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V10 Support Ended December 15, 2017

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SnapProtect - Advanced Backup - Oracle

Table of Contents

Full Backups

Full backups provide the most comprehensive protection of data.

You can run full backups for SnapProtect and File System/RMAN backup copy operations.

If the database is in NOARCHIVELOG mode, you must back up the database offline.

If the database is in ARCHIVELOG mode and database accessibility is a priority, perform an online backup of the database.

Backups for any client start with a full backup. The full backup becomes a baseline to which subsequent backup types are applied. For example, a full backup must be performed before an archive log backup can be initiated.

You can perform a full backup of an online or offline database. If the database is in NOARCHIVELOG mode, you should perform offline backup only.

Use the following steps to run a full backup:

  1. From the CommCell Browser, navigate to Client Computers | <Client> | Oracle | <Instance>.
  2. Right-click the <Subclient> and click Backup.
  3. Select Full as the backup type and click Immediate.
  4. Click OK.

You can track the progress of the job from the Job Controller.  When the backup job has completed, the Job Controller displays Completed.

Incremental Backups

Incremental backups are performed when the database is online. You can perform incremental backups for SnapProtect and RMAN backup copy operations.

If the database is in NOARCHIVELOG mode, you must back up the database offline.

If the database is in ARCHIVELOG mode and database accessibility is a priority, perform an online backup of the database.

An incremental backup contains only data that is new or has changed since the last backup, regardless of the type. On average, incremental backups consume less media and use less resources than full backups. 

The illustration clarifies the nature of full and incremental backups.

Follow steps given below to perform an incremental backup:

  1. From the CommCell Browser, navigate to Client Computers | <Client> | Oracle | <Instance>.
  2. Right-click the <Subclient> and click Backup.
  3. Select Incremental as the backup type and click Immediate.
  4. Click OK.

You can track the progress of the job from the Job Controller.  When the backup job has completed, the Job Controller displays Completed.

Archive Log Backups

An archive log backup captures the archive redo logs generated during database transactions.

Archive log backups are useful when you want to recover database transactions that have been lost due to an operating system or disk failure. You can apply these archive logs to an online backup in order to recover a database.

By default full backups include both data and archive logs. However, you can also perform separate archive log backups.

In order to perform a backup of the archive logs:

  • The database has to be in ARCHIVELOG mode.
  • Subclient should have been configured for archive log backups. See Creating A Subclient for Log Backups for step-by-step instructions to create a separate subclient for archive logs.

All Archive Logs

Use the following steps to backup all archive logs. Note that this is the default option:

  1. From the CommCell Browser, navigate to Client Computers | <Client> | Oracle | <Instance>.
  2. Right-click the <Subclient> configured for archive log backup, and then click Backup.
  3. Click Advanced.
  4. Click the Backup Archive Logs tab.
  1. Click All.
  2. Click OK.

Deleting Archive Logs for a Specific Backup

  1. From the CommCell Browser, navigate to Client Computers | <Client> | Oracle | <Instance>.
  2. Right-click the <Subclient> configured for archive log backup, and then click Backup.
  3. Click Advanced.
  4. Click the Delete Archive Logs tab.
  5. Select the Delete Archive Log check box.
  6. Click Yes on the warning dialog.
  7. Type confirm in the Enter Confirmation text Dialog, and then click OK.

SnapProtect Backup on NFS Volume

You can perform a SnapProtect backup for Oracle when the database is on a NFS Volume. However, you will require a root access in the storage device's NFS configuration to be able to read and write on the accessible Oracle files i.e., the host on which the NFS Volume is mounted.

You can also perform SnapProtect backups for Oracle if the database resides on a Direct NFS volume. SnapProtect backups supports volumes using the Oracle Direct NFS (dNFS) protocol.

File level revert is performed by default when revert restore is run on NFS volumes. For Volume Level revert on NFS volumes, use the sUSE_FILE_LEVEL_REVERT additional setting. File level revert cannot be performed when the database resides on regular SAN Volumes (LUNs).

Consider the following while performing an SnapProtect backup for data or databases that reside on an NFS Volume:

  • The export name on the storage device should be the same as the storage path on the storage device.

    E.g., if the storage path of the storage device is /vol/Volume/Qtree, use /vol/Volume/Qtree as the export name and not an alias such as /ExportName.

  • You can use the exports both at the root of a NetApp volume and at subdirectory levels below the root of the volume.
  • Make sure that the storage device is accessible from the source and proxy machine (even if they exist in different domains) using the storage device's short name while mounting NFS exports from the storage device. Make sure to enter the storage device credentials using its short name. Do not use an IP address or the fully qualified domain name.

