To minimize the impact on users, restoration of service should be done in a way that causes the least disruption while bringing the environment back to an acceptable level of service. An organization’s backup and restore plan should contain criteria for deciding when and how to restore service.
If you need to restore multiple servers, you must restore them in the appropriate sequence. Table 17-9 indicates the restoration sequence for each type of deployment. Use the sequence shown, skipping any servers (such as Edge Servers) that are not in your deployment.
Table 17-9. Restoration Sequence for Servers
STANDARD EDITION SERVER ENVIRONMENT | ENTERPRISE POOL, CONSOLIDATED CONFIGURATION | ENTERPRISE POOL, EXPANDED CONFIGURATION | |
|---|---|---|---|
Restoring domain information | 1 | 1 | 1 |
Back-end servers | Not applicable | 2 | 2 |
Standard Edition servers | 2 | Not applicable | Not applicable |
Front-end servers | Not applicable | 3 | 3 |
Directors (optional) | Not applicable | 4 | 4 |
Web Components Servers | Part of Standard Edition Server restoration | Part of front-end server restoration | 5 |
Web Conferencing Servers | Part of Standard Edition Server restoration | Part of front-end server restoration | 6 |
A/V Conferencing Servers | Part of Standard Edition Server restoration | Part of front-end server restoration | 7 |
Archiving Servers | 3 | 5 | 8 |
Mediation Servers | 4 | 6 | 9 |
Edge servers | 5 (For any A/V Conferencing Server that is not collocated, restore each after restoring other Edge Servers) | 7 | 10 |
Forwarding proxy servers | 6 | 8 | 11 |
Reassigning users | 7 | 9 | 12 |
The components (such as a sites, servers, and databases) to be restored determine the sequence in which to restore them. Figure 17-1 summarizes the restoration sequence for restoring the various services.
Before performing any of the restore procedures, verify the following prerequisites:
All required hardware and software for each procedure is available to restore service.
The backup and restoration plan for your organization has been determined, and information from the completed worksheets in Appendix D of this book (or other equivalent information provided by your organization) are available.
Note
Appendix D and the worksheets are on the companion media in the Appendixes,Scripts,Resources folder.
On servers using an RTC database or on which an LCSLog database resides, loss of service can be caused by database corruption. Restoring data to the database might be sufficient. If this type of loss occurs, use the following procedure to verify that the operating system and programs installed on the server are operating as they should before proceeding with a database restoration.
Log on to the server as a member of the Administrators group.
Verify that the required services are running.
Check Event Viewer to ensure that no errors exist that would indicate any failures of the database or Office Communications Server.
Verify that you can open SQL Server 2005 Express Edition (for Standard Edition Server) or SQL Server 2005 or SQL Server 2008 (for the back-end server of an Enterprise pool and the Archiving Server or Monitoring Server), as appropriate, and that no other software problems are indicated other than the unavailability or corruption of the RTC or LCSLog database. If problems exist that you cannot resolve, refer to the SQL Server 2005 or SQL Server 2008 troubleshooting information. (See the following note.) In the worst case, you can uninstall and reinstall the appropriate SQL Server software.
Note
To verify that LCSLog and RTC databases exist and that they have valid data, you can open the Management Studio in SQL Server 2005 or SQL Server 2008 and run a simple query (for example, select * from table_name). For more information about troubleshooting SQL Server 2005, see http://support.microsoft.com/ph/2855/en-us/?aid=3&GSA_AC_More3.
After you complete these steps, if the server and the software running on it appear to be operable except for the availability of data in the database, proceed with database restoration, using the information in the section titled "Restoring Databases" later in this chapter, as appropriate.
If you determine that the server on which the database resides is not operating correctly (and therefore is not a stable platform for restoring the database), set up the server platform by using one of the other three procedures in this section:
Recover an existing server by reinstalling and configuring Office Communications Server 2007 R2.
Reinstall an existing server by reinstalling and configuring the operating system and all other software, including Office Communications Server 2007 R2.
Rebuild a server on new hardware, including installing and configuring the operating system and all other software.
If an Office Communications Server service fails, it might be possible to restore service by un-installing and reinstalling only Office Communications Server 2007 R2 and then restoring data and settings as necessary. However, keep in mind that there are more components to activate and uninstall in Office Communications Server 2007 R2 than there were in Office Communications Server 2007. Use the following procedure to recover an existing server without reinstalling the operating system.
Log on to the server as a member of the Administrators group.
Verify that the required services are running.
Check Event Viewer to ensure that no errors exist that indicate use of the current operating system and other programs (other than Office Communications Server 2007 R2) is not advisable.
