Is there a programmatic way to validate that that restored database from an Azure SQL PITR backup is valid?
What have I tried
I know the domain entities that are stored in the database and can verify if certain tables have entries from a specific period. However this seems to be too dependent on the type of data we are storing
Is there a system based way to do this comparing audit / transaction logs. I am not a database administrator and might not have the correct terms to explains the problem.
Question
How do I validate that the database X I restored from a database backup went smoothly. Is there a checklist that I can check to ensure this that does not rely on the actual table definition (timestamps columns)?
Related
I'd like to backup a database in SSMS and restore it to a different server on a VM. I've exported dbs to bacpacs but keep hitting roadblocks like users having windows authentication or errors validating elements.
I've recently noticed that a dacpac with the extraAllTableData set to true might accomplish a similar thing. I know that bacpacs are tailored for Azure Sql Servers but are there any other differences between the two?
DACPAC contains only schema information only.
BACPAC contains both schema and data. It also contains the security.
If you go with ExtractAllTableData option, in addition to schema, user data is also extracted. But, still permissions are not extracted.
/p: ExtractAllTableData=(BOOLEAN) Indicates whether data from all user
tables is extracted. If 'true', data from all user tables is
extracted, and you cannot specify individual user tables for
extracting data. If 'false', specify one or more user tables to
extract data from.
Copying a database in the Azure Portal is never ending.
Usually, when I copy a 250GB database, it completes in just under an hour.
Today, when I copy, it never seems to finish, it has been over two to three hours now.
And in the server activity logs, the last entry just says an update occured
Any idea on how to see more progress, percent complete, or any other way to see what might be locking it? Nothing of use can be seen in the activty log json.
You can use SYS.DM_OPERATION_STATUS to track many operations including copy in SQLAZURE..
Documentation states
To use this view, you must be connected to the master database. Use the sys.dm_operation_status view in the master database of the SQL Database server to track the status of the following operations performed on a SQL Database:
Below are the operattions that can be tracked
Create database
Copy database. Database Copy creates a record in this view on both the source and target servers.
Alter database
Change the performance level of a service tier
Change the service tier of a database, such as changing from Basic to Standard.
Setting up a Geo-Replication relationship
Terminating a Geo-Replication relationship
Restore database
Delete database
You can also try sys.dm_database_copies in master database for info about copy status ..This has percent_complete field and below is what documentation has to say about this
The percentage of bytes that have been copied. Values range from 0 to 100. SQL Database may automatically recover from some errors, such as failover, and restart the database copy. In this case, percent_complete would restart from 0.
Note:
This view has info only during the duration of copy operation..
I have SQL Server 2008 installed on my machine and also Reporting Services Configuration Manager. When I connect to SQL Server, I found two databases already there.
ReportServer
ReportServerTempDB
I know ReportServer is to store reports, data sources, snapshots, subscriptions, etc. But what is ReportServerTempDB for? Why is it created? Is that necessary (for our use)?
Read the documentaion on report server database
The databases are created together and bound by name. By default, the database names are reportserver and reportservertempdb, respectively.
Report Server Temporary Database
Each report server database uses a related temporary database to store
session and execution data, cached reports, and work tables that are
generated by the report server. Reporting Services does not re-create
the temporary database if it is missing, nor does it repair missing or
modified tables. Although the temporary database does not contain
persistent data, you should back up a copy of the database anyway so
that you can avoid having to re-create it as part of a failure
recovery operation. If you back up the temporary database and
subsequently restore it, you should delete the contents. Generally, it
is safe to delete the contents of the temporary database at any time.
However, you must restart the Report Server Windows service after you
delete the contents. If you delete the temporary database, you can
create a new database, and then run the Catalogtempdb.sql script to
add the table structure. The temporary database must have the same
root name as the primary report server database.
Trying to design our DB backup strategy for SQL Azure. In the first instance transactions will be about 200/day.
Scenarios I will be protecting against is:
1) Complete DB lost, failure, corruption which is essentially covered by SQL Azure's saving to 3 point policy ie it has 1 primary and 2 secondary copies.
2) Corruption of records, by buggy code or user error. I would not want to restore a DB for this, and my current thoughts are use a DB copy from a "previous period" (maybe previous night) and do a data compare. Tool in mind is SQL Server Data Tools are used in VS.
My current thoughts are once a day over night take a DB Copy ie
Create Database as copy of liveDB
I think MS talks about a rolling 3 copy procedure, in my case 3 days of backup would be kept then copy 1 would be overwritten by copy 4.
