Question: “What time is it?”

Answer: “T-SQL Tuesday time”

Question: “What time?”

Answer: “T-SQL Tuesday time”

“I can’t hear you?!?!?!”

That’s right; it’s that time again where we come together for a block party T-SQL Tuesday #56 style; which this month is hosted by Dev Nambi (blog | twitter). Dev has garnered a topic around what assumptions we make in our work environment within the realm of SQL.

The Assumption

One of the biggest assumptions I’ve come into contact in many places is the saying, “I’m only as good as my last backup”. While that is a semi true statement it does leave the process unfinished. Let me explain:

Johnny (picked a name out of the air) is given a task to create a new database and with that he designs his maintenance strategy. Backups fall into that maintenance strategy. The new mechanism to take a backup is put into place and we are set; full backups set to run off hours.

At least this is what a lot of data professionals assume; taking a form of backup is fantastic. This post is not meant to go into the details of how to take a backup but based on the assumption that your backups are good. The second half to the equation is restoring those backups.

What? You mean I need to actually test my backup to see if it works. Yes that is exactly what I mean. I have seen several cases where backups are taken and everyone sleeps at night. Then the business unit decides they want to pull that backup; you go to restore the backup and the file is corrupt.

Summary

Don’t just assume that your backups are ready to go. Take a more proactive approach and test your backups. Granted each shop is different with their own standards and regulations; with that said if someone asked you to restore your backup……could you with confidence?

What Is T-SQL Tuesday

T-SQL Tuesday was created by the mighty Adam Machanic ( Blog | Twitter); if you are interesting in hosting a T-SQL Tuesday party or want to learn more about it check out his blog. Let’s get involved and make our community that much better.