Obtain the deployment plan for your organization that specifies how the server was originally set up. That plan should provide information about the configuration of the server, including the initial configuration of Office Communications Server 2007 R2, which you need to complete the reinstallation of the software.
Log on to the server to be recovered or a separate computer (such as a management console) as a member of the RTCUniversalServerAdmins group or a group with equivalent user rights.
Deactivate Office Communications Server 2007 R2 by opening Office Communications Server 2007 R2 Administrative Tools, right-clicking the name of the server, pointing to Deactivate, and then clicking the server.
Open Services and verify that no services with a name beginning with Office Communications Server are running.
Uninstall Office Communications Server 2007 R2 on the server to be recovered.
Verify that all installation prerequisites have been met.
If the server is a Standard Edition Server, a back-end server, an Archiving Server, or a Monitoring Server, verify that you can open SQL Server 2005 Express Edition (for a Standard Edition Server) or SQL Server 2005 or SQL Server 2008 (for the back-end server of an Enterprise pool, the Archiving Server, or the Monitoring Server), as appropriate, and that no other software problems are indicated other than the unavailability or corruption of the RTC or LCSLog database. If problems exist that you cannot resolve, uninstall and reinstall the appropriate SQL Server software as follows:
If you are rebuilding a Standard Edition Server, reinstall Office Communications Server 2007 R2, which will reinstall SQL Server 2005 Express Edition.
If you are rebuilding a back-end server in an Enterprise pool, install SQL Server 2005 or SQL Server 2008.
If you are rebuilding an Archiving Server or Monitoring Server, install SQL Server 2005 or SQL Server 2008.
Reinstall Office Communications Server 2007 R2 on the server (as appropriate to the server role to be recovered), completing the setup of all required software, including configuring certificates, starting services, and validating services. You do not need to set up user accounts as part of the basic setup because the restoration of user accounts is covered by the procedures in the section titled "Reassigning Users" later in this chapter.
After you complete these steps, if the restored Office Communications Server is operational but does not contain the original data and settings, proceed with restoring the data by using the appropriate procedures in the following sequence (for detailed information about each procedure, refer to the referenced section):
Install restoration tools by using the information in the section titled "Installing Restoration Tools" later in this chapter.
If the server to which service is being restored is a database server, restore the database by using the information in the section titled "Restoring Databases" later in this chapter.
If required in an Enterprise pool, re-create the Enterprise pool by using the information in the section titled "Re-creating Enterprise Pools" later in this chapter.
Restore settings by using the information in the section titled "Restoring Settings" later in this chapter.
If required, reassign users by using the information in the section titled "Reassigning Users" later in this chapter.
If loss of service included loss of Active Directory, restore Active Directory information by using the information in the section titled "Restoring Domain Information" later in this chapter.
If you determine that the server is not operating correctly (and therefore is not a stable platform), set up the server platform by doing one of the following:
Reinstall an existing server by using the procedure "Reinstalling an Existing Server" to reinstall and configure the operating system and all other software, including Office Communications Server 2007 R2.
Rebuild a server on new hardware, including installing and configuring the operating system and all other software.
Restore service from standby servers.
If you have determined that a server loss requires reinstallation of the operating system and other software, and you want to use the same hardware for the deployment, use the following procedure to install and configure the operating system and other software:
Obtain your organization’s deployment plan that specifies how the server was originally set up. This plan should provide information about the configuration of the server—including the configuration of the operating system, Office Communications Server 2007 R2, and other programs—which you need to complete the reinstallation of the software.
Verify that all deployment prerequisites have been met.
Verify that the environment is set up to support the existing server, including preparing Active Directory, configuring the DNS, configuring certificates, setting up load balancers, and configuring routing and other infrastructure components, as applicable (such as would be required if you use different server names or IP addresses for the new server).
Install and configure the operating system and all required software, such as SQL Server 2005 or SQL Server 2008 (only on a back-end server, Archiving Server, or Monitoring Server), by using the information in your organization’s backup and restore plan and deployment plans.
Install and configure Office Communications Server 2007 R2 (Standard Edition or Enterprise Edition, as appropriate) and all other required software. Configure certificates, start services, and validate services as well. You do not need to set up user accounts as part of the basic setup because the recovery of user accounts is covered by the procedures in the section titled "Reassigning Users" later in this chapter.
After you reinstall the operating system and all required software, including Office Communication Server 2007 R2 and the appropriate version of SQL Server (if applicable), proceed with restoration of the server by using the appropriate procedures described later in this chapter, in the following sequence:
Install restoration tools by using the information in the section titled "Installing Restoration Tools" of this chapter.