    E.g., use a short name for the server such as server1 or server2.

Enabling Volume Level Reverts on NFS Volumes

  1. From the CommCell Browser, navigate to Client Computers.
  2. Right-click the <Client>, and then click Properties.
  3. Click Advanced and then click Additional Settings tab.
  4. Click Add.
  5. In the Name field, type sUSE_FILE_LEVEL_REVERT.

    The Category and Type fields are populated automatically.

  6. In the Value field, type N.
  7. Click OK.

Scheduling Backups

Follow the steps given below to schedule a backup:
  1. From the CommCell Browser, navigate to Client Computers | <Client> | Oracle.
  2. Right-click the <Subclient> and click Backup.
  3. Select the Backup type.
  4. Click Schedule to schedule the backup for a specific time.
  5. Click Configure to set the schedule for the backup job. The Schedule Details dialog displays.
  6. Select the appropriate scheduling options.  For example:
    • Click Weekly.
    • Check the days you want the run the backup job.
    • Change the Start Time to 9:00 PM.
    • Click OK to close the Schedule Details dialog.
    • Click OK to close the Backup Options dialog.

    The backup job will execute as per the schedule.

Marking Backups with a Unique Identification Tag

You can configure tags for backups to uniquely identify a particular RMAN backup copy. These tags can be used later during restore operation to restore from a specific backup. Note that the tag defined at the backup job level will override the tag defined at the subclient level.

For a Specific Backup

  1. From the CommCell Browser, navigate to Client Computers | <Client> | Oracle | <Instance>.
  2. Right-click the <Subclient> and click Backup.
  3. Click Advanced.
  1. Click the Oracle Options tab.
  2. In the Oracle Tag box, type the tag name.

    For Example, weekly_backup.

  3. Click OK.

For All Backups

  1. From the CommCell Browser, navigate to Client Computers | <Client> | Oracle | <Instance>.
  2. Right-click the <Subclient> and click Properties.
  3. on the Advanced Backup Options dialog, navigate to the Backup Arguments tab.
  4. In the Oracle Tag box, enter the tag name.
  5. Click OK.

Disabling RMAN Warnings from RMAN Output

By default RMAN warnings are reported in the RMAN output. If such warnings are found during RMAN backup copy operations, the job is reported as ‘Completed With Errors’.

Use the following steps to disable the RMAN warnings:

Globally Disabling All RMAN Warnings

  1. From the CommCell Browser, right-click the <CommServe> and select Properties.
  2. Click the Additional Settings tab.
  3. Click Add.
  4. In the Name box, type sIGNORERMANWARNINGS.
  5. In the Category box, select OracleAgent.
  6. In the Type box, select box, select String.
  7. In the Value box, type Y.
  8. Click OK.

Disabling All RMAN Warnings for a Specific Client

Note that if this option is set in both the client and the CommServe, the client side value will override the value set in the CommServe.

  1. From the CommCell Browser, navigate to Client Computers.
  2. Right-click the <Client> and select Properties.
  3. Click Advanced.
  4. Click the Additional Settings tab.
  5. Click Add.
  6. In the Name box, type sIGNORERMANWARNINGS.
  7. In the Category box, select OracleAgent.
  8. In the Type box, select String.
  9. In the Value box, type Y.
  10. Click OK.

Globally Disabling Specific RMAN Warnings

  1. From the CommCell Browser, right-click the <CommServe> and select Properties.
  2. Click the Additional Settings tab.
  3. Click Add.
  4. In the Name box, type sIGNORE_RMAN_WARNINGLIST.
  5. In the Category box, select OracleAgent.
  6. In the Type box, select String.
  7. In the Value box, type RMAN-<number_rman_code1>,RMAN-<number_rman_code2>,...

    For example, to disable RMAN-06061 warning at the CommServe level, type sIGNORE_RMAN_WARNINGLIST RMAN-06061.

  8. Click OK.

Disabling Specific RMAN Warnings for a Client

Note that if this option is set in both the client and the CommServe, the client side value will override the value set in the CommServe.

  1. From the CommCell Browser, navigate to Client Computers.
  2. Right-click the <Client> and select Properties.
  3. Click Advanced.
  4. Click the Additional Settings tab.
  5. Click Add.
  6. In the Name box, type sIGNORE_RMAN_WARNINGLIST.
  7. In the Category box, select OracleAgent.
  8. In the Type box, select String.
  9. In the Value box, type RMAN-<number_rman_code1>,RMAN-<number_rman_code2>,...

    For example, to disable RMAN-06061 warning at the client level, type sIGNORE_RMAN_WARNINGLIST RMAN-06061.

