I am working with SQL Server 2016 and TFS 2018.
In my TFS I have a collection : DefaultCollection.
This collection has a log file (DefaultCollection_Log) which is growing fast.
I'd like to set a time period (let's say 2 weeks for examples) for log retention. This is, every day (for example) SQL Server should delete data in my DefaultCollection_Log file older than 2 weeks.
How can I acomplish that?
Transaction log backups to be configured. In this case, virtual log files will be reused, so transaction log file will not grow unless long-running transactions.
Note, that you have to setup backup routines using TFS Administration Console, regular backups using T-SQL scripts are not sufficient, because of multi-database restore in TFS.
Process in few steps:
Create scheduled backups:
Provide a path where backups to be stored
Include transaction log backups into a configuration:
SQL Server Transaction Log Architecture and Management Guide:
Log truncation occurs automatically after the following events, except when delayed for some reason:
Under the simple recovery model, after a checkpoint.
Under the full recovery model or bulk-logged recovery model, after a log backup, if a checkpoint has occurred since the previous
backup.
Related
I'm having an issue that only happens sometimes where my SQL Server differential backup job fails with an error message similar to
Msg 3035, Sev 16, State 1, Line 1 : Cannot perform a differential backup for database "MyDatabaseName", because a current database backup does not exist. Perform a full database backup by reissuing BACKUP DATABASE, omitting the WITH DIFFERENTIAL option. [SQLSTATE 42000]
Msg 3013, Sev 16, State 1, Line 1 : BACKUP DATABASE is terminating abnormally. [SQLSTATE 42000]
I'm currently using Ola Hallengren's SQL Server Mantenance Solution script for backup's, integrity check's and index maintenance. I've scheduled the backup job's as such:
Full Backup of system databases every day # 1:30 AM
Full Backup of all user databases every week on Monday, Wednesday & Friday # 2:30 AM
Differential Backup of all user databases every week on Sunday, Tuesday, Thursday & Saturday # 2:30 AM
Transaction Log backup or all user databases every 30 minutes
I've also set the cleanup time to 168 hours...which is 7 days.
I know that usually when this error message comes up, it is due to a full backup not being present, or possible the recovery mode on a database being changed. I have checked both of these and neither seems to be the case. I can confirm that my Friday full backup was successful, however my Saturday and Sunday Differentials failed. There have also been no changes to the recovery model, and no manual backup taken through SQL Server.
It's worth noting that this only happens sometimes. Sometimes the differential backups work without a problem and other times they fail.
This server is a VM, and we are using VMWare vSphere/vCenter 6.5. I've talked to my server admin and asked how his backup is running an he told me that we are using Quest AppAssure which leverage VMWare snapshot technology, and that he is backuping the drives every x number of minutes, so it is possible that the time of his backup changes and eventually overlaps with mine.
We looked back at the time that his backups ran on the weekend and they happened within a few minutes before mine started. I'm wondering if this is causing my backup issues? if so is there a way to prevent this, or do we simply need to plan the backups at different times that don't overlap?
Thanks
We had another call with Quest today and figured out a solution to the problem.
It would seem that when configuring the backup through Quest Rapid Recovery, you have the option to do Machine level backups or Volume level backup. When it's configured to do volume level backups you can choose for it to either do a block level backup which isn't SQL Server aware, or for it to do a backup that is SQL Server aware, which ends up using the volume shadow copy service and these backups show up as Full (Copy Only) backups in the SQL backup history...even though you can't restore them from SQL Server.
Rapid Recovery can only do backups on a schedule, plus has the option to Truncate Logs after the backup complete to avoid filling the log files, but can't do transaction log backups, so you loose the ability to do a more granular recovery down to the second like with the native SQL Timeline Recovery...Which is why we chose to use native SQL Server Backups.
So to fix the issue, you need to either do a machine level backup which has not SQL Server Awareness/integration. Or you can do a volume level backup, but disable the SQL Server Writer extension, and the truncate logs options to remove the integration.
We've run a bunch of tests, and from the point/time that this change was done, we only see SQL Server backups and no longer the Rapid Recovery backups in the SQL Server Backup history.
So now i am in talks with my server/backup admin see if we can do a machine level backup once a day, so that we can do a machine level restore in case of disaster, and also add a volume level backup of my Backup drive, so that he captures my backups more frequently during the day. I think once this is complete, we'll have the best of both backup solutions.