If the server to which service is being restored is a database server, restore the database by using the information in the section titled "Restoring Databases" later in this chapter.
In an Enterprise pool, re-create the Enterprise pool by using the information in the section titled "Re-creating Enterprise Pools" later in this chapter.
Restore settings by using the information in the section titled "Restoring Settings" later in this chapter.
If required, reassign users by using the information in the section titled "Reassigning Users" later in this chapter.
If loss of service included loss of Active Directory, restore Active Directory information by using the information in the section titled "Restoring Domain Information" later in this chapter.
If you determine that the server cannot be made to operate correctly (to provide a stable platform) because of hardware problems that cannot be resolved, set up the server on a new platform by doing one of the following:
Rebuild a server on new hardware, including installing and configuring the operating system and all other software.
Restore service from standby servers.
The tools required to restore service are the same as those used to back up settings and data.
LCSCmd.exe, which is used to restore settings to the server on which service is being restored. This tool is available on any computer on which you have installed the Office Communications Server 2007 R2 administrative tools (such as a management console). By default, these tools are in the Program FilesCommon FilesMicrosoft Office Communications Server 2007 R2 folder on the computer.
Database tools. To restore databases on Standard Edition Servers, use SQL Server Management Studio Express in SQL Server 2005 Express Edition. To restore databases on Enterprise pool back-end servers, Archiving Servers, or Monitoring Servers, use SQL Server Management Studio in SQL Server 2005 or SQL Server 2008.
The appropriate SQL Server program should already be installed on each server that hosts a database, either as a result of the original deployment or rebuilding the server.
File system management tool or tools used by your organization to restore file shares.
If the required tools are not already installed on each server from which you will be restoring service, install the tools before proceeding.
If data becomes corrupted, use the information in the following sections to restore it. This includes the following:
RTC (user services), LCSLog (archiving), RTCCDR (monitoring) and QOEMetrics (QoE monitoring) databases
File shares containing meeting content, meeting content metadata, and meeting compliance logs
In the event of the loss of an RTC database, an Archiving Server, or a Monitoring Server, you can restore the database to the point of the last backup. If the server on which the database resides needs to be restored also, restore the server first.
To restore a database, use the appropriate tool:
For the RTC database on a Standard Edition Server, use SQL Server 2005 Express Edition.
For the RTC database on a back-end server in an Enterprise pool, use SQL Server 2005 or SQL Server 2008.
For the LCSLog database on the Archiving Server or the RTCCDR and QOEMetrics databases on the Monitoring Server, use SQL Server 2005 or SQL Server 2008.
It is not necessary to restore the RTCConfig database or RTCDyn database.
Complete the following procedure for each database server that requires restoration:
Note
The following restoration procedure assumes that you are using Integrated Windows Authentication to access SQL Server 2005 or SQL Server 2008.
Important
The service account you use to restore the SQL database must be the same one that you used to back up the SQL database.
Log on to the servers on which Office Communication Server is installed as a member of the RTCUniversalServerAdmins group or a group with equivalent user rights and stop all Office Communications Server services that use the database to be restored.
Log on to the server on which the database resides as a member of the Administrators group on the local computer or a group with equivalent user rights.
To restore the required databases, use the database restoration mechanism and procedures identified in the backup and restoration strategy for your organization.
In the event of the loss of the file shares containing files related to meeting content, you can restore the file shares to the point of the last backup. This includes the following content:
Meeting content
Meeting content metadata
Meeting content compliance log
You do not need to restore the address book because User Replicator automatically creates it.
If the server on which each file share is to reside needs to be restored also, restore it first.
To restore the required file shares, use the file system restoration mechanism and procedures identified in your organization’s backup and restore strategy.
To restore service for either a Standard Edition Server or an Enterprise pool configuration, use the procedures and guidelines in this section to complete the following steps:
Prepare for restoration of settings.
Restore settings.
Activate servers (re-created Enterprise pool only).
Start services.
Validate services.
Repeat procedures in the first two steps as appropriate to restore each server that requires restoration of settings. Then complete step 3.
Before restoring settings, you should ensure that servers are ready for restoration. To prepare for restoration of settings, use the following procedure:
Ensure that all environmental dependencies, such as Active Directory and the DNS, are fully functional.
Set up hardware and software for each server requiring restoration.