  10. Click OK.

Managing Jobs

Jobs can be managed in a number of ways. The following sections provide information on the different job management options available:

Restarting Jobs

Jobs that fail to complete successfully are automatically restarted based on the job restartability configuration set in the Control Panel. This configuration can be changed at any time; however, changes to this configuration will affect all jobs run in the entire CommCell.

It is also possible to override the default CommServe configuration for individual jobs by configuring retry settings when initiating the job. This configuration, however, will apply only to the specific job.

Backup jobs for this Agent are resumed from the point-of-failure.

Configure Job Restartability at the CommServe Level

  1. In the CommCell Console, click the Control Panel icon, then double-click Job Management.
  2. In the Job Restarts tab of the Job Management dialog box, select a job type from the Job Type list, and then select the Restartable check box.
  3. To change the maximum number of times the Job Manager will try to restart a job, select a number in the Max Restarts box.
  4. To change the time interval between attempts by the Job Manager to restart the job, select a number of minutes in the Restart Interval (Mins) box.
  5. Click OK to save your changes.

Configure Job Restartability for an Individual Job

  1. From the Backup Options dialog box, click Advanced, then select the Job Retry tab and specify the following as desired:
    • Total Running Time - The maximum elapsed time, in hours and minutes, from the time that the job is created.
    • Number of Retries - The number of times that Job Manager will attempt to restart the job.
    • Kill Running Jobs When Total Running Time Expires - Option to kill the job when the specified Total Running Time has elapsed, even if its state is "Running".
  2. Click OK.

Controlling Jobs

The following controls are available for running jobs in the Job Controller window:

Suspend

 Temporarily stops a job. A suspended job is not terminated; it can be restarted at a later time. Only preemptible jobs can be suspended.

Resume

 Resumes a job and returns the status to Waiting, Pending, Queued, or Running depending on the availability of resources or the state of the operation windows and activity control settings.

Backup jobs for this Agent are resumed from the point-of-failure.

Kill

 Terminates a job.

These controls can be applied to:

  • All jobs in the Job Controller.
  • All selected jobs in the Job Controller providing you have the correct security associations at the proper level for each job selected.
  • All data protection operations running for a particular client or client/agent.
  • All data protection operations running for a particular MediaAgent.

From the Job Controller of the CommCell Console, right-click the job and select Kill, Suspend, or Resume as desired.

  • When killing a job:

    Click Yes when the confirmation prompt appears if you are sure you want to kill the job. The job status may change to Kill Pending for a few moments while the operation completes. Once completed, the job status will change to Killed and it will be removed from the Job Controller window after five minutes.

  • When suspending a job:

    The job status may change to Suspend Pending for a few moments while the operation completes. The job status then changes to Suspended.

  • When resuming a job:

    As the Job Manager attempts to restart the job, the job status changes to Waiting, Pending, or Running.

Additional Options

The following table describes the available additional options to further refine your backup operations:

Option Description Related Topics
Startup Options

The Startup Options are used by the Job Manager to set priority for resource allocation. This is useful to give higher priority to certain jobs. You can set the priority as follows:

  1. From the CommCell Browser, navigate to Client Computers | < Client> | Oracle | < Instance> .
  1. Right-click the Subclient in the right pane and click Backup.
  2. Click Advanced and click Startup tab.
  3. Select the Change Priority checkbox.
  4. Enter a priority number - 0 is the highest priority and 999 is the lowest priority.
  5. Select the Start up in suspended State check box to start the job in a suspended state.
  6. Click OK.
 Refer to Job Priority and Priority Precedence.
Alerts

This option enables users or user groups to get automatic notification on the status of the data protection job. Follow the steps given below to set up the criteria to raise notifications/alerts:

  1. From the CommCell Browser, navigate to Client Computers | <Client> | Oracle | <Instance>.
  1. Right-click the Subclient in the right pane and click Backup.
  2. Click Advanced and select the Alert tab.
  3. Click Add Alert.
  4. From the Add Alert Wizard dialog box, select the required threshold and notification criteria and click Next.
  5. Select the required notification types and click Next.
  6. Select the recipients and click Next.
  7. Click Finish.
  8. Click OK.
 Refer to Alerts and Notifications.
Vault Tracker

This feature provides the facility to manage media that is removed from a library and stored in offsite locations. Depending on your Vault Tracker setup, select the required options. Use the following steps to access and select the Vault Tracker options.

