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Back up and restore ArcGIS Notebook Server

It's a best practice to take periodic backups of your ArcGIS Notebook Server site configuration and content. In the event of a machine failure, accidental deletion, or other incidents, you can restore the most recent backup configuration to prevent or minimize data loss and downtime.

Starting at 10.7.1, ArcGIS Notebook Server provides the Export Site and Import Site tools, which back up and restore the site's configuration store to and from a ZIP file, respectively. The configuration store hosts essential information about the ArcGIS Notebook Server site and its machines. These tools are performed through the ArcGIS Notebook Server Administrator Directory, either manually or through a programmatic call.

There are some directories that are not backed up by the export operation, notably the arcgisworkspace directory, which contains sample data and each notebook users' workspace data. Administrators should create and schedule periodic backups of this directory in addition to using the Export Site operation. Notebooks themselves are included in WebGIS DR portal backups.

Back up a site configuration

You can use the exportSite operation in the ArcGIS Notebook Server Administrator Directory to back up a site's configuration store.

Perform the following steps to manually execute the backup operation:

  1. Open the ArcGIS Notebook Server Administrator Directory and log in as a user with administrative privileges. The URL is typically https://notebookserver.domain.com:11443/arcgis/admin.
  2. Navigate to site > Export Site.
  3. Enter the full path of the location on your machine to which you want to export the file. The site must have access to this directory.
  4. Click Export.
  5. When the export operation is complete, the directory will provide a link to the backup file location on the server. Download the file, which will have an .agssite file extension, as promptly as possible.

Restore a site configuration

In the event of a machine disaster, you can restore an ArcGIS Notebook Server site configuration backup. The Administrator Directory provides an importSite operation, which can be executed programmatically or manually.

Perform the following steps to manually execute the restore operation:

  1. Open the ArcGIS Notebook Server Administrator Directory and log in as a user with administrative privileges. The URL is typically https://notebookserver.domain.com:11443/arcgis/admin.
  2. Navigate to site > Import Site.
  3. Enter the full path of the location on your machine where your backup file (.agssite) is located. The site must have access to this directory.
  4. Click Import.
  5. The operation takes some time to complete. Keep the page open until the operation completes and indicates so. If you navigate away from the page, you won't receive a notification that the import was successful.