For a Standard Edition Server, if required, restore the RTC database by using the information in the section titled "Restoring Databases" earlier in this chapter. If you need to re-create an entire Enterprise pool, use the information in the sections titled "Installing Restoration Tools" and "Re-creating Enterprise Pools" earlier in this chapter to re-create the pool before using the information in the next section, "Step 2: Restore Settings," to restore any server settings.
If required, restore files by using the information in the section titled "Restoring File Shares" earlier in this chapter. Restoration of files is always required if you need to restore settings as a result of re-creating a pool.
Verify that the configuration file (XML file) containing the most recently backed-up settings is accessible from the computer that you will use to restore settings. This computer can be the server to be restored or a separate computer on which Office Communications Server 2007 R2 administrative tools have been installed (such as a management console). If the configuration file is in a backup location that is not accessible, copy it from the backup location to an accessible location.
To restore settings, you import the required settings to the lost service. In a Standard Edition Server environment, this can include the following settings:
Global-level settings. Restoration of global-level settings is required only when Active Directory has been lost or corrupted or if any of its settings have been deleted. If you need to restore global-level settings, you need to do so only once on a single Standard Edition Server (or in the case of an Enterprise pool, on a single front-end server).
Pool-level settings. Restoration of pool-level settings is required only if a Standard Edition Server has been lost (or in the case of an Enterprise pool, if all front-end servers or a back-end server have been lost). If you need to restore pool-level settings, you need to do so only once on the Standard Edition Server or on a single front-end server.
Computer-level (machine-level) settings. You must restore computer-level settings on each server requiring restoration. This can be a single server or multiple servers, including any of the following:
Standard Edition Servers
Front-end servers (Enterprise pool configuration), which also restores Application Server settings
Directors (Enterprise pool configuration)
Web Components Servers (Enterprise pool, expanded configuration only)
Application Servers (Enterprise pool, expanded configuration only)
Web Conferencing Servers (Enterprise pool, expanded configuration only)
A/V Conferencing Servers (Enterprise pool, expanded configuration only)
Application Sharing Conferencing Servers (Enterprise pool, expanded configuration only)
Archiving Servers
Monitoring Servers
Forwarding proxy servers
Edge Servers
To import the required settings, use the LCSCmd.exe command-line tool and the following procedures as appropriate. If restoration of both global-level settings and pool-level settings—or only pool-level settings—is required, restore them before restoring any computer-level settings.
To restore global-level and pool-level settings in a Standard Edition Server or Enterprise pool environment, do the following:
Log on to the Standard Edition Server (or in an Enterprise pool, the first front-end server) to be restored, or to a computer on which Office Communications Server 2007 R2 administrative tools have been installed, as a member of the RTCUniversalServerAdmins group or a group with equivalent user rights. Stop all Office Communications Server 2007 R2 services (all services that have Office Communications Server at the front of the name).
Ensure that the required configuration file (XML file) is accessible.
Open a command prompt. Click Start, click Run, type cmd, and then click OK.
At the command prompt, change to the directory containing the LCSCmd.exe tool (by default, <drive>:Program FilesCommon FilesMicrosoft Office Communications Server 2007 R2).
Restore settings by doing one of the following:
To restore both global-level and pool-level settings for a Standard Edition Server (required if both Active Directory and all Standard Edition Servers have been lost) from a configuration file that contains both levels of settings, type the following command:
lcscmd /config /action:import /level:global,pool /restore:true /configfile: <drive>:<path><filename>.xml /poolname:[name of computer]
To restore only pool-level settings for a Standard Edition Server (required if a Standard Edition Server has been lost but Active Directory has not been lost) from a configuration file containing the pool-level settings, type the following command:
lcscmd /config /action:import /level:pool /restore:true /configfile:<drive>: <path><filename>.xml /poolname:[name of computer]
To restore both global-level and pool-level settings for an Enterprise pool on one front-end server only (required if Active Directory and all front-end servers have been lost) from a configuration file that contains both levels of settings, type the following command:
lcscmd /config /action:import /level:global,pool /configfile:<drive>:<path> <filename>.xml /poolname:[name of pool to which to restore server] /restore:true
To restore only pool-level settings for an Enterprise pool on one front-end server only (required if all front-end servers or a back-end server have been lost, but Active Directory has not) from a configuration file containing the pool-level settings, type the following command:
lcscmd /config /action:import /level:pool /configfile:<drive>:<path> <filename>.xml /poolname:[name of pool to which to restore server] /restore:true
For any of these commands, for the drive, specify a separate, removable media or mapped drive to a separate location in a secure location, for example:
lcscmd /config /action:import /level:global,pool /restore:true /configfile:C: BackupOCS1Serversettings.xml /poolname:ocsstandardedition1
If running the command from a Standard Edition Server (instead of a separate computer serving as a management console), you can omit the /poolname attribute. If you backed up global-level and pool-level settings to separate configuration files (XML files) and need to restore both levels of settings, run the command once for each level of settings (global and pool) to be imported, with the following modifications:
For the /level attribute, specify only one setting level (global or pool) each time you run the command.
