Advice for large database backup

[Ganimede-Dignan]

Hi,

we need a backup procedure for large Oracle 9.2.0.7 on Solaris 10 database, 1.5 TB. We haven't a BACKINT-compatible software as backup software, we have NetVault BakBone, so we save to others disks (900 GB) our database with BRBACKUP and then save to tape (Sun C4 Tape Library - 38 drive LTO3) with BakBone.

Have you got any advice ? ... to reduce the time, cpu load, ecc. ?

I try with ....

brbackup -p initSID.sap -u system/**** -d disk -t online_cons -m all -c force -k yes -l E

our initSID.sap:

-

---

backup_mode = all

restore_mode = all

backup_type = online_cons

backup_dev_type = disk

backup_root_dir = /stage_prod/SID

stage_root_dir = /stage_prod/SID

compress = yes

compress_cmd = "compress -c $ > $"

uncompress_cmd = "uncompress -c $ > $"

compress_dir = /oracle/SID/sapreorg

archive_function = save_delete

archive_copy_dir = /stage_prod/SID

archive_stage_dir = /stage_prod/SID

tape_copy_cmd = dd

disk_copy_cmd = dd

stage_copy_cmd = rcp

cpio_flags = -ovB

cpio_in_flags = -iuvB

cpio_disk_flags = -pdcu

dd_flags = "obs=64k bs=64k"

dd_in_flags = "ibs=64k bs=64k"

saveset_members = 1

copy_out_cmd = "dd ibs=8k obs=64k of=$"

copy_in_cmd = "dd ibs=64k obs=8k if=$"

rewind = "mt -f $ rew"

rewind_offline = "mt -f $ offline"

tape_pos_cmd = "mt -f $ fsf $"

tape_size = 1200M

exec_parallel = 6

tape_address = /dev/rmt/0mn

tape_address_rew = /dev/rmt/0m

volume_archive = (SIDA01, SIDA02, SIDA03, SIDA04, SIDA05,

SIDA06, SIDA07, SIDA08, SIDA09, SIDA10,

SIDA11, SIDA12, SIDA13, SIDA14, SIDA15,

SIDA16, SIDA17, SIDA18, SIDA19, SIDA20,

SIDA21, SIDA22, SIDA23, SIDA24, SIDA25,

SIDA26, SIDA27, SIDA28, SIDA29, SIDA30)

volume_backup = (SIDB01, SIDB02, SIDB03, SIDB04, SIDB05,

SIDB06, SIDB07, SIDB08, SIDB09, SIDB10,

SIDB11, SIDB12, SIDB13, SIDB14, SIDB15,

SIDB16, SIDB17, SIDB18, SIDB19, SIDB20,

SIDB21, SIDB22, SIDB23, SIDB24, SIDB25,

SIDB26, SIDB27, SIDB28, SIDB29, SIDB30)

expir_period = 2

tape_use_count = 100

-

---

Regards.

Ganimede Dignan.

[Former Member · Accepted solution]

Hello Ganimede,

first what is your current setup hardware-wise ? Do oyu work with local disks, SAN ? Are your backups to disk taken via NFS, Samba?

2 possibilities you could explore :

1) use RMAN in combination with BRBACKUP. It will allow you to work with incremental backups.

It is even better if you could upgrade your database to 10g as you would be able to use the block change tracking file.

2) setup a standby database and do the backup on the standby host.

There are many more things that can be done, mainly on hardware level (split-mirror backup, filesystem snapshots,...)

[Ganimede-Dignan · Accepted solution]

Hi,

>first what is your current setup hardware-wise ? Do oyu work with local disks, SAN ? Are your backups to >disk taken via NFS, Samba?

R/3 runs on a Sun M4000 (4 CPU UltraSPARC with 32 GB ram) into 2 Solaris zone (1 zone for production only and second zone for dev, test and tryning istance) R/3 4.6C SR2 with 46D EXT Kernel and Oracle 9.2.0.7. Storoage is a Sun 6140 with 4 Gb cache and sveral 300 GB HD FC. SAN <--> M4000 are maded by two Brocade 4Gb. datafiles are in disk group different then stage usede for backup.

>1) use RMAN in combination with BRBACKUP. It will allow you to work with incremental backups.

Is it hardly to setup ? can I use 9.2.0.7 without 10g to use incremental backup ?

>filesystem snapshots

snapshots ? does SAP support filesystem snapshots ? can I use filesystem snapshots due dayly on-line backup ?

Regards.

Ganimede Dignan.

[Ganimede-Dignan · Accepted solution]

>snapshots ? does SAP support filesystem snapshots ? can I use filesystem snapshots due dayly on-line >backup ?

I'm sure that our storage has got snapshots integrated.

Regards.

[Former Member · Accepted solution]

You can use RMAN to do incremental backups on Oracle 9i that's no problem. It's just that it is even more efficient with Oracle 10g because in 10g you don't have to scan all db blocks up to high watermarks to see which have changed since last backup by using a block change tracking file.

The setup is not really hard, it consists in a couple of params to set in init<sid>.sap profile (and in your backup software too if you use a BACKINT compatible software)

For what concerns filesystem snapshots (like the one you can do with SUN ZFS), I don't know if it is supported by SAP as such but it is certainly something that could help you in decreasing backup times but it should be thoroughly tested before using it in production