A Windows SharePoint Service 3.0 site cannot be restored when the host header length for the site is greater than 56 characters

You can create a Windows SharePoint Service 3.0 site that has a host header that is longer than 56 characters. However, when you back up the site, it cannot be restored.

Note The header can be 56 characters or longer for the https:// protocol, and 57 characters or longer for the http:// protocol.

Windows SharePoint Services 3.0 supports only 64 characters for the host headers. This excludes the protocol name http:// or https://. However, the Internet standard for Fully Qualified Domain Names (FQDN) supports 255 characters.

To resolve this issue, install the Hotfix package that is described in the following Microsoft Knowledge Base article:

Limitation

After you install the hotfix package that is described in Microsoft Knowledge Base article 961750, Windows SharePoint Service 3.0 supports up to 136-character host headers, but not 255-character host headers.

Microsoft has confirmed that this is a problem in the Microsoft products that are listed in the "Applies to" section.