For the /configfile attribute, specify the name of the file to which the single level of settings was backed up.
After typing the command, to start importing settings, press Enter.
After importing the settings, verify that the settings are appropriately applied. Do this by opening Office Communications Server 2007 R2 Administrative Tools, right-clicking the server name, clicking Properties, and then verifying that both levels of settings are correct.
To restore computer-level settings on a computer in a Standard Edition Server or Enterprise pool environment, do the following:
Log on to the server to which computer-level settings are to be restored, or to a computer on which Office Communications Server 2007 R2 administrative tools have been installed, as a member of the RTCUniversalServerAdmins group or a group with equivalent user rights, and stop all Office Communications Server 2007 R2 services (all services that have Office Communications Server at the front of the name).
Ensure that the required configuration file that was saved during the initial build-out of the server (XML file) is available.
Open a command prompt. Click Start, click Run, type cmd, and then click OK.
At the command prompt, change to the directory containing the LCSCmd.exe tool (by default, <drive>:Program FilesCommon FilesMicrosoft Office Communications Server 2007 R2).
Import computer-level settings to the server by typing the following command:
lcscmd /config /action:import /level:machine /restore:true /configfile:<drive>:< path><filename>.xml /fqdn:[FQDN of Standard Edition or front-end server to which settings are to be imported]
For the drive, specify a separate, removable media or mapped drive to a separate location in a secure location, for example:
lcscmd /config /action:import /level:machine /restore:true /configfile:C:Backup OCS1Serversettings.xml /fqdn:ocsstandardedition1.litware.com lcscmd /config /action:import /level:machine /configfile:C:Backup OCS1FrontEndServersettings.xml /fqdn:ocspool1frontend.litware.com /restore:true
For a Standard Edition Server, the /fqdn attribute is required only for restoration of a Standard Edition Server and only if running the command on a separate computer serving as a management console. For an Enterprise pool, the /fqdn attribute is required only for a front-end server. In an Enterprise pool, expanded configuration, the /fqdn attribute is required for the following server roles: Web Components Server, Web Conferencing Server, and A/V Conferencing Server.
After typing the command, to start importing settings, press Enter.
After importing the settings, verify that the computer-level settings are appropriately applied by opening Office Communications Server 2007 R2 Administrative Tools, right-clicking the server name, clicking Properties, and then verifying that the settings are correct.
Repeat this procedure for each server in your deployment to which settings are to be restored, except the server on which you restored multiple levels of settings (as described in the previous procedure).
If you have re-created an Enterprise pool, to complete the restoration of a front-end server, activate the server by using the following command:
lcscmd /server:[<server FQDN>] /action:activate /role:ee [/user:<service account name>] /password:<pw> /poolname:<name of Enterprise Edition pool to join> [/archserver:<name of Archiving Server> /nostart /unregspn /queuename:<name of queue on the Archiving service>
In this command, role:ee is used for the front-end server of an Enterprise pool in the consolidated configuration.
To activate the Web Conferencing Server and the A/V Conferencing Server, use the following command:
lcscmd /mcu[:<mcu server FQDN>] /action:activate /role:<datamcu|avmcu> [/user:<service account name>] /password:<pw> /poolname:<name of Enterprise Edition pool to join> / nostart:<true|false>
In this command, role:datamcu is used to activate a Web Conferencing Server role, and role:avmcu is used to activate an A/V Conferencing Server.
To complete restoration of service in the Standard Edition Server environment, after restoring all required settings, start all applicable services in the following sequence:
SQL Server 2005 Express Edition (for a Standard Edition Server) or SQL Server 2005 or SQL Server 2008
Office Communications Server Archiving Server service, if required
Office Communications Server Front End service
Office Communications Server IM Conferencing Server service
Office Communications Server Telephony Conferencing Server service
Office Communications Server Web Components service (Enterprise pool)
Office Communications Server Web Conferencing Server service
Office Communications Server A/V Conferencing Server service
Office Communications Server Proxy Server service, if required
Office Communications Server Access Edge Server service, if required
Office Communications Server Web Conferencing Edge Server service, if required
Office Communications Server A/V Edge Server service, if required
Office Communications Server A/V Authentication Service, if required
For a Standard Edition Server, after starting services, use the Validation Wizard to validate the individual server roles by following these steps:
Log on to a computer that is running Office Communications Server 2007 R2 Standard Edition, or to a computer on which the Office Communications Server 2007 R2 Administrative Tools are installed, with an account that is a member of the Administrators group.
