# Restore Management Server backups

Restoring Management Server backups allows you to recover from the loss of the system configurations, or to relocate the SMC servers onto different hardware.

## Before you begin

Import the backup files into the SMC or copy the backup files to the <installation directory>/backups/ directory.
Note: Handle the backup files securely. They contain all configuration information for the system.

##

Note: If the restore operation fails, the original configuration remains unchanged.

For more details about the product and how to configure features, click Help or press F1.

## Steps

1. To restore a backup on a Management Server installed in Windows or Linux, stop the Management Server service through the operating system’s service management features or using the command-line script, then start the backup restoration script.
   - In Windows, run <installation directory>/bin/sgRestoreMgtBackup.bat
   - In Linux, run <installation directory>/bin/sgRestoreMgtBackup.sh
2. To restore a backup on the SMC Appliance, run the following command to stop the Management Server service and start the backup restoration script:

       sudo smca-restore

   Note:

   To exclude SMC Appliance configuration files from being restored, use the `–⁠nosmca` option.

   To restore only the SMC Appliance configuration files, use the -⁠smcaonly option.

3. Select the backup file to be restored.
   The default backup file names have the following structure: sgm_vVERSION.[BUILD]_YYYYMMDD_HHMMSS[comment].
4. Type `y`, then press Enter to confirm the restoration.
5. If the backup is encrypted, enter the password.
6. If you are restoring the backup on a system that uses a different IP address, change the IP address of the Management Server.
7. If components have certificates from a different certificate authority (CA) than the one contained in the backup, regenerate the certificates.
   The backup contains the internal CAs. If components have certificates from a different CA than the one contained in the backup, the certificates are not accepted as valid after restoring the backup.
8. In Windows or Linux, start the Management Server.
   The SMC Appliance automatically starts the Management Server after the backup has been restored.
9. (SMC Appliance only) Restart the SMC Appliance if you are prompted to do so.