Question

How can I backup a case?  How do I restore that case?

 

Answer

This article describes how to use the DBConfig utility to backup and restore cases.


Notes 

  • Case backups should come from a product version equal to or less than the product version where the backup will be restored.  Cases cannot be restored into an earlier version of the product.
  • DBConfig does not back up the evidence.  This should be done manually if a backup of the evidence is required.
  • Project backups in eDiscovery using DBConfig do not backup the collections performed in that Project.


Process

Backup Case

  1. Run the DBConfig utility (typically at "<drive>:\Program Files\AccessData\Forensic Tools\<version>\bin\dbconfig.exe") as Administrator.
  2. Select the entry for your database.
  3. Click Backup.
  4. Enter (or check) and confirm the following information:
    1. Backup Path
    2. Application Database (confirm the Server Name and port are correct)
    3. Check the case(s) to be backed up
  5. Click Backup Selected Cases. (Note: A progress bar should appear)


Restore Case

  1. Make sure all the Users from the old environment also exist in the new environment, so user settings, bookmarks, etc. can be mapped appropriately.
  2. Run the DBConfig utility (typically at "<drive>:\Program Files\AccessData\Forensic Tools\<version>\bin\dbconfig.exe") as Administrator.
  3. Select the entry for your database.
  4. Click Restore.

  5. Enter (or check) and confirm the following information
    1. Backup Path (the Backup Path should be the folder one level above your case backup, not the backup folder itself)
    2. Restore to a separate database (choose this from the drop-down menu)
    3. Application Database (confirm the Server Name and port are correct)
    4. Case Folder (optional) - This must be an existing, but empty, folder. Leaving this blank will restore the case folder to its original location, seen under the Path column.
  6. For each case, do the following:
    1. Select the case to be restored and click Map User IDs
    2. Confirm that each user in Previous User Name column has a User Name. These can be mapped by clicking on a user in the left side and then clicking ">>" to add the user to the mappings. Once completed, click Dismiss. NOTE: You must map users 1:1. Do not map multiple users to a single user in the current database. It will fail to restore if you do. (23505: duplicate key value violates unique constraint "pk_fac_objectviewed"  )

  7. Click Restore.

  8. Click Update Database to confirm whether all restored cases have been updated to the current version, and follow the steps to update them if they haven't.
  9. If the evidence has been moved, follow the steps at Change Evidence Path to update the evidence paths in all restored cases.
  10. If the case backup came from legacy eDiscovery/Summation and contains coordinate-based redactions, run AnnotationMigration.exe tool (typically at "<drive>:\Program Files\AccessData\Forensic Tools\<version>\bin\AnnotationMigration.exe") to convert them to a format that FTK Central can use.