Open the Office Communications Server 2007 R2 Administrative Tools snap-in. Click Start, point to All Programs, point to Administrative Tools, and then click Office Communications Server 2007 R2.
In the console tree, expand Standard Edition Servers and expand the pool name and role (such as Front Ends).
Right-click the FQDN of the restored server, point to Validation, and then click the server role (such as Front End Server) to start the Validation Wizard.
Complete the steps in the Validation Wizard.
Repeat this procedure for each of the four primary services (Front End, Web Conferencing, A/V Conferencing, and Web Components).
If you have re-created the Enterprise pool, run the Validation Wizard from the Office Communications 2007 Server Deployment Wizard to validate the functionality of the pool and servers in the pool. As part of the validation task, you can validate each Enterprise pool server role that you restore, which includes:
Front-end servers
Web Conferencing Servers
A/V Conferencing Servers
Web Components Servers
Each server role for the topology can also be validated using the Office Communications Server 2007 R2 administrative snap-in.
After you have completed the procedures in this section, do the following:
Reassign users, if required, by using the information in the section titled "Reassigning Users" later in this chapter.
Restore domain information, if required, by using the information in the section titled "Restoring Domain Information" later in this chapter.
To re-create a pool, complete the following procedure before doing any other restoration for the pool, including restoring data, adding servers, and restoring settings in the pool. Repeat the procedures in this section for each pool that needs to be re-created.
To re-create a pool, use the LCSCmd.exe command-line tool and the following procedure:
Log on to the server as a member of the RTCUniversalServerAdmin and DomainAdmins groups or a group with equivalent user rights.
Open a command prompt. Click Start, click Run, type cmd, and then click OK.
At the command prompt, change to the directory containing the LCSCmd.exe tool (by default, <drive>:Program FilesCommon FilesMicrosoft Office Communications Server 2007 R2).
At the command prompt, type the following command:
lcscmd /forest:<forest FQDN> /action:<action name> /poolname:<pool name> /poolbe:<SQL instance name (computerinstance name)> /refdomain:<domain FQDN> /dbdatapath:<database data file path> /dblogpath:<database log file path> /dyndatapath:<dynamic database data path> /dynlogpath:<dynamic database log path> /meetingcontentpath:<meeting content UNC path> /meetingmetapath:<meeting metadata UNC path> /clean
After typing the command, to start re-creating the pool, press Enter.
Repeat this procedure for each Enterprise pool in your organization that needs to be re-created.
After you have completed the procedure in this section to re-create a pool, do the following:
Restore all required servers in the Enterprise pool configuration by using the information in the section titled "Restoring Settings" earlier in this chapter.
Reassign users, if required, by using the information in the section titled "Reassigning Users" below.
Restore domain information, if required, by using the information in the section titled "Restoring Domain Information" below.
If restoring users’ contact lists and permissions is not a priority, reassigning users to another functioning Office Communications Server is sufficient. This can easily be done through the Move Users Wizard, which is available in the Admins Tools Microsoft Management Console (MMC) and Active Directory Users and Computers MMC (DSA.MSC).
If restoring users’ contact lists and permissions is a priority, in addition to using the Move Users Wizard to reassign the users to another functioning Office Communications Server, the administrator must also restore the data from the failed Office Communications Server. Restoring this data must be done on the Office Communications Server to which the users are reassigned. Refer to the section titled "Restoring Databases" earlier in this chapter for more details.
The user database (RTC) on Office Communications Server 2007 R2 (back-end database) retains a mapping of Active Directory user globally unique identifiers (GUIDs) and security identifiers (SIDs) for every Session Initiation Protocol (SIP)–enabled user. The user’s Office Communications settings (SIP Uniform Resource Identifier [URI], remote access, federation, archiving, telephony, Line URI, and so on) are stored in the database. As a result, backups taken of the SQL database contain these mappings and settings.
If Active Directory encounters a problem, and global and user settings in Active Directory specific to Office Communications Server 2007 R2 are not restored as part of the service restoration procedure, you might need to restore the RTC database through the steps described in the section titled "Restoring Databases" earlier in this chapter.
