Restoring or exporting data

This article includes procedures for restoring and exporting data. It also offers search methods for recovering data. The procedures are performed the same for all applications except where indicated. For a description of how SaaS Protection restores data, see "Restore process" in this article: How Datto SaaS Protection works.

A separate backup is run for each service. Each backup is a snapshot of all of the user, site, or team data at the time the backup was created. You can restore or export data using a snapshot or perform these tasks for individual data items. See the topics below for details.

NOTE  SaaS Protection is not designed as a full-scale disaster recovery (DR) solution, though it can technically support recovery needs in the event of data loss or tenant-wide issues.

The platform is optimized for granular, item-level restore and export operations (e.g., individual emails, files, folders, or user accounts). While it is possible to perform large-scale recovery— such as restoring all user mailboxes or SharePoint sites— this process must be done manually on a per-user or per-site basis, which may not meet the recovery time objectives typically required in DR scenarios.

A snapshot includes all of the user, site, or team data at the time the backup was created.

To restore or export data using a snapshot:

  1. On the SaaS Protection Status page, click the name of the organization for whom data is to be restored.

IMPORTANT  When performing a restore to a different location, ensure that you do not select any services in the list that are archived. SaaS Protection cannot restore to these locations.

  1. Access an application recovery page by performing one of the following:
    • Select Recovery > name of application.
    • In the Backups section, click the application name or .
  2. For the applicable application:
    • OneDrive or Exchange: On the Users tab, click the name of the user for whom data is to be restored.
    • SharePoint: On the Sites tab, click the name of the site for which data is to be restored.
    • Teams: On the Teams tab, click the name of the team for which data is to be restored.

NOTE  You can search for a user, site, or team by entering characters in the Search box and pressing Enter.

  1. In the backup information and tools section, click the Snapshot box.
  2. The Snapshot Selector opens with the current date selected on the calendar and lists the snapshots that have been created for the day so far.

NOTE  If needed, you can run an on-demand backup to recover the very latest data. For details, see Creating a manual backup to restore from.

  1. If necessary, navigate in the calendar to the correct month and select the applicable date. The snapshots for the selected date are listed.

NOTE  The number of snapshots available on a particular date is based on the number of days that have passed in the retention schedule. See the article Understanding the pricing model.

  1. Click the desired snapshot. The snapshot box updates with the date and time of the selected snapshot.
  2. To restore the data, go to step 9. To export the restored data, go to step 10.
  3. To restore the data: 
    1. Click Restore.
    2. In the Restore dialog box, Snapshot is selected by default. In the Restore To list, the original location from which the data was backed up is automatically selected. If this is the desired restore location, go to step 9d.
    3. To restore the data to a different location:
      1. In the Restore To list, enter a minimum of the first three characters from one of the words in the destination location. Suggestions will appear in the list. In this example, one suggestion is listed that includes the letters reg.
      2. Select a suggestion from the list. When performing a restore to a different location, ensure that you do not select any services in the list that are archived. SaaS Protection cannot restore to these locations.
    4. Click Restore.
    5. The restore in progress icon appears.

NOTE  When restoring a OneDrive file, the option to restore permissions associated with the file is selected automatically. If you don't want permissions restored, clear the Restore Permissions check box. For more information, see the Restoring OneDrive permissions section.

  1. To export the restored data:
    1. Click Export.
    2. In the Export dialog box, Snapshot is selected by default. Click Export.
    3. To download the exported file, click the Exports tab.
    4. The file you just exported is listed first. Click Download.
    5. Navigate to the desired location and save the file.

NOTES   

●   Only emails and contacts are supported in PST export. Calendar Events and Tasks are not supported. If a snapshot includes any unsupported items, perform a restore instead, as an export would likely fail.

●    To access downloaded files, see the article Downloaded file formats.

  1. To restore specific items within a selected snapshot:
    1. Navigate the directory structure until you reach the directory or file you want to restore.
    2. Select the check box for the directory or file.
    3. To restore data, go to step 9. To export data, go to step 10.

NOTE  You can select multiple folders and files to restore. However, each must be selected at the same level in the directory structure.

To restore or export individual data items:

  1. On the SaaS Protection Status page, click the name of the organization for whom data is to be restored.
  2. Access an application recovery page by performing one of the following:
    • Select Recovery > name of application.
    • In the Backups section, click the application name or .