  1. From the CommCell Browser, navigate to Client Computers | <Client> | Oracle | <Instance>.
  1. Right-click the Subclient in the right pane and click Backup.
  2. Click Advanced and select the Vault Tracking tab.
  3. Select the required options.
  4. Click OK.
 Refer to Vault Tracker.
Extended Data Retention

This option allows you to extend the expiration date of a specific job. This will override the default retention set at the corresponding storage policy copy. Follow the steps given below to extend the expiration date:

  1. From the CommCell Browser, navigate to Client Computers | <Client> | Oracle | <Instance>.
  1. Right-click the Subclient in the right pane and click Backup.
  2. Click Advanced and select the Media tab.
  3. Select one of the following options:
    • Infinite - Select this option to extend the expiration date by infinite number of days
    • Number of day - Select this option to specify the number of days to extend the expiration date and then enter the number of days.
  4. Click OK.
 Refer to Extended Retention Rules.
Allow Other Schedules To Use Media Set

The Allow Other Schedules to use Media Set option allows jobs that are part of the schedule or schedule policy and using the specific storage policy to start a new media. It also prevents other jobs from writing to the same set of media.

  1. From the CommCell Browser, navigate to Client Computers | <Client> | Oracle | <Instance>.
  1. Right-click the Subclient in the right pane and click Backup.
  2. Click Advanced and select the Media tab.
  3. Select the Allow Other Schedules To Use Media Set check box.
  4. Click OK.
 Refer to Creating an Exportable Media Set.
Mark Media Full

This option marks the media as full, two minutes after the successful completion of the data protection job. This option prevents another job from writing to this media. Follow the steps given below:

  1. From the CommCell Browser, navigate to Client Computers | <Client> | Oracle | <Instance>.
  1. Right-click the Subclient in the right pane and click Backup.
  2. Click Advanced and select Media tab.
  3. Select the Mark Media Full on Success check box.
  4. Click OK.
 Refer to Start New Media.
Start New Media

The Start New Media option enables you to start the data protection operation on a new media. This feature provides control over where the data physically resides. Use the following steps to start the data protection operation on a new media:

  1. From the CommCell Browser, navigate to Client Computers | <Client> | Oracle | <Instance>.
  1. Right-click the Subclient in the right pane and click Backup.
  2. Click Advanced and select the Media tab.
  3. Select the Start New Media check box.
  4. Click OK.
 Refer to Start New Media.
Data Path Options

Data Protection operations use a default Library, MediaAgent, Drive Pool, and Drive as the Data Path. You can use this option to change the data path if the default data path is not available. Follow the steps given below to change the default data path:

  1. From the CommCell Browser, navigate to Client Computers | <Client> | Oracle | <Instance>.
  1. Right-click the Subclient in the right pane and click Backup.
  2. Click Advanced and select the Data Path tab.
  3. Select the MediaAgent and Library.
  4. Select the Drive Pool and Drive for tape library.
  5. Click OK.
 Refer Change Data Path.
CommCell Readiness Report The CommCell Readiness Report provides you with vital information such as connectivity and readiness of the Client, MediaAgent, and CommServe. It is useful to run this report before performing a backup or a recovery operation. Follow the steps given below to generate the report:
  1. On the CommCell Console menu bar, select the Reports tab.
  2. Click Readiness.

    The Report Selection dialog box appears.

  3. If necessary, select Reports | CommServe | CommCell Readiness in the left pane.
  4. Select the Computers tab, and then click Modify below the Computers list.
  5. In the dialog box that appears, clear Include All Client Computers and All Client Groups.
  6. Select the appropriate client from the Exclude list, and then click Include >.
  7. Click OK.
  8. Select the MediaAgent tab, and then clear Include All MediaAgents.
  9. Select the appropriate MediaAgent from the Exclude list, and then click Include >.
  10. Click Run.

    The report appears in your default Web browser.

 Refer to CommCell Readiness Report.
Backup Job Summary Report The Backup Job Summary Report provides you with information about all of the backup jobs that are run in last 24 hours for a specific subclient. You can get information such as status, time, data size, and so on for each backup job. It is useful to run this report after performing the backup. Follow the steps given below to generate the report:
  1. On the CommCell Console menu bar, select the Reports tab.
  2. Click Summary.

    The Report Selection dialog box appears.

  3. If necessary, select Reports | Jobs | Job Summary in the left pane.
  4. On the General tab, select Data Management.
  5. Select the Computers tab.
  6. Select Subclient, and then select the Edit sub tab.
  7. Navigate to Client Computers | <Client> | File System | Backup Set | <Subclient>.
  8. Click Run.

    The report appears in your default Web browser.

 Refer to Backup Job Summary Report.

Related Topics

Scheduling

Provides comprehensive information on scheduling jobs.

Job Management

Provides comprehensive information on managing jobs.