If you need to restore the Active Directory domain, these mappings will change, and you will need to export user data by using the Office Communications Server user database (RTC), restoring your Active Directory domain, and importing user data back into the database. Although this is a rare occurrence, considering the separate processes and procedures for managing the health of Active Directory (as well as the inherent redundancy of Active Directory when more than one domain controller is used per domain), it would be wise to ensure that your processes for recovering Active Directory are up to date.
If an entire site fails, which can happen due to a natural disaster, all servers in the internal network and perimeter network must be restored. This can be done using one of the following methods:
Restoring the servers at the original site or another site after the failure by rebuilding servers. You can do this by using the procedure in the section titled "Reinstalling an Existing Server" earlier in this chapter or by rebuilding a server on new hardware, as appropriate, and restoring servers in the same sequence as in the original deployment.
Setting up standby servers at a secondary site in advance of a disaster to provide recovery support and using them to provide interim support until the primary site is restored. This approach is recommended for optimal site recovery. To help ensure availability of the secondary site, in the event of a catastrophic loss such as might be caused by a natural disaster, we recommend that the standby servers be located at a separate site at a different geographical location than the primary site. Servers are brought online in the same sequence as in the original deployment.
This section focuses on the second method, setting up a secondary site, which requires deployment of appropriate hardware and software at the secondary site, as well as other preparations and ongoing maintenance of the site. The information in this section is based on using the secondary site as an interim solution until the primary site can be restored. To set up and use a secondary site to support recovery, use the procedures and guidelines in this section.
Note
The following steps describe site restoration for an Enterprise pool. To restore a site for a Standard Edition Server deployment, you can use the same steps, modifying them as appropriate (such as using the IP address of the Standard Edition Server instead of the virtual IP address of the load balancer). These steps assume that Active Directory is set up with the appropriate configuration to support the secondary site in the same domain as the primary site and that Active Directory remains available and functional if the primary site has been lost.
Using standby servers at a secondary site for recovery helps ensure minimal disruption if services fail. Your backup and restore strategy should specify what is deployed in the secondary site. If it does not provide full functionality, the plan should specify why recovery support for specific functionality is not implemented. The determination of what is required at the secondary site is generally made based on the following factors:
Business criticality of specific functionality. At a minimum, setting up a secondary site requires support of core services, which are provided by the Standard Edition Server or, for an Enterprise pool, by the front-end server and back-end database. Other functionality, such as the A/V Conferencing Server, can be deployed in the primary site but might not have the same level of criticality as core services.
Cost of the hardware, software, and maintenance for the secondary site.
Service availability requirements. Bringing a secondary site online takes time, during which functionality is not available to users in your organization. If your organization requires immediate recovery, you might want to limit the functionality that is restored to shorten the time required to bring services back online. Or you might want to plan for a staged recovery, with critical functionality brought online at the secondary site first and other functionality introduced on a delayed schedule (such as during off-peak hours).
When using a secondary site for service restoration, all backed-up data and settings must be available at the secondary site. Testing should include restoration of the data and settings from the secondary site.
The deployment plan for the secondary site should match the deployment plan for the primary site, including being in the same domain and having the same network configuration, except for the following:
The secondary site should have a pool name that is different than the pool name used for the primary site.
The _sipinternaltls and _sip_tcp DNS records should be modified to the secondary site.
Setting up the secondary site requires first doing the following:
Setting up the infrastructure. This includes verifying the setup and configuration of Active Directory, the DNS, certificates, load balancers, routing, and other infrastructure components, as specified in the deployment plan.
Installing and configuring the required server platforms at the secondary site.
After the infrastructure is in place and the standby server platforms are installed and configured, prepare them for use by doing the following:
On the server that will provide the back-end database for the secondary site, install a new SQL Server database.
Create a new Enterprise pool (for example, backuppool.boston.corp.litware.com), associate it with the new SQL Server instance, and do not select the option to replace existing databases.
Set up the front-end servers at the secondary site and join them to the new Enterprise pool.
Set up the other servers required at the secondary site by configuring them to use the new pool.
The only thing you have to do at the primary site is to ensure that the backups are routinely stored at a location accessible by the servers at the secondary site. It is generally recommended that all backups be routinely copied to the secondary site to ensure availability in the event of failure.
On an ongoing basis, verify that each standby server is ready to be put into service.
To ensure that the secondary site can effectively be brought online in the event of an outage, you should do at least one test to verify that everything works as it should. To do this, shut down all the Office Communication Server 2007 R2 servers at the primary site. Then use the information in steps 7 and 8 to bring the primary and secondary sites online.
If service fails at the primary site, bring the secondary site online by doing the following.
Restore the backup of the primary site’s RTC database to the RTC database of the pool in the secondary site.