Also do a DB Export as recommended by MS.
Thoughts?
Since the question was "thoughts?" here are some:
Be advised, a DB Export via the Azure managment pages produces a BACPAC which is not transactionally consistent (see http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/hh335292.aspx).
A DB Copy as you expressed above (Create Database as copy of liveDB) is transactionally consistent, but when it is finished it is billable as it will have the same edition and database size as the source database (see http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/azure/ff951631.aspx).
As JuneT mentions, using an Automated Export is transactionally consistent, because it first creates a DB Copy, then does a DB Export. Because databases are billed in increments of a day no matter how long the copy is online, if you had a daily backup, you would be paying double the cost of your source database because of the copy coming online before the BACPAC is produced. Once the BACPAC is produced the copy is no longer needed by Automated Export, but you'll still be charged for a prorated day of use. Your retention settings will also impact billing as it relates to storage accounts since you'll be paying for stored BACPACs in terms of their size.
see http://blogs.msdn.com/b/sql-bi-sap-cloud-crm_all_in_one_place/archive/2013/07/24/sql-azure-automated-database-export.aspx and http://msdn.microsoft.com/library/azure/ee621788.aspx
SQL Azure has a built-in feature for restoring from this sort of issue:
see http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/hh852669.aspx
All Azure SQL Databases are automatically backed up, and the recovery options vary based on the edition of the database. Basic databases allow you to restore the database back to a its state when it was last backed up (once per 24 hours).
Standard and Premium edition databases allow restore to any point in time.
Is there a way to backup certain tables in a SQL Database? I know I can move certain tables into different filegroups and preform a backup on these filegroup. The only issue with this is I believe you need a backup of all the filegroups and transaction logs to restore the database on a different server.
The reason why I need to restore the backup on a different server is these are backups of customers database. For example we may have a remote customer and need to get a copy of they 4GB database. 90% of this space is taken up by two tables, we don’t need these tables as they only store images. Currently we have to take a copy of the database and upload it to a FTP site…With larger databases this can take a lot of the time and we need to reduce the database size.
The other way I can think of doing this would be to take a full backup of the DB and restore it on the clients SQL server. Then connect to the new temp DB and drop the two tables. Once this is done we could take a backup of the DB. The only issue with this solution is that it could use a lot of system restores at the time of running the query so its less than ideal.
So my idea was to use two filegroups. The primary filegroup would host all of the tables except the two tables which would be in the second filegroup. Then when we need a copy of the database we just take a backup of the primary filegroup.
I have done some testing but have been unable to get it working. Any suggestions? Thanks
Basically your approach using 2 filegroups seems reasonable.
I suppose you're working with SQL Server on both ends, but you should clarify for each which whether that is truly the case as well as which editions (enterprise, standard, express etc.), and which releases 2000, 2005, 2008, (2012 ? ).
Table backup in SQL Server is here a dead horse that still gets a good whippin' now and again. Basically, that's not a feature in the built-in backup feature-set. As you rightly point out, the partial backup feature can be used as a workaround. Also, if you just want to transfer a snapshot from a subset of tables to another server, using ftp you might try working with the bcp utility as suggested by one of the answers in the above linked post, or the export/import data wizards. To round out the list of table backup solutions and workarounds for SQL Server, there is this (and possibly other ? ) third party software that claims to allow individual recovery of table objects, but unfortunately doesn't seem to offer individual object backup, "Object Level Recovery Native" by Red Gate". (I have no affiliation or experience using this particular tool).
As per your more specific concern about restore from partial database backups :
I believe you need a backup of all the filegroups and transaction logs
to restore the database on a different server
1) You might have some difficulties your first time trying to get it to work, but you can perform restores from partial backups as far back as SQL Server 2000, (as a reference see here
2) From 2005 and onward you have the option of partially restoring today, and if you need to you can later restore the remainder of your database. You don't need to include all filegroups-you always include the primary filegroup and if your database is simple recovery mode you need to add all read-write filegroups.
3) You need to apply log backups only if your db is in bulk or full recovery mode and you are restoring changes to a readonly filegroup that since last restore has become read-write. Since you are expecting changes to these tables you will likely not be concerned about read only filegroups, and so not concerned about shipping and applying log backups
You might also investigate some time whether any of the other SQL Server features, merge replication, or those mentioned above (bcp, import/export wizards) might provide a solution that is more simple or more adequately meets your needs.