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![[Post New]](/Sysforums/templates/default/images/icon_minipost_new.gif) 02/06/2009 09:36:17
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sarah
VP Customer Relations
Joined: 14/04/2008
Messages: 472
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Hello All,
This June, we cover quite a serious topic in IT. As IT personnel, we all know of the horror of data loss without a recovery option.
That's why building a backup and restore plan for SysAid is absolutely crucial to successful implementation. At times, we encounter users who have lost all their data due to a lack of a robust backup and restore plan. Such faults can result in real damage to your organization, not to mention the negative affect to your IT department's service reputation.
The key to success is not only to backup your data, but to also test the robustness of your backup by trying to restore the data.
You can ensure your SysAid server is securely backed up using our simple SysAid Backup plan as detailed below.
Step One: Backup your data. For those using the Derby database, SysAid comes with internal backup capabilities as detailed below:
1. Access the Backup configuration under Preferences -> Integration -> Backup
2. Check the 'Enabled' box to activate this feature
3. Now select the list of users who will receive backup notifications and information about backup success or failure
If you are using an external third party database, you should ensure that you have standard backup processes in place.
Step Two: Now it's time to test your backup data restore. If you are using our internal database, we recommend the following:
1. Install a new SysAid server
2. Stop the service of the current server
3. Locate the latest backup copy in the backup directory (SysAidServer\backup). You will find a folder for each day of the week with the day number (from 1 to 7) as the folder name. Rename that folder to "db".
4. Take the renamed "db" folder from the backup and replace it with the database folder under the new installation (SysAidServer\root\WEB-INF\db)
5. Check that when uploading the new server, the information saved under the backup is indeed an updated snapshot of your information
Step Three: Confirm that you are receiving notifications every time backup is run, to ensure that you have a current, up-to-date backup.
Step Four: Schedule periodic restoration checks to ensure that the backup is still running (e.g. every month). Use Reoccurring Events, available in our Task and Project module, to open a Service Request based on a pre-defined schedule to remind you to check and restore.
Step Five: If you're not sure that your backup has worked, please consult SysAid Support. Also, if you observe unusual functioning in your SysAid, or errors in the log about database connection, contact us immediately, as you may have corrupted the database.
Without sounding the alarm too much this month, it is worth remembering that just a few minutes of your time now could potentially save you a lot more than just time in the long run.
Until next month, keep safe and restore.
Sarah
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05/06/2009 18:53:41
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Jerald Jackson
SysAider
Joined: 05/06/2009
Messages: 2
Location: Pensacola, Florida
Offline
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Hi Sarah - Thanks for the tip. As I checked my system (v5.6.09 ), I noticed that the Backup tab settings of the Integration section were correct, but no backups had been made to the directory. I clicked on the RUN NOW button and it did make a backup to the directory. Why wasn't it making backups before?
Another question - In your article, you suggest the following ...
3. Locate the latest backup copy in the backup directory (SysAidServer\backup). You will find a folder for each day of the week with the day number (from 1 to 7) as the folder name. Rename that folder to "db".
4. Take the renamed "db" folder from the backup and replace it with the database folder under the new installation (SysAidServer\root\WEB-INF\db)
Don't you mean the reverse in step 4? Take the renamed "db" folder from the backup and replace the database folder under the new installation (SysAidServer\root\WEB-INF\db) with the renamed "db" folder.
Is it semantics across the ocean? If not, I don't understand how you would be checking the backup by overwriting it with the new installation db folder as you seem to be saying.
Jerald
This message was edited 4 times. Last update was at 05/06/2009 19:06:02
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08/06/2009 06:52:13
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Haim
SysAider
Joined: 15/04/2008
Messages: 2449
Offline
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Hey Jerald Jackson.
Do you have a scheduled backup in the backup page?
I think you and Sarah used different words for the same procedure, which is basically taking the backup folder and place it instead of the existing "db" folder in SysAid. to restore it.
Regards.
Haim
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Pushing IT forward |
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08/06/2009 20:38:33
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Jerald Jackson
SysAider
Joined: 05/06/2009
Messages: 2
Location: Pensacola, Florida
Offline
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Once I actuall went to the backup page and clicked run now and then save (without changing any of the settings) the backup magically started and is working! Perhaps this should be explained to everyone. I've included a picture of what the page looked like when it wasn't backing up. It looks the same now and it IS backing up - go figure - you guys should know.
As for the language and grammar choice in the Backup article by Sarah, I think it should have been reviewed by someone who speaks english as their first language. It should certainly be corrected if what you say is truly what she meant. It makes complete sense to me, but NOT what she said. There is potential here to completely confuse your users and possibly erase their data during a restore.
All that said - I still love your software! The price is right and the support is generally excellent. Everyone makes mistakes. Thank you for a GREAT product and great support!
This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 08/06/2009 20:40:51
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