Performing a back up of the file store has to be one of the easiest parts of the Lync infrastructure. If the deployment is an Enterprise version, odds are that the file store is already on a file server that is regularly backed up. However, if there are Standard Edition servers in the deployment, the file store is probably on the Lync Server, and there might not be any file back up on these servers.
The best solution is to have a backup agent configured and running on each server where there is a file store configured. However, be aware of resources when planning for this and consider only off-peak backup times.
The backup solution described here will just show you how to make an xcopy of the files to a second location for safekeeping.
Start by finding out where the file stores are and whether or not a separate backup of these files are necessary. This task is easily done in PowerShell with the Lync module loaded type: get-csservice –filestore.
On any computer/server where the copy of the filestore is to be stored, decide in which location the files will be copied, for example, C:LyncFileBackUp.
The following are the three steps to create a backup:
The following are the three steps to restore:
- On computer/server where the copy of the filestore is stored, start CMD.
- Map a drive to the file store:
net use g: \lyncfileserversharedfolder - Then, run the following command:
Xcopy c:LyncFileBackUp*.* g: /E /I /Y /H /C
There are certain folders in the file store that we don't always need. These folders are the DeviceUpdateStore and ABFiles folders.
The ABFiles folder contains the address book files. These are easily recreated at the point of restore. Simply type Update-CsAddressBook, and the files are recreated based on your Active Directory data.
The DeviceUpdateStore folder can contain a large amount of old data, as old updates are not removed when new ones are imported. A good approach to this could be to exclude the directory, download the latest update pack from TechNet or other specific vendor updates from their sites at the time of restore, and then just install it.
Tip
The Lync 2013 update page at http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/office/dn788954.aspx is the best place to look for current updates.
The following are the steps to exclude these folders at the time of backup:
- On computer/server where the copy of the file store is to be stored, start CMD.
- Map a drive to the file store as follows:
"net use g: \lyncfileserversharedfolder" - Create an empty
.txtfile in the computer, for example,C: empexclude.txt. - Populate this file with the following two words on separate lines:
ABFilesDeviceUpdateStore
- Save the file.
- Then, run the following command:
Xcopy g:*.* c:LyncFileBackUp /E /I /Y /H /C /EXCLUDE:c: empexclude.txt