Preparing the Meridian server and vault configuration

Before running the Vault Consistency Wizard (VCW), you must prepare the Meridian application server and the vault for maximum performance and stability. Then you need to perform some database-specific preparation steps. These steps take into consideration the database differences that exist between Hypertrieve, SQL Server, and Oracle that can impact the VCW.

Tip    The VCW does need not to be executed only on the server computer where the vault resides. A backup of the vault can be restored onto an offline computer, possibly with better hardware, and the VCW run there while the source vault remains available for read-only access. The vault can be made read-only by modifying the security role assignments to prevent any changes. Document authors and editors may want to check out active documents to their Local Workspace before the vault is made read-only. They can then modify the Local Workspace copies offline. After the VCW has finished and the resulting vault has been verified that no inconsistencies exist, it can be restored back onto the original server and production resumed.

Note    When running the VCW, use a server with physical memory installed that exceeds the size of the database by at least 600 MB. Running the VCW on a server with less memory will significantly increase the time it takes to run the VCW.

Complete the following steps before running the Vault Consistency Wizard.

Warning    Run these steps in the order they are listed in this document!

1. Run a Prepare for Backup operation on the vault. Save this backup to a secure location before proceeding.

2. Prevent access to the vault from client computers and ensure that nobody will access the vault during the VCW process because opening the vault will cause the process to fail.

   Tip    The easiest way to do this is to temporarily disconnect the server from the network.

3. Configure the Meridian application server for optimum single-user performance as described in Configuring the EDM Server service. This will allow the server to use the maximum amount of system resources for the VCW.
4. Disable all vaults that will not be repaired, as described in Disabling a vault to free memory for use by the VCW.
5. Disable all scheduled Prepare for Backup tasks. Disabling all scheduled tasks is optional but recommended. The steps to disable a scheduled task depend on the version of Windows used. Refer to the documentation for your version of Windows for details.
6. Disable all virus scanner software. The steps to disable virus scanner software depend on the software used. Refer to the documentation for your virus scanner software for details.
7. If SQL Server (Meridian only) is the vault’s database engine, confirm that the following registry value (DWORD) is set to the default of 8:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Cyco\AutoManager Meridian\CurrentVersion\Installed DataStores\<VaultName>\CompoundItemService\LoggingLimit

Notes

• This registry value configures the maximum amount of disk space to use for write-ahead log files by the SQL Server driver in megabytes.
• After running the VCW on a SQL Server vault, the database file names will have changed slightly. However, the SQL Server database name and the Meridian vault name should be the same as before running the wizard.

8. If SQL Server (Meridian only) is the vault’s database engine and SQL Server resides on the same server as Meridian, the following setting should be considered.
   
   By default, SQL Server uses as much of the available server memory as possible. This can cause problems with the VCW, so SQL Server memory use should be restricted while the VCW is run.

1. In SQL Server Enterprise Manager, locate the SQL Server serving the vault to be repaired.
2. Right-click the instance and choose Properties. The SQL Server Properties dialog box appears.
3. Click the Memory tab and enable Use a fixed memory size.
4. Move to the slider to select 400 MB and click OK.

9. Restart the AutoManager EDM Server service.