Ability to do machine level restores (Rapid Recovery)
Retention of SQL Server Backups (Rapid Recovery)
Flexible point in time recovery (SQL Server)
Just wanted to post a update to this issue
We scheduled a call with Quest yesterday, and they assured me that their backup is only taking volume snapshots and will have no impact on my SQL backups. They said that the reason that i was seeing these errors is likely do to Rapid Recovery(I guess AppAssure was renamed to Rapid Recovery) and my SQL backup jobs both trying to use the volume shadow copy service at the same time and so we simply needed to stagger the backup jobs. I end up finding out that this wasn't completely true because the Rapid Recovery backups were configured to truncate my SQL Logs. I also told the guy from rapid recovery that when i queried the msdb backupset table that i was seeing backup jobs listed that lined up with the times of the rapid recovery backup. Still he assured me that it would have zero impact on my backups.
I was still concerned that the Rapid Recovery backups might be impacting the chain of my backup files, so in our test environment i right clicked on one of our databases and clicked tasks > restore >database just to see the recovery history. I see a database backup listed as type Full (Copy Only) which coincides with the rapid recovery backup, then a number of my transaction log backups.
It would seem to me that Rapid Recovery is definitely impacting my SQL Backups.
One other thing to note that i just tried in out test environment. I did a few tests backups using Full's , Transaction Log, Differentials and Full (Copy Only) just to see how things showed up in the restore window in SQL Server Management Studio.
So i realized that in the default restore screen, it tries to recover to the nearest point in time using the least combination of various backup files. To go past the last full backup, I have to use the Timeline option.
I could see the Full backup as the first item, and then the transaction logs backups.
Once i do the Differential backup, i see the Full plus the differential, but no more transaction log backups.... which makes sense since it's trying to get the the closest time possible for the recovery.
Next if i do another Transaction Log backup, I see the Full, Differential and the Transaction Log back
One thing that surprised me however is if i do a Full (Copy Only) followed by a transaction log backup, that i see these two item in the list of files for the recovery, yet if i do a differential after a Full (Copy Only) that it show me the last Full (non copy only), plus the differential. I expected that the backups would always be based off of the last full, both for transaction log and differential backups. I thought that the Copy Only backups would be ignored in the backup chain.
Next I decided to use the timeline restore feature and select a point in time during my tests where the Rapid Recovery backup wasn't part of the listed backups, and do a verify backup. As expected it was successful. After this i tried a restore to another point in time where the Rapid Recovery Full (Copy Only) backup was listed and the verify failed on the Full (Copy Only) backup file from rapid recovery, since it doesn't exist on the sql server.
Any recommendations on how to fix this? The point of the Rapid Recovery backup is supposed to be to backup the machine, in case we ever loose the server and have to restore the entire server, plus for it to pick up my sql server backups to keep for retention, since i only keep 7 days worth of backup on the server itself.
You can check the error log file.
Your job may be the victim of deadlock transactions.
Backup file location may not have enough permission.
So, you should check all the possible error log files.
I want to set up a secundary copy of a large ERP production database, which would be used as read-only database for reporting purposes. Regular backup jobs on production DB are already configured: a full backup every night and regular transaction log backups every 15 minutes.
I'm restoring a full backup and then applying transaction log backups (with STANDBY option). The restore of transaction log is successful, but I always get a message at the end that the system objects could not be updated:
Processed 7 pages for database ..., file ... on file 1.
System objects could not be updated in database ... because it is read-only.
System objects could not be updated in database ... because it is read-only.
RESTORE LOG successfully processed 7 pages in 0.029 seconds (1.633 MB/sec).
It seems that the restore is successful. However, the warning (error?) regarding the system objects is confusing. Is it something I should pay attention to? What is the reason for the error? I couldn't find any similar problem on the Microsoft support forums...
Update: SQL Server version is 11.0.7469.6 (2012 with all service packs and hotfixes)
If you don't mind I'll suggest you a workaround(There might be a solution)
step 1. Restore the full backup to a new database and ensure the backup is successful(by accessing some objects).
step 2. restore the transaction backups 2(some count let say 3 or some number) at a time and make db to recovery state then query the same objects which were done at step 1.
step 3. repeat the process until all the backups were restored successfully.
Also check the following link, might work.
Hypothetical question:
If a maintenance plan is scheduled to run a full backup of several databases while they're online, and during this time other jobs are scheduled to run (stored procedures, SSIS packages etc), what happens to these jobs during the backup?
I'm guessing either:
The job is paused until the backup is completed, then they're run in the same order they were scheduled to.
Or
SQL Server works out what tables will be affected by each scheduled job and backs them up after the job completes?!
Or
SQL Server creates a "snapshot" of all the tables before the back up starts, any changes to them (including changes made by the jobs run during the backup) are added to the transaction log, which should be backed up separately.
...are any of my ideas correct?!
Idea #3 is the closest to what happens. The key is that when the backup operation completes, the backup file will be in a state that allows for the restore of the database to a consistent state.