  3. For the applicable application:
    • OneDrive or Exchange: On the Users tab, click the name of the user for whom data is to be restored.
    • SharePoint: On the Sites tab, click the name of the site for which data is to be restored.
    • Teams: On the Teams tab, click the name of the team for which data is to be restored.
  4. If restoring data from Exchange or Teams, if desired, select a data set. For data set information, see the article Examining recovery information
  5. Navigate the directory structure until you reach the directory or file you want to restore or export.
  6. Select the check box for the directory or file.

NOTES   

●   You can select multiple folders and files to restore. However, each must be selected at the same level in the directory structure.

●   Restores of 125 or more individually selected items will not be able to complete. It is recommended that you choose the entire folder or snapshot to restore instead.

●   To restore a SharePoint list, a list with the same name must already exist in the destination SharePoint instance.

  1. To restore the data, go to step 8. To export the data, go to step 9.
  2. To restore the data:
    1. Click Restore.
    2. In the Restore box, Selected Items is selected automatically with the number of items to be restored shown in parenthesis. In the Restore To list, the original location from which the data was backed up is automatically selected. If this is the desired restore location, go to step 7d.
    3. To restore the data to a different location:
      1. In the Restore To list, enter a minimum of the first three characters from one of the words in the destination location. Suggestions will appear in the list. In this example, one suggestion is listed that includes the letters reg.
      2. Select a suggestion from the list. When performing a restore to a different location, ensure that you do not select any services in the list that are archived. SaaS Protection cannot restore to these locations.
    4. Click Restore.
    5. The restore in progress icon appears.

NOTE  When restoring a OneDrive file, the option to restore permissions associated with the file is selected automatically. If you don't want permissions restored, clear the Restore Permissions check box. For more information, see the Restoring OneDrive permissions section.

  1. To export the restored data:
    1. Click Export.
    2. In the Export dialog box, click Export.
    3. To download the exported file, click the Exports tab.
    4. The file you just exported is listed first. Click Download.
    5. Navigate to the desired location and save the file.

NOTE  To access downloaded files, see the article Downloaded file formats.

When restoring a OneDrive file, the option to restore permissions associated with the file is selected automatically. If you don't want permissions restored, clear the Restore Permissions check box.

Important points regarding restoring OneDrive permissions:

  • A file restored with sharing permissions restores to the account of every user sharing the document. This affects files from both single and full account restores.

  • If a user has only been given permission via Sharing Links in OneDrive, the permissions will not be restored. The user will need to be provided with the new link after the restore has been completed.

  • If you restore a file without sharing permissions, Datto SaaS Protection will delete all permissions and the user receiving the restore will have ownership of the document.

You can create a manual backup for a user, site, or team. The backup snapshot includes all of the user, site, or team data at the time the backup was manually created.

To create a manual backup:

  1. On the SaaS Protection Status page, click the name of the organization for whom data is to be restored.
  2. Access an application recovery page by performing one of the following:
    • Select Recovery > name of application.
    • In the Backups section, click the application name.
  3. For the applicable application:
    • OneDrive or Exchange: On the Users tab, click the name of the user for whom data is to be backed up.
    • SharePoint: On the Sites tab, click the name of the site for which data is to be backed up.
    • Teams: On the Teams tab, click the name of the team for which data is to be backed up.
  4. Click Backup Now.


Backups in Progress is displayed.


When the backup has completed, you can access it in the Snapshot box.

There are two search methods you can use to restore data. You can search for content across all of the users, sites, or teams for a specific organization. Or, you can search for content in one organization user account.

  • When performing an email search, a match is sought between the search criteria you enter and the sender's email address or the email's subject line.

  • When searching for a document, a match is sought with the title of the document.

  • For a calendar event, the search looks for a matching event title.

  • If you are searching contacts, the search seeks a matching contact name or contact email address.

Search criteria must meet the following requirements:

  • Have at least 3 characters.

  • Cannot include symbols such as !, @, +.

