Invalid WorkflowInstanceID parameter in URL

When an end user clicked on an View the workflow history from an older email send as a part of a SharePoint Workflow approval, the user got the below error message.

This error might be encountered for the item(s) whose workflow completed and initiated long back.

This is because of AutoCleanupDaysproperty of Workflow. By default, the value is set to 60 days. After 60 days, if the workflow status is complete and initiated 60 days before, this workflow instance will be deleted. 

To delete all these old workflow instances, SharePoint runs a timer job named "Workflow Auto cleanup".

This deletion after 60 days is a default setting and is setup like that to avoid site performance issues. 

To retain these workflow instances

Browse to Central Administration -> Operations -> Timer Job definitions -> Disable Workflow Auto Cleanup task.

P.S.: Please note that this is not a Microsoft best practice to disable this timer job.

Documents are not visible with Read permissions on SharePoint Document Library

Issue Description

End user is not able to see a file in the document library. Users with Read Only permissions do not see the file. If permissions on this library is changed to anything else (Edit, Contribute, etc.) they can see the file. The permissions on the document are inherited from the library.

Resolution

In the VersioningSettings of the library, "Who should see draft items in this document library" was set to "Only users who can edit items�.

Change this to "Any user who can read items". 

Database is in compatibility range and upgrade is recommended

Problem Description

I had moved the SharePoint content databases from one farm to another recently. After the migration was completed I browsed to Central Administration -> Upgrade and Migration -> Review Database Status. The migrated SharePoint content database had the Status as "Database is in compatibility range and upgrade is recommended".

This indicated I had to manually upgrade these content databases.

 

Cause

This was because I moved the content databases from SharePoint 2010 SP1 to SharePoint 2010 SP2.

Resolution

Test-SPContentDatabase -Name ContentDBName-WebApplication http://webapp/ > c:\file1.txt (to confirm that there are no Upgrade Blocking categories that equal true)

Upgrade-SPContentDatabase ContentDBName (Depending on the size of the database, this process could take time.)

 

 

On seeing 100 % completion of database upgrade, browse to Central Administration -> Upgrade and Migration -> Review Database Status. Confirm that the content database now has Status as "No action required"

 

 

Running SharePoint Configuration Wizard

Whenever a change is made on a SharePoint farm (like adding or removing a server from the farm), it is advisable to run the configuration wizard to sync the servers in the farm. Or when you do a Cumulative Update. Below is how you do it.

1. Login to the servers in the farm as setup account.

2. Start -> SharePoint 2010 Products Configuration wizard

3. Click Next(on the Welcome page of configuration wizard)

 

4. Choose Yes(for restarting the service)

5 .Select Do not disconnect from this server farm (on the Modify server farm Settings page)

 6. Choose the default option (on the Modify SharePoint Central Administration Web Application Settings page)

7. On the Summary page, verify the displayed information and select Next

8. The configuration wizard runs and click Finish once the wizard completes

 

 

9. If the farm configuration wizard opens, cancel it.

 

 

Removing a Server from the SharePoint farm

1. Login to the servers in the farm as setup account.

2. Start -> SharePoint 2010 Products Configuration wizard

3. Click Next(on the Welcome page of configuration wizard)
 

4. Choose Yes(for restarting the service)

 

5 .Select Disconnect from this server farm (on the Modify server farm Settings page)

 

6. Choose Yes and proceed to remove the server from the SharePoint farm

 

7. The configuration wizard runs and click Finish once the wizard completes

 

Error while restoring a site collection in the same content database

I wanted 2 sites to be the exact same. So I was performing a backup of a site collection http://sharepoint.fahad.com/sites/siteAand was trying to restore it as http://sharepoint.fahad.com/sites/siteB.

Backup-SPSite -Identity "http://sharepoint.fahad.com/sites/siteA" -Path "C:\ Backups\siteA.bak� -force -verbose

Restore-SPSite -Identity "http://sharepoint.fahad.com/sites/siteB" �Path "C:\ Backups\siteA.bak" -force -verbose

The restore operation failed and gave me the below error:

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.

Reason

Both these site collections were in the same web application and it had only one content database. Microsoft uses the source site collection GUIDs during the installation. Though you delete the site collection from the web application, it leaves the GUIDs behind, and if you try to restore same site collection (same GUID) into same web application and content database, it would throw an error.

To resolve the issue, new content database needs to be created in the web application to restore the site collection.

Resolution

1.Create a new content database WSS_Content_siteB from Central Administration for your web application where your site collection is going to reside. Reference

2.Restore-SPSite -Identity "http://sharepoint.fahad.com/sites/siteB" -Path "C:\ Backups\siteA.bak" -force -verbose -ContentDatabase WSS_Content_siteB