Error when you use the SharePoint Migration Tool to try to restore a Windows SharePoint Services Web site: "Error getting manifest for http://localhost (fatal)"

When you use the Microsoft SharePoint Migration Tool (Smigrate.exe) to try to restore a Microsoft Windows SharePoint Services 2.0 Web site, the restore operation fails. You also receive the following error message: This issue occurs after you use Smigrate.exe to back up a Windows SharePoint Services 2.0 Web site.

Additionally, when you rename the Backup.fwp file to Backup.cab to view the contents of the backup file, the Manifest.xml file is 0 bytes.

This problem typically occurs on Windows SharePoint Server 2.0 Web sites if one of the following conditions is true:

• The Web site contains many lists.
• The Web site contains lists that have large items.
• The Web site backup contains many files.

Note Only file metadata is stored in the Manifest.xml file. The files are exported separately.

During the backup process, two contiguous memory blocks are required to create the Manifest.xml file. The memory blocks must be large enough to accommodate the manifest data. If one sufficient memory block is available to create the Manifest.xml file but a second sufficient block is unavailable, the copy operation fails silently. Then, a Manifest.xml file that is 0 bytes is created.

To work around this problem, use one or both of the following methods:

Method 1: Start a new instance of W3WP.exe

When any process is running, the Windows Operating System allocates and deallocates memory for various operations. Therefore, the process address space is broken into chunks of various sizes. This is known as fragmentation. This behavior results in a size limitation for the largest contiguous block of memory that can be allocated.

To reduce the fragmentation that is present when you try to create a large manifest, reset Microsoft Internet Information Services (IIS). Do this to create a new instance of the W3WP.exe process that is hosting Windows SharePoint Services. To do this follow these steps:

Note When you follow these steps, make sure that users do not access the Windows SharePoint Services Web site.

1. Use an account that has administrative permissions to log on to the Windows SharePoint Services 2.0 server.
2. Click Start, point to Administrative Tools, and then click Internet Information Services (IIS) Manager.
3. In the Internet Information Services (IIS) Manager Microsoft Management Console (MMC) snap-in, right-click ComputerName(local Computer), click All Tasks, and then click Restart IIS.
   
   Note This creates a new instance of W3WP.exe.
4. Use Smigrate.exe to back up the Windows SharePoint Services Web site.
   
   Note When the backup is completed successfully, users can access the Windows SharePoint Services Web site.

Method 2: Reduce the data that is stored in the Manfest.xml file

To reduce the data that is stored in the Manifest.xml file, use the Export to spreadsheet feature in Windows SharePoint Services to export some of the larger lists. Then, remove the lists from the original location before you perform the Smigrate.exe backup. To do this, follow these steps:

1. Click Start, point to Administrative Tools, and then click SharePoint Central Administration.
2. For each site that will be included in the Manifest.xml, click the Documents and Lists link in the top navigation bar on the site.
3. Use the Documents and Lists page to review each list that resides on the site. Use this page to determine which lists contain large items or many list items.
4. For each list that you want to export, click the list’s title, click Action, and then click Export to spreadsheet.
   
   Note This will export the list data for the lists that you identified in step 3.
5. After you have successfully exported the lists, click the arrow next to the list, and then click Delete Item.
6. Use Smigrate.exe to back up the Windows SharePoint Services Web site. If the backup is not successful, repeat these steps until you can create a valid Manifest.xml file in the backup file.