoint farm or a lightweight validation farm for mounting recovered content without risking production.
- Versioned recovery testing: Periodically test restoring backups from different points in time to validate retention policies.
- Document customizations: Maintain a repository of deployed custom solutions, feature definitions, and third-party assemblies to avoid post-recovery compatibility issues.
- Use role-based access and change controls: Prevent accidental deletions by restricting who can delete site collections or content database objects.
- Keep logs and recovery runbooks: Maintain a runbook describing the recovery steps, contacts, and escalation paths; log all recovery attempts for auditability.
- Secure backups: Store backups in multiple locations (offsite/cloud + on-prem) and protect them with encryption and access controls.
When to call in experts
- If the corruption involves configuration or central administration databases, escalate to Microsoft support or certified SharePoint consultants.
- If business-critical data is still missing after multiple recovery attempts, use professional data-forensics services experienced with SharePoint and SQL internals.
Final notes and limitations
- Aryson SharePoint Server Recovery is a powerful tool for extracting and reconstructing SharePoint content from damaged databases, but it is not a substitute for a coherent backup and recovery plan.
- Recovered content may require manual adjustments, user mapping, or redeployment of custom components to fully function inside a live farm.
- Always test in a non-production environment first and keep stakeholders informed about possible data gaps.
If you want, I can:
- Provide a concise checklist you can print and follow during a recovery, or
- Write a runbook tailored to your SharePoint version and backup architecture.
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