  • Underscores must be preceded by a back slash (e.g. "\_" )

To search all accounts of a specific organization:

  1. On the SaaS Protection Status page, click the name of the organization for whom data is to be restored.
  2. Access an application recovery page by performing one of the following:
    • Select Recovery > name of application.
    • In the Backups section, click the application name.
  3. Click the Search tab.
  4. By default, searches are performed on the most recent snapshot data. However, you can perform a search on the snapshot that is closest to the date and time you enter.
    To do so:
    1. Click the Date box.
    2. Navigate the calendar and select the desired date.
    3. If desired, select the time.
    4. Click Select.
  5. If you are performing a search in the Exchange or Teams application, if desired, select a data set.
  6. In the Term box, enter a minimum of the first three characters from one of the words in your search term. In this Exchange example, upd has been entered as the search term.
  7. Click Search.
  8. The emails across all of the organization's users that include upd in the Name, From, or Subject fields are listed. In this example, upd is included in the word update, found in the Subject field. Notice the search term returned emails from numerous Exchange users.
  9. If you want to perform a search on one user, in the Users box, enter a minimum of the first three characters from one of the words in the user's name or email address. Suggestions appear in the list. In this example, dat is entered in the Users box, resulting in just one user with dat as part of his or her user name or email address.

    Selecting this user and clicking Search lists the emails that include upd in the Name, From, or Subject fields for this user only.

NOTE  To perform a search on one SharePoint site, Team, or OneDrive user, in step 9, complete the Sites, Teams, or Users box, respectively.

  1. If the results contain a directory structure, you can navigate the structure to select the directory or file you want to restore or export.

NOTE  You can select multiple folders and files to recover. However, each must be selected at the same level in the directory structure.

  1. To restore the data:
    1. Click Restore.
    2. In the Restore dialog box, if you selected specific items to restore, Selected Items is selected automatically with the number of items to be restored shown in parenthesis. If you did not select specific items to restore, Search Results is selected.
    3. In the Restore To list, enter a minimum of the first three characters from one of the words in the destination location. In the list that appears, select a restore destination.
    4. Click Restore.
    5. The restore in progress icon appears.

NOTE  When restoring a OneDrive file, the option to restore permissions associated with the file is selected automatically. If you don't want permissions restored, clear the Restore Permissions check box.

  1. To export the restored data:
    1. Click Export.
    2. In the Export dialog box, click Export.
    3. To download the exported file, click the Exports tab.
    4. The file you just exported is listed first. Click Download.
    5. Navigate to the desired location and save the file.

NOTE  To access downloaded files, see the article Downloaded file formats.

To search one account only:

  1. On the SaaS Protection Status page, click the name of the organization for whom data is to be restored.
  2. Access an application recovery page by performing one of the following:
    • Select Recovery > name of application.
    • In the Backups section, click the application name.
  3. For the applicable application:
    • OneDrive or Exchange: On the Users tab, click the name of the user for whom data is to be restored.
    • SharePoint: On the Sites tab, click the name of the site for which data is to be restored.
    • Teams: On the Teams tab, click the name of the team for which data is to be restored.
  4. By default, searches are performed on data from the latest snapshot. To perform a search using data from an earlier snapshot:
    1. Click the Snapshot box.
    2. The Snapshot Selector opens with the current date selected on the calendar and lists the snapshots that have been created so far for the current day.
    3. If necessary, navigate in the calendar to the correct month and select the applicable date. The snapshots for the selected date are listed.
    4. Click the desired snapshot. The Snapshot box updates with the date and time of the selected snapshot.

NOTE  The number of snapshots available on a particular date is based on the number of days that have passed in the retention schedule. See the article, Understanding the pricing model.

  1. If performing a search in the Exchange or Teams application, if desired, select a data set.
  2. Click Search Account.
  3. In the Term box, enter a minimum of the first three characters from one of the words in your search term.
  4. Click Search.
  5. If the results contain a directory structure, you can navigate the structure to select the directory or file you want to restore or export.

NOTE  You can select multiple folders and files to recover. However, each must be selected at the same level in the directory structure.

  1. To restore the data:
    1. Click Restore.
    2. In the Restore dialog box, if you selected specific items to restore, Selected Items is selected automatically with the number of items to be restored shown in parenthesis. If you did not select specific items to restore, Search Results is selected.
    3. In the Restore To list, enter a minimum of the first three characters from one of the words in the destination location. In the list that appears, select a restore destination.
    4. Click Restore.
    5. The restore in progress icon appears.

NOTE  When restoring a OneDrive file, the option to restore permissions associated with the file is selected automatically. If you don't want permissions restored, clear the Restore permissions check box.

  1. To export the restored data:
    1. Click Export.
    2. In the Export dialog box, click Export.
    3. To download the exported file, click the Exports tab.
    4. The file you just exported is listed first. Click Download.
    5. Navigate to the desired location and save the file.

NOTE  To access downloaded files, see the article Downloaded file formats.