Please critique our SQL Server 2005 Backup Maintenance Plan

  • pdanes (2/10/2012)


    Grant Fritchey (2/10/2012)


    I just started working on an article on the backup header, ...

    Yay! I'm almost completely out to lunch on the subject of backups. I've been doing a full backup by hand every few days and keeping my fingers crossed that I don't run into any major catastrophes until I get up to speed on the matter. Fortunately, it's not a high-volume database and it's on a RAID-5 array, but I'm still not happy - I know I should be doing a better job of protecting things, but I'm pretty new at SQL Server and I'm the only guy here who knows anything at all about it, so I'm swamped.

    You don't have to wait for this article then. Here's one to get you started[/url] making sure you have the bases covered.

    "The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood"
    - Theodore Roosevelt

    Author of:
    SQL Server Execution Plans
    SQL Server Query Performance Tuning

  • You might also want to take a look through this: http://www.simple-talk.com/books/sql-books/troubleshooting-sql-server-a-guide-for-the-accidental-dba/

    Not much of backups, but a lot of other stuff.

    Gail Shaw
    Microsoft Certified Master: SQL Server, MVP, M.Sc (Comp Sci)
    SQL In The Wild: Discussions on DB performance with occasional diversions into recoverability

    We walk in the dark places no others will enter
    We stand on the bridge and no one may pass
  • Grant, Gail, thank you for the links. I spend a great deal of time on this site, reading as much as I can absorb, but there is so much. It helps a lost just to have someone point to certain articles and say, "Here, start with this."

  • pdanes (2/10/2012)


    Grant, Gail, thank you for the links. I spend a great deal of time on this site, reading as much as I can absorb, but there is so much. It helps a lost just to have someone point to certain articles and say, "Here, start with this."

    The one I posted is not an article, it's a full-blown 340 page book.

    Gail Shaw
    Microsoft Certified Master: SQL Server, MVP, M.Sc (Comp Sci)
    SQL In The Wild: Discussions on DB performance with occasional diversions into recoverability

    We walk in the dark places no others will enter
    We stand on the bridge and no one may pass
  • GilaMonster (2/10/2012)


    pdanes (2/10/2012)


    Grant, Gail, thank you for the links. I spend a great deal of time on this site, reading as much as I can absorb, but there is so much. It helps a lost just to have someone point to certain articles and say, "Here, start with this."

    The one I posted is not an article, it's a full-blown 340 page book.

    And a good book too.

    "The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood"
    - Theodore Roosevelt

    Author of:
    SQL Server Execution Plans
    SQL Server Query Performance Tuning

  • GilaMonster (2/10/2012)

    The one I posted is not an article, it's a full-blown 340 page book.

    Yes, it is a book, and I just download the PDF version of it from the site in your link. I'll be up more than a few nights reading it, too.

  • pdanes (2/10/2012)


    Grant Fritchey (2/10/2012)


    I just started working on an article on the backup header, ...

    Yay! I'm almost completely out to lunch on the subject of backups. I've been doing a full backup by hand every few days and keeping my fingers crossed that I don't run into any major catastrophes until I get up to speed on the matter. Fortunately, it's not a high-volume database and it's on a RAID-5 array, but I'm still not happy - I know I should be doing a better job of protecting things, but I'm pretty new at SQL Server and I'm the only guy here who knows anything at all about it, so I'm swamped.

    You can quickly & easily set up maintenance plans to do frequent full and transaction log backups. That will get you out of the "manual" business and give you good protection right away. You can then later decide if you want to move away from maintenance plans as some people suggest.

  • homebrew01 (2/10/2012)You can quickly & easily set up maintenance plans to do frequent full and transaction log backups. That will get you out of the "manual" business and give you good protection right away. You can then later decide if you want to move away from maintenance plans as some people suggest.

    That's the plan. The manual stuff is just to make a safe copy of the data, until I get something automated in place. Grant's article looks like a good cookbook from which to start.

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