SharePoint Restore-SPSite alternative

 

Today I wanted to move the site collection to a new site collection with new URL in same web application.  I got error the following errors

 

Restore-SPSite : The operation that you are attempting to perform cannot be completed successfully.  No content databases in the web application were available to store

your site collection.  The existing content databases may have reached the maximum number of site collections, or be set to read-only, or be offline, or may already

contain a copy of this site collection.  Create another content database for the Web application and then try the operation again.

At line:3 char:1

+ Restore-SPSite http://careerscentral.cag.local/departments/test1/ -Path E:\Backu ...

+ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

    + CategoryInfo          : InvalidData: (Microsoft.Share...dletRestoreSite:SPCmdletRestoreSite) [Restore-SPSite], InvalidOperationException

    + FullyQualifiedErrorId : Microsoft.SharePoint.PowerShell.SPCmdletRestoreSite

 

 

Reason: The old site collection is a publishing site collection and GUID is in conflict in the Content Database.

Workaround : used the following stsadm command instead of powershell it worked !!!


Other thing is you need to check if you have corrupt or orphan features, Use feature removal tool to clean the site collection prior to copying.

 

Following commands fixed my problem.

 

 Export publishing site first:

 stsadm -o export -url  http://oldsite  -filename   oldsite.cmp

 

 Create a new site at the target location

 

 Now import the site over the top of the blank site:

 stsadm -o import -url http://newsite -filename oldsite.cmp





 

..\

3 days later I resolved my issue, it was related to Corrupt feature. In sharepoint 2013 we now have a new PowerShell commond to directly copy from site collection to other site collection as follows.

Copy-SPSite -Identity http://oldsite -Destination database db -TargetUrl -http://newsite

This should fix all kinds of problem.
And moves the site collection from old site to new site in same web application.