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Q173387: PRB: Restoring an Archive of an Entire Database

Article: Q173387
Product(s): Microsoft SourceSafe
Version(s): WINDOWS:5.0,6.0
Operating System(s): 
Keyword(s): _IK kbSSafe
Last Modified: 01-MAY-2001

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The information in this article applies to:

- Microsoft Visual SourceSafe for Windows, versions 5.0, 6.0 
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SYMPTOMS
========

After you have archived an entire database with the SSARC utility and you try to
restore it with SSRESTOR, you receive the following error:

  The path $/ is already in use. Cannot restore path from archive file.

CAUSE
=====

The syntax you used was:

  SSRESTOR [-s path to srcsafe.ini] <archive file> $/ 

SSRESTOR attempts to create a new project in the target database, with the name
of the project given in the SSRESTOR command. Because the root project ($/) will
always exist in the target database, the restored root project cannot be
created.

RESOLUTION
==========

To resolve this error, either:

1. Repeat the SSRESTOR command multiple times, once for each top-level project.

-or-

2. In the original project, share the entire project tree to a new project, and
  then archive and restore this project.

STATUS
======

This behavior is by design. According to the User's Guide (Appendix B page 219
for Visual SourceSafe 5.0), "if restoring attempts to create a duplicate file or
project name, the restore fails."

MORE INFORMATION
================

If, for example you have three top-level projects:

  $/first
  $/second
  $/third

Resolution 1:

Run SSRESTOR three times, each time specifying the name of one of the projects as
the last argument (for example, SSRESTOR archive.ssa $/first). There are two
disadvantages to this method.

If there is a large number of top-level projects, this process will be tedious,
and there is no easy way to automate it. Any links (shared or branched files)
between top-level projects and will be lost. For example, if:

  $/first/sub_one/myfile.txt

is shared to:

  $/third/sub_one/myfile.txt

then the files will not be shared in the restored projects.

Links that are within the same project tree are maintained, such as:

  $/first/sub_one/myfile.txt
  $/first/sub_five/myfile.txt

Resolution 2:

There are three steps in this resolution:

1. In the original database, create a new top-level project, (for example,
  $/root), then recursively share all top-level projects into $/root.

2. Archive $/root.

3. Restore $/root into the target database.

In this case all links at all levels are restored, the disadvantages of this
method are:

- With a large number of top-level projects, sharing them into $/root may be
  time consuming.

- After restoring, you may want to move all the top-level projects back to
  being subprojects of $/, rather than subprojects of $/root. Again, this may
  be time consuming with a large number of projects.

Additional query words:

======================================================================
Keywords          : _IK kbSSafe 
Technology        : kbSSafeSearch kbAudDeveloper kbSSafe600 kbSSafe500
Version           : WINDOWS:5.0,6.0
Hardware          : x86
Issue type        : kbprb

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