Restoring a Qlik Sense site

This section describes how to restore a Qlik Sense site in a default Qlik Sense installation where a PostgreSQL database is used as the repository database.

In a single node site, the single node is referred to as the central node. In a multi-node Qlik Sense site, the central node is the master record that contains all data about the site. All other nodes in the multi-node site contain either a full copy or a limited subset of the data, which is maintained by the synchronization process as described in Synchronization. This means that the central node is the only node that needs to be backed up in order to keep the Qlik Sense data and configuration safe. The rest of the nodes can be restored by simply re-adding them as new nodes, since they will have their data restored by the synchronization process.

Non-central nodes maintain local log files that may be worth backing up in order to identify and investigate issues. It may also be worth backing up any general operating system data that may be required.

For additional information on multi-node sites, see Multi-node site. For additional information on single node sites, see Single node site.

Items to restore

The following items need to be considered when restoring a Qlik Sense site:

• Qlik Sense software

• Qlik Sense repository database: The database contains all configuration data for the Qlik Sense site.
• Certificates for the Qlik Sense services: The certificates are used to encrypt the traffic between the Qlik Sense services and the users. Make sure to backup the certificates in order not to lose any encrypted data (for example, passwords for data connections).
• Qlik Sense log data
• Qlik Sense application data: The data models in the Qlik Sense apps.
• Any content that supports the Qlik Sense apps (for example, QVDs)

Restore procedure

Proceed as follows to restore a Qlik Sense site:

1. Install the Qlik Sense software on the machine targeted for the restore.

   Tip noteThe machine targeted for the restore can have a different machine name than the machine from which the node was backed up.
   Warning noteMake sure to deselect Start the Qlik Sense services when the installation has completed during the installation setup. If the services are started, new certificates and a new repository database are created and they must be removed before proceeding with the restore procedure.
2. Restore the certificates used to secure the Qlik Sense services.
3. Start the Qlik Sense Repository Database (QRD).
4. Restore the repository database:
   1. Place the backed up repository database on the machine targeted for the restore.

   2. Open the Command Prompt in Microsoft Windows.

   3. Run the following commands to restore the repository database (adjust the paths as needed):

      1. cd "C:\Program Files\Qlik\Sense\Repository\PostgreSQL\<database version>\bin"

      2. createdb -h localhost -p 4432 -U postgres -T template0 QSR

         If the command fails because a database already exists, run the following command and then repeat the createdb command:

         dropdb -h localhost -p 4432 -U postgres QSR

      3. pg_restore.exe -h localhost -p 4432 -U postgres -d QSR "c:\QSR_backup.tar"

5. Restore the binary files for the Qlik Sense apps to the %ProgramData%\Qlik\Sense\Apps folder.
6. Restore the Qlik Sense log files to the %ProgramData%\Qlik\Sense\Log folder.
7. Restore any supporting content to its original location as required.
8. Start the Qlik Sense services. If the services are started manually, start them in the following order:
Information noteThe user that installs and runs the Qlik Sense services must be local administrator on the machine.
1. Qlik Sense Repository Service (QRS)
2. Qlik Sense Proxy Service (QPS), Qlik Sense Engine Service (QES), and Qlik Sense Scheduler Service (QSS) in no specific order

The order is important because the QRS is dependent on the QRD and the rest of the services are dependent on the QRS.