Compare SharePoint Farms
This article explains how you can use the Compare Wizard to compare different farms or snapshots of an existing farm.
This section explains how you can use the Compare Wizard to compare different farms or snapshots of an existing farm. Navigate to the Backstage Actions Screen and click the Compare Wizard button.
Compare farm with a previous snapshot
Select Farms as the comparison type and then the Compare farm with a previous farm snapshot subtype. Click Next to continue.
Under the Farm Selection, you can select different, previously taken snapshots and compare them. By default, from version 6.1 onwards, farm snapshots are stored in the SPDocKit database. If you have more than one farm connected to the same SPDocKit database, you will see snapshots from all these farms.
If you are not using the SPDocKit database, snapshots will be stored in the Snapshots folder defined in Service Settings. The default Snapshots folder is C:\ProgramData\SPDocKit\Snapshots.
The Farm selection step will list all available snapshots from the SPDocKit database or Snapshots folder. If the desired snapshot is not located in either of these locations, click Import to select a snapshot file from another location. Importing snapshots is a one-time action, so the next time you run the Compare Wizard you will have to repeat the process. If you would like to import these snapshots permanently, click Import in the Snapshots tab.
Click Next to see the farm compare results.
The Results windows shows the differences between two farm snapshots. Object changes are marked by a different colors. The upper part of the window shows all farm settings in a hierarchical structure, while the bottom half displays the differences between currently selected objects in the upper half.
Farm compare uses the Compare template when displaying changes between snapshots. This template is also used for the Differences report alert that is sent automatically as part of SPDocKit's Subscriptions and Alerts job. If you would like to change which reports are compared, use the little wheel button on the left-hand side. Deselected reports will not be used in future comparisons – both manual and automatic – performed by the SPDocKit Service.
Compare two different SharePoint farms
Select Farms as the comparison type and then the Compare two different farms subtype. Click Next to continue.
Under Farm Selection, select the snapshots you wish to compare and click Next. From version 6.1 onwards, farm snapshots are, by default, stored in the SPDocKit database. If you have more than one farm connected to the same SPDocKit database, you will see snapshots from all these farms.
If you are not using the SPDocKit database, snapshots will be stored in the Snapshots folder defined in Service Settings . The default Snapshots folder is C:\ProgramData\SPDocKit\Snapshots.
The Farm selection step will list all available snapshots from the SPDocKit database or Snapshots folder. If the desired snapshot is not located in either of these locations, click Import to select a snapshot file from another location. This is helpful in situations when you wish to compare snapshots of two farms and the snapshots are not stored in the same SPDocKit database, but on a disk location on SharePoint's servers. Copy the farm snapshots from the non-local farm to any disk location on the local SharePoint server and click Import to use them for farm comparison.
Importing snapshots is a one-time action, so the next time you run the Compare Wizard you will have to repeat the process. If you would like to import these snapshots permanently, click Import in the Snapshots tab.
The next couple of steps allow you to map the properties of the two farms and perform a detailed comparisons. Grids will be displayed to allow you to map farm servers, accounts, service applications, and more, from one farm to the other. Use the drop down menu to define which farm properties should be paired. Once you have paired them, SPDocKit will remember the mappings you specified and reuse them for each subsequent comparison between these two farms.
1:N mappings between properties is enabled. This can be very useful when comparing test with production environments. For example, you can map servers on a test farm, which contains only a few servers, multiple times to servers from a much larger production farm.
The wizard will guide you through the following mappings:
URLs, Host Headers, Addresses
Database Names
Business Data Connectivity Namespace
Farm Servers
SQL Servers
Accounts (service accounts, managed accounts, user policy accounts, search accounts, application pool accounts, object cache accounts, farm administrators, service application administrator accounts)
Service Applications
Service Applications Proxies
Host Names
Click Next to see the compare results.
The Results windows shows the differences between two farm snapshots. Object changes are marked by a different colors. The upper part of the window shows all farm settings in a hierarchical structure, while the bottom half displays the differences between currently selected objects in the upper half.
Farm compare uses the Compare template when displaying changes between snapshots. If you would like to change which reports are compared, use the little wheel button on the left-hand side. Deselected reports will not be used in future comparisons.
Compare with out of the box farm
Select Farms for the comparison type and then the Compare with out of the box farm subtype to continue the process.
Under Farm Selection, select the snapshot you wish to compare with default farm settings and click Next.
The compare results will appear.
Farm compare uses the Compare template when displaying changes between snapshots. If you would like to change which reports are compared, use the little wheel button on the left-hand side. Deselected reports will not be used in future comparisons.
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