Backup Anytime

The right way to backup up a database.

How do you backup SQL is a question you will hear from people who actually know something about SQL. They know it is not a drag and drop file environment. They know it needs to be treated differently. They may not know much more about it but if everyone knew as mush as they do, SQL would be safer.

All backup systems need to be tested. Few more so than those involving open file management, SQL or Microsoft Exchange. All too often, users believe that they can simply select a file or use a drag and drop approach to backup everything. This is an organisational failing. If the person running the backups does not know how to backup or worse again believes incorrectly that he knows how to backup, the company data and therefore the company is in a negative situation which can only get worse.

We are not looking to reinvent the wheel here. Simple backup is simple. Other types of backup such as SQL require a specific approach which when used from the outset and protected from over zealous untrained persons works well.

Your backup software (and if you are backing up these file types you should be using backup software) should identify SQL and Exchange environments distinctly from those of standard closed files. The software will request specific information to connect to databases. This information can be obtained from the data base administrators and server administrator. If you don’t have the information you will not be able to connect. This should be taken as a prompt to speak with those persons.

Unfortunately, a little knowledge can be a very dangerous thing and it is common for wannabe administrators to seek shortcuts by finding files manually and simply selecting them for backup.  This works well where it is supposed to. It never works for SQL or Exchange.

If you don’t know the user name or password for the database you need to find out or better still get those who do know to sit in on the backup configuration.

Additionally, after the backup has complete and run over a few sessions, you need to do a test restore. Why? Because you are not using simple backup. If it failed on the first run there is little possibility of it suddenly coming good. Computers operate in a very simple world. If it is right (and it must be because you said so) it will always be right (unless you say otherwise) so understand that your initial instructions will be carried to the letter no matter how wrong they may be. The absence of a cop on chip for computers dictates this is not set to change anytime soon.

So, if you want to backup a data base, back up a database, not a component or a locked entity. If you cant backup a data bases then here is the question and answer you need to remember.

Q. How do you backup SQL or Exchange?

A. Get someone else to do it.

It’s a little like being asked to hand start a prop aircraft. You are proficient or you are not. There is no middle ground.

With the rush to get copies of data off-site and focus therefore on protecting local data, web based data can be left ’till last. Obvious examples of this are website, CRM and blog database.

This is where a requirement for wordpress backup comes in. This requires database backup and remember we are talking about a live database here. Your wordpress database is effectively everything you, your contributors and commentors add to your wordpress blog.

One very good wordpress plug in created by Austin Matzko of http://www.ilfilosofo.com/blog/ allows for wordpress backup to site, local disk or email.

I have been using this system for three months now and have backed up to all three location types. I have also run on demand and scheduled data base backups. The only difficulty I had was backing up the data for a specific plugin which is not part of, a standard wordpress release so this is not Austins issue.

I was tempted to give this plug in a plug (excuse the pun) a couple of months ago but decided to wait awhile and see how it managed over time. The answer is excellent. If you absolutely need to have a copy of your blog (which you do) this is the answer.

The plugin is available from a number of sites. I emailed Austin offering an Irish download mirror yesterday.

No word back yet. If he wants it, it is available.

John