Performing database backups while users are online?

  • Greetings!

    Just a quick question this time.

    The majority of our users finish work at 5.30 so I suggested to my superior that we should start the daily differential backup job at 6PM.

    She said:

    Not a good idea, often people are still working at this time. Unless you make it a weekend?

    Surely this isn't an issue as we're using SQL Server 2005 and SQL Server 2008 R2?

    Thanks.

    ---------------------------------------------------------

    It takes a minimal capacity for rational thought to see that the corporate 'free press' is a structurally irrational and biased, and extremely violent, system of elite propaganda.
    David Edwards - Media lens[/url]

    Society has varying and conflicting interests; what is called objectivity is the disguise of one of these interests - that of neutrality. But neutrality is a fiction in an unneutral world. There are victims, there are executioners, and there are bystanders... and the 'objectivity' of the bystander calls for inaction while other heads fall.
    Howard Zinn

  • SQL Server backups of all types are an online operation. Having people working while they occur is no problem ta all. Are you taking log backups throught the day BTW if this is an OLTP system?

    I'm a DBA.
    I'm not paid to solve problems. I'm paid to prevent them.

  • andrew gothard (8/30/2012)


    SQL Server backups of all types are an online operation. Having people working while they occur is no problem ta all. Are you taking log backups throught the day BTW if this is an OLTP system?

    Hi Andrew,

    Thanks for your reply.

    Please see my previous post from yesterday http://www.sqlservercentral.com/Forums/Topic1351517-146-1.aspx

    Sorry I know it's a long read but I am not dealing with an OLTP system.

    There are 5 servers (1 SQL Server instance per server) used by the Data Services team. All the databases in these SQL Servers are staging databases used to load data and perform various data cleansing routines and merging etc..

    The current setup is like this:

    1) fortnightly FULL backups - triggered manually.

    2) Scheduled daily differentials at midnight.

    So I suggested we schedule to run the fortnightly backups to start at 6PM. I don't see any problem with my suggestion though.

    What do you think?

    ---------------------------------------------------------

    It takes a minimal capacity for rational thought to see that the corporate 'free press' is a structurally irrational and biased, and extremely violent, system of elite propaganda.
    David Edwards - Media lens[/url]

    Society has varying and conflicting interests; what is called objectivity is the disguise of one of these interests - that of neutrality. But neutrality is a fiction in an unneutral world. There are victims, there are executioners, and there are bystanders... and the 'objectivity' of the bystander calls for inaction while other heads fall.
    Howard Zinn

  • hope i remember u have space crunch issue for backup.

    differential backup is to prevent data loss from the previous full bakup idealy good if it has been done in between the transaction time.

    backup will not delay any work happening at that time.

    Regards
    Durai Nagarajan

  • durai nagarajan (8/30/2012)


    hope i remember u have space crunch issue for backup.

    differential backup is to prevent data loss from the previous full bakup idealy good if it has been done in between the transaction time.

    backup will not delay any work happening at that time.

    Thanks for your input Duria! It seems like it's just you who responds to my questions!

    No, we don't have space issues!

    What I want to say to the manager is that doing a full backup while people are still working is not an issue. SQL Server has the intelligence to backup the data as well as the necessary transactions so that doing a restore brings back the database in a consistent state. The days of offline backups are long gone surely?! Or am I missing something here?

    ---------------------------------------------------------

    It takes a minimal capacity for rational thought to see that the corporate 'free press' is a structurally irrational and biased, and extremely violent, system of elite propaganda.
    David Edwards - Media lens[/url]

    Society has varying and conflicting interests; what is called objectivity is the disguise of one of these interests - that of neutrality. But neutrality is a fiction in an unneutral world. There are victims, there are executioners, and there are bystanders... and the 'objectivity' of the bystander calls for inaction while other heads fall.
    Howard Zinn

  • Is there any reason you can't schedule your full backup as well? It's correct to say that you can backup with users on the system. However, given that your database isn't in full recovery mode, you want to make sure you capture enough transactions to make your full and differential backups as up-to-date as possible. The best way of doing that is by waiting until the working day is over.... assuming, that is, that you have such well-defined periods of activity.

    John

    Edit: corrected punctuation

  • John Mitchell-245523 (8/30/2012)


    Is there any reason you can't schedule your full backup as well?

    Hi John,

    Yes, you are right. There is no reason for this job to be run manually.

    It's correct to say that you can backup with users on the system. However, given that your database isn't in full recovery mode, you want to make sure you capture enough transactions to make your full and differential backups as up-to-date as possible. The best way of doing that is by waiting until the working day is over.... assuming, that is, that you have such well-defined periods of activity.

    I see what you mean. In that case I will schdule the FULL BACKUP job to run SATURDAY/SUNDAY instead.

    ---------------------------------------------------------

    It takes a minimal capacity for rational thought to see that the corporate 'free press' is a structurally irrational and biased, and extremely violent, system of elite propaganda.
    David Edwards - Media lens[/url]

    Society has varying and conflicting interests; what is called objectivity is the disguise of one of these interests - that of neutrality. But neutrality is a fiction in an unneutral world. There are victims, there are executioners, and there are bystanders... and the 'objectivity' of the bystander calls for inaction while other heads fall.
    Howard Zinn

  • Abu Dina (8/30/2012)What I want to say to the manager is that doing a full backup while people are still working is not an issue. SQL Server has the intelligence to backup the data as well as the necessary transactions so that doing a restore brings back the database in a consistent state.

    correct .

    Abu Dina (8/30/2012)

    The days of offline backups are long gone surely?! Or am I missing something here?

    Hope offline backup you are specifying backup during non-productio hours.

    It is purely based on your company requirement, in our company we have scheduled full backup daily during non- production hours and log backup every hour , so my data loss is max 1 hour. for us the data loss has to be minimal.

    Regards
    Durai Nagarajan

  • Hope offline backup you are specifying backup during non-productio hours.

    Sorry I should have used my words more wisely. I know there's no real concept of an offline backup within SQL Server but I actually meant what you're saying! Next time I will refer to it as non-working hours!

    ---------------------------------------------------------

    It takes a minimal capacity for rational thought to see that the corporate 'free press' is a structurally irrational and biased, and extremely violent, system of elite propaganda.
    David Edwards - Media lens[/url]

    Society has varying and conflicting interests; what is called objectivity is the disguise of one of these interests - that of neutrality. But neutrality is a fiction in an unneutral world. There are victims, there are executioners, and there are bystanders... and the 'objectivity' of the bystander calls for inaction while other heads fall.
    Howard Zinn

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