Database Reference
In-Depth Information
CHAPTER 21
Database Backup and Restore
In this chapter we will discuss the significance of properly backing up the business data and
restoring the data in the event of data loss or in case of a disaster in the data center. Topics
such as significance of business data, development of a good organizational SAP database
backup strategy, and the different backup and restore options that are available to the SAP
Basis administrator are discussed. Emphasis is given on explaining the backup and restore
concepts and tools first, followed by a real-life example of a detailed backup and restore
scenario. This will help the Basis administrator develop his or her own organization's backup
strategy and perform backups and restores as needed.
Significance of Business Data
Generally, SAP systems are categorized as mission-critical systems because they are used for
performing online financial transactions and are the system of record for organizations.
Depending on the business processes implemented at a given organization, these systems also
perform critical business transactions involving manufacturing, sales, human resources and
billing. When these systems are down for any length of time, it usually causes significant
monetary losses to organizations and, therefore, protecting the systems against any data loss
is of paramount importance. Brokerage firms, credit card companies, and online retail organ-
izations are particularly impacted monetarily by any system downtime and business data loss
to the tune of several million dollars in some instances. Thus, it is critical that the SAP Basis
administrator work closely with the organization's Oracle Database administrator to develop
a sound backup strategy and test it on a quarterly basis. This will ensure that if there is a situ-
ation where a system restore is needed this can be executed in as little time as possible
without any business data loss to the organization.
Developing a Backup Strategy
The main factors that need to be taken into consideration before developing a sound backup
strategy is to decide on the backup type and the tape cycle or backup cycle that will be used.
The backup types and the tape cycle will depend on the size of the database, cost, and avail-
ability requirements of the SAP system to the organization.
Backup Types
The backup types are primarily online or offline categories, with each category having three
subcategories (complete, incremental, and partial backups). The complete backup is further
categorized into full and whole (all) backups. With the increased demands of availability of