Modify the _sipinternaltls and _sip_tcp DNS records to point to the pool FQDN of the secondary site. (If using a load balancer, modify the DNS records of the pool in the secondary site to use the same virtual IP address configured on the load balancer in the original site.)
Configure the front-end servers in the new pool created for the secondary site, as specified in the deployment plan, and verify the setup. This can include verifying specific configurations, such as the following:
Front-end servers within a pool behind a load balancer must be capable of routing to each other. There can be no Network Address Translation (NAT) device in this path of communication. Any such device will prevent successful interpool communication over remote procedure call (RPC).
Front-end servers behind a load balancer must have access to the Active Directory environment.
Front-end servers must have static IP addresses that can be used to configure them for use with the load balancer. In addition, these IP addresses must have DNS registrations (front-end server FQDNs).
Administration computers must be able to route through the load balancer to the pool FQDN, as well as the front-end server FQDN of every front-end server in the pool or pools to be managed. In addition, there can be no NAT device in the path of communication to the front-end servers to be managed (a restriction enforced by the usage of the RPC protocol by the Distributed Component Object Model [DCOM]).
Use the Office Communications Server 2007 R2 administrative snap-in and the Force User option to force a move of all users to the new pool.
Test connectivity by logging on to Office Communicator from a client computer. Depending on the configuration and situation, you might need to modify configurations to do this. For instance, if the virtual IP address and pool FQDN change, it might be necessary to modify the client configuration unless auto-logon is enabled. It might also be necessary to use the ipconfig /flushdns command to flush the DNS cache from the client computers.
When the primary site is ready to return to service, bring it back online.
Note
The information that follows describes how to bring the primary site back online after server loss at the primary site. Before starting this step, first set up the required server platforms.
If the failure of service at the original site was a temporary condition (such as a power outage) that did not damage the servers, you do not need to do anything except turn the servers back on.
To restore the primary site, after setting up server platforms, do the following:
Back up the RTC database from the secondary site and store it at a location accessible from the primary site.
Log on to the front-end server in the primary site and then use the Office Communications Server 2007 R2 administrative snap-in to deactivate the server roles (as appropriate to your configuration) in the following sequence:
Important
Use the log file to verify successful deactivation of each server role (and all deactivation tasks for that server role) before proceeding with deactivation of the next server role.
Microsoft Office Communications Server 2007 R2, Audio/Video Conferencing Server
Microsoft Office Communications Server 2007 R2, Web Conferencing Server
Microsoft Office Communications Server 2007 R2, Web Components Server
Microsoft Office Communications Server 2007 R2, front-end server
Expand the pool, right-click Users, and then click Delete Users to remove SIP-enabled users from the pool (after verifying the availability of the database backup in the secondary site pool).
Use the Remove Pool Wizard to remove the original pool and corresponding files of the primary site, using the Force option but clearing the Keep Existing Databases option.
Use Add/Remove Programs to uninstall each of the server roles (as appropriate to your configuration) in the following sequence:
Microsoft Office Communications Server 2007 R2, Administrative Tools
Microsoft Office Communications Server 2007 R2, Audio/Video Conferencing Server
Microsoft Office Communications Server 2007 R2, Standard Edition Server or Microsoft Office Communications Server 2007 R2, Enterprise Edition Server
Microsoft Office Communications Server 2007 R2, Web Conferencing Server
Microsoft Office Communications Server 2007 R2, Web Components Server
Delete share folders that have been created during pool and server creation for meeting content, meeting metadata, and the address book file store.
Use the Office Communications Server 2007 R2 Deployment Wizard to set up all required server roles.
Create a new pool with the same pool name as the original primary site, using the default Remove Existing Databases option.
Restore the RTC database backup from the secondary site to the same instance of SQL used by the original pool of the primary site (specifying the appropriate instance name if the default was not used originally).
With both pools (for the primary site and secondary site) online, use the Office Communications Server 2007 R2 administrative snap-in to move all the users from the secondary site pool to the primary site pool. Do not use the Force option.
On the load balancer, disable the front-end servers associated with the pool in the secondary site and configure the front-end servers in the primary site pool as specified in the deployment plan.
Modify DNS records to point back to the original primary site pool.
Log on to Office Communicator and verify connectivity to the primary site. Also verify the functionality of IM, contact groups, and contact lists. Depending on the configuration and situation, you might need to modify configurations to do this. For instance, if the virtual IP address and pool FQDN change, it might be necessary to modify the client configuration unless auto-logon is enabled. It might also be necessary to use the ipconfig /flushdns command.