CommServe Recovery

The CommServe provides centralized management and administration for the entire CommCell. Hence, CommServe failures result in the entire CommCell to become non-functional. In such a situation, it is critical to quickly re-build and restore the CommServe. Similarly in the event of a disaster, rebuilding and establishing the CommServe would help you to rebuild the entire CommCell.

Do not use the full system restore for Windows to rebuild the CommServe.

Rebuild the CommServe

The following procedure describes the steps involved in rebuilding the CommServe computer to the same or different computer with a new NETBIOS name and/or IP address. (This may be required to migrate the CommServe to another computer, due to reconfiguration needs.) If you have SRM Server installed with the CommServe, see SRM Disaster Recovery.

Before You Begin

Verify and ensure that you have the following before rebuilding the CommServe:

  • Software Installation Discs and post-release Service Packs
  • Latest version of the Disaster Recovery Backup files (set_XXX)
    • If you have the Disaster Recovery Backup files on a local disk, follow this procedure to restore the CommServe database engine.
    • If you have the Disaster Recovery Backup files on a network drive, copy the files to a local disk and then follow this procedure to restore the CommServe database engine.
    • You can use the DRListMedia utility to pre-determine the media required for the restore operation. See Resource Pack for the usage of the utility and access information.
  • If Deduplication is set up in the CommCell, verify Disaster Recovery Scenarios before rebuilding the CommServe.

Rebuild the CommServe Computer
1. If the CommServe is still available, perform a Disaster Recovery Backup on the CommServe and make sure that the associated disaster recovery folder (SET_XXX folder) is saved and available in a safe location. See Starting a Disaster Recovery Backup for step-by-step instructions.
2. If necessary, uninstall the CommServe software, including all other components installed on the computer to remove the software from the computer. See Uninstalling Components for information on uninstalling components.
3. If you are restoring to a different computer, disconnect the current CommServe computer from the network, if the new CommServe has the same name. This is done to avoid collision.  
4. If you wish to move the storage devices attached to the new CommServe computer, do so now and establish the necessary hardware and software required by the devices in the new computer.  
5. Install CommServe software with the disaster recovery database dump. See Install/Upgrade the CommServe With an Existing Database for more step-by-step instructions.
Make sure that you do not install any other components on the new computer except the CommServe.

Configure the CommServe Computer
6. If the CommServe database used in the installation is obtained from a CommServe host with a different IP address, then update the CommServe license. See Activate a CommServe License for step-by-step instructions.
7. If the name of the computer is different, change the name using the CommServe Disaster Recovery Tool. See Change the Name of the CommServe Computer for step-by-step instructions.
8. If necessary, install other applications that were previously installed on the computer.  
9. Install other components (like MediaAgent and/or iDataAgent) on the CommServe computer if they were previously installed.  
10. Install the latest Service Pack.  
11. If you have storage devices configured on the computer, open the Library and Drive Configuration window from the CommCell Console and then re-configure the existing devices. See Configure Devices for step-by-step instructions.
12. If necessary, validate the drives in a library to ensure that the drives are functioning correctly. See Validate the Drives in a Library for step-by-step instructions.
13. If the name of the CommServe is changed, you must inform the Client and MediaAgent computers of the new CommServe name. This can be done from the CommCell Console. See Informing Clients of CommServe Name Change for step-by-step instructions.
14. If additional agents are installed on the CommServe, follow the appropriate procedure for the agent to restore the specific data.  
In a deduplication configuration, manually seal all the active deduplication stores. This step is required for proper pruning of the data. See Sealing Deduplication Store for step-by-step instructions.

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