Oracle (7.x) Hotback on HP-UX

[Emmanuel Roldan]

Hi,
I have an Oracle DB on 10.2 that needs 100% uptime, so no shutting down the database for backups. I'm trying to setup a reliable automatic backup system, that performs a Oracle DB Hotback, then saves the Hotback files along with system files to tape, the next day. I've got some of it scripted, but the script is too buggy/unreliable. Is there something already available?

[Stefan Farrelly]

Any high level backup utility like Omniback, Netbackup, Networker, will talk directly to Oracle's RMAN/EBU process and do the backup simply and reliably to tape. I think it would be far safer to use a well supported high level backup tool such as one of these for something so critical as a reliable hotbackup.

[Rick Garland]

The Oracle tools that operate with Veritas, OmniBack, etc. are the better way to go.

Another option is to have the archive logging turned on. Then your script can bring down the tables and do the backup. When the tables are brought up, the archive log would be applied.

The script version takes down ALL tables. The backup tools only bring down a table that is presently going to backed up.

[Richard Mertz]

I use shell scripts to begin backup on tablespaces and then end backup after it is done. They are fairly simple.

The Begin and End online backup scripts follow:

#@ dbBeginOnLineDatabaseBackup
#@ ---------------------------
#@
#@ Does necessary stuff to start on-line backup
#@
#@ usage: dbBeginOnLineDatabseBackup {database}
################################################
if [ $# -ne 1 ]
then
echo "----------------------------------------------"
echo "usage: dbBeginOnLineDatabaseBackup {database}"
echo "----------------------------------------------"
exit 1
fi

export ORACLE_SID=$1

dbSwitchLog $ORACLE_SID
Password=`GetPassword $ORACLE_SID system`
sqlplus -s< |grep -v "^$"
>$TEMP/dbBeginOnLineDatabaseBackup.sql
system/$Password@$ORACLE_SID
set pagesize 0
select 'alter tablespace '||tablespace_name||' begin backup;'
from dba_tablespaces
where
status!='READ ONLY';
EOF
sqlplus -s<system/$Password@$ORACLE_SID
alter system switch logfile;
alter database backup controlfile to trace;
@$TEMP/dbBeginOnLineDatabaseBackup.sql
EOF

#@ dbEndOnLineDatabaseBackup
#@ ---------------------------
#@
#@ Does necessary stuff to end on-line backup
#@
#@ usage: dbEndOnLineDatabseBackup {database}
################################################
if [ $# -ne 1 ]
then
echo "----------------------------------------------"
echo "usage: dbEndOnLineDatabaseBackup {database}"
echo "----------------------------------------------"
exit 1
fi

export ORACLE_SID=$1

dbSwitchLog $ORACLE_SID
Password=`GetPassword $ORACLE_SID system`
sqlplus -s< |grep -v "^$"
>$TEMP/dbEndOnLineDatabaseBackup.sql
system/$Password@$ORACLE_SID
set pagesize 0
select 'alter tablespace '||tablespace_name||' end backup;'
from dba_tablespaces
where
status!='READ ONLY';
EOF
sqlplus -s<system/$Password@$ORACLE_SID
@$TEMP/dbEndOnLineDatabaseBackup.sql
alter system switch logfile;
EOF

[Denver Osborn]

Have you thought about MirrorDisk/UX?
With the mirrored lvol you could split it w/ lvsplit and run your backup on the split lvol, then merge it back when backup is complete.

[Richard Mertz]

Mirroring will certainly reduce the risk of down time, however it will not exactly solve the backup problem. If you just split the mirrors and back up the database, the backup will be useless.

[Joseph T. Wyckoff]

You would need to stop the database, split the mirror, restart the database, mount the mirror somewhere else and then do the backup.

You should be able to use RMAN and EBU to backup to files or to tape drives HOT as well - although this requires more knowledge of Oracle than I have.

Omniback supports a hot backup - but essentially Omniback uses RMAN or EBU - so if you have those, you have the basic tools you need.

You can try Omniback for 60 days (or so) - you can install from your applications CD -.

Two warnings. Get RMAN or EBU to work first - because if they don't, Omniback won't.

Also, get Omniback patched, and PRINT the administration, release notes, and integrations manuals.

If little or no downtime is the goal, you might consider Omniback in conjunction with an XP256 or somesuch. The XP256 integration is a high end variant of the mirror-split-mirror approach. This can be a complex solution but if high uptime is the goal it fits well.

Good Luck.