From the documentation:
Performing a backup operation has minimal effect on transactions that
are running; therefore, backup operations can be run during regular
operations. During a backup operation, SQL Server copies the data
directly from the database files to the backup devices. The data is
not changed, and transactions that are running during the backup are
never delayed. Therefore, you can perform a SQL Server backup with
minimal effect on production workloads.
...
SQL Server uses an online backup process to allow for a database
backup while the database is still being used. During a backup, most
operations are possible; for example, INSERT, UPDATE, or DELETE
statements are allowed during a backup operation.
I am developer so need your advice on how to plan for it
I am having sql server 2008.
I am going to through what they have in maintance wizard
And found that they have full, differential and transaction log.
So if i take one full back once a week then differential backup every day. Not sure how transaction log fit into this.
I assume sql server is saving transaction log some where so in case of failure I can restore from last differential backup coupled with full backup.
What i need to use transaction log on top of it? Where is transaction log saved?
I need this for application data loss issue, if in case some action made it delete some data so i need ability to go back point in time.
You must backup your log too, explicitly. Schedule a job to backup the log at short intervals (15 minutes to an hour usually). When you do a recovery, you apply the full backup, then the newest differential and then all the log backup after the differential.
Only with log backup can you restore the database at a specific moment, using the 'WITH STOP AT'. See: How to: Restore to a Point in Time.
Also to recover from a crash, you backup the log tail then apply the recovery (full->differential->logs->tail) and hopefully occur no data loss at all.
A Zero loss strategy require the involvement of replication in some form. Then you'll also need a failover server to account for replication time before the "slave" server is fully up to date.
Even with transaction log backups your still at risk for losing X data, where X is your transaction log backup interval.
Maybe edit your question?
Oracle has SQL commands that one can issue so that a transaction does not get logged. Is there something similar for SQL Server 2008?
My scenario: We need Tx logs on servers (Dev, QA, Prod), but maybe we can do without them on developer machines.
You can't do without transaction logs in SQL Server, under any circumstances. The engine simply won't function.
You CAN set your recovery model to SIMPLE on your dev machines - that will prevent transaction log bloating when tran log backups aren't done.
ALTER DATABASE MyDB SET RECOVERY SIMPLE;
There is a third recovery mode not mentioned above. The recovery mode ultimately determines how large the LDF files become and how ofter they are written to. In cases where you are going to be doing any type of bulk inserts, you should set the DB to be in "BULK/LOGGED". This makes bulk inserts move speedily along and can be changed on the fly.
To do so,
USE master ;
ALTER DATABASE model SET RECOVERY BULK_LOGGED ;
To change it back:
USE master ;
ALTER DATABASE model SET RECOVERY FULL ;
In the spirit of adding to the conversation about why someone would not want an LDF, I add this: We do multi-dimensional modelling. Essentially we use the DB as a large store of variables that are processed in bulk using external programs. We do not EVER require rollbacks. If we could get a performance boost by turning of ALL logging, we'd take it in a heart beat.
SQL Server requires a transaction log in order to function.
That said there are two modes of operation for the transaction log:
Simple
Full
In Full mode the transaction log keeps growing until you back up the database. In Simple mode: space in the transaction log is 'recycled' every Checkpoint.
Very few people have a need to run their databases in the Full recovery model. The only point in using the Full model is if you want to backup the database multiple times per day, and backing up the whole database takes too long - so you just backup the transaction log.
The transaction log keeps growing all day, and you keep backing just it up. That night you do your full backup, and SQL Server then truncates the transaction log, begins to reuse the space allocated in the transaction log file.
If you only ever do full database backups, you don't want the Full recovery mode.
What's your problem with Tx logs? They grow? Then just set truncate on checkpoint option.
From Microsoft documentation:
In SQL Server 2000 or in SQL Server
2005, the "Simple" recovery model is
equivalent to "truncate log on
checkpoint" in earlier versions of SQL
Server. If the transaction log is
truncated every time a checkpoint is
performed on the server, this prevents
you from using the log for database
recovery. You can only use full
database backups to restore your data.
Backups of the transaction log are
disabled when the "Simple" recovery
model is used.
If this is only for dev machines in order to save space then just go with simple recovery mode and you’ll be doing fine.
On production machines though I’d strongly recommend that you keep the databases in full recovery mode. This will ensure you can do point in time recovery if needed.
Also – having databases in full recovery mode can help you to undo accidental updates and deletes by reading transaction log. See below or more details.
How can I rollback an UPDATE query in SQL server 2005?
Read the log file (*.LDF) in sql server 2008
If space is an issue on production machines then just create frequent transaction log backups.