About this section
When you specify a SnapManager backup or SnapManager verification operation, you can start the operation immediately, or you can schedule the operation to run later. This topic describes how to schedule a backup or verification job for a later time.
Related topics
• Backing up, replicating, and archiving databases using SnapManager on page 115
• Managing transaction log backups using SnapManager on page 126
• Performing database verification using SnapManager on page 138 Choosing a schedule service
You can use either of the following schedule services to schedule a backup or database verification:
• SQL Server Agent
• Windows Scheduled Task Wizard
Note: Some limitations apply to using SQL Server authentication as the security authentication method to schedule the job. For more information, see About SQL Server authentication in Connecting to an SQL Server instance on page 292.
Backup newly created databases without rescheduling existing backup job
If you want to be able to create backup on newly created databases without rescheduling an existing backup job, you must select all the databases on the server when the backup job is scheduled. The new-backup cmdlet used for the scheduled job will not specify any databases, which indicates the
cmdlet will try to backup all the databases, including the newly created one on the server. You will not need to re-run the configuration wizard.
Note: It is not recommend to change the SnapManager database configuration when a new database is added to the server. For example, if you have only one database in a LUN or VMDK and you add the new database to the same LUN or VMDK, the SnapManager configuration for the original database will change from non-share configuration to share configuration. The old backups for the original database might be deleted, and an up-to-minute restore for old backup might not be possible.
Using the Schedule Job dialog box
Use the Schedule Job dialog box to schedule a backup operation or a database verification operation.
The Schedule Job dialog box opens automatically when you finish specifying the backup or verification operation if you have chosen the option to schedule the operation to be run later.
To use the Schedule Job dialog box, complete the following steps from either Backup and Verify or from the Backup wizard after you have specified the details of the backup or verification operation.
Step Action
1 Click "Schedule..."
2 If the Run Commands dialog box appears, specify the command and then Click OK to close the dialog box.
For more information, see Pre-command and post-command script settings on page 303.
Result The Schedule Job dialog box appears.
3 In the Schedule Job Name box, enter a name for your backup job.
4 Specify what you want to do if a scheduled job of the same name already exists.
If you want to... Then...
Overwrite the existing job with this one
Select the Replace Job if Exists option.
Be prompted to specify a different name
Do not select the Replace Job if Exists option.
5 In the "Select the Scheduling Service to Create Job" panel, select the schedule service you want to use.
Note: If you select SQL Server Agent and the service is stopped, SnapManager will automatically start the SQL Server Agent service for you.
Using the SQL Server Agent
Step Action
6 In the Server Name box, specify the name of the SQL Server instance that you want to use to run this job.
If... Then...
You know the server name Click the Server Name box and enter the server host name.
You prefer to browse to the server name
Click Browse to use a browse dialog box to select the server host name.
7 Click OK.
Result The Properties dialog box appears for the job you are specifying. This is an SQL Server Agent dialog box.
8 In the Properties dialog box, specify the parameters of your job schedule:
• When the job is to run
• If you want the job to repeat, at what frequency 9 Click OK to close the Properties dialog box.
Result The backup job will run at the times you specified in the Properties dialog box.
The backup scheduling process is complete.
Integrity verification on SnapMirror destination volumes and SnapVault secondary volumes
Choosing the volumes
SnapManager enables you to verify the SQL Server databases stored on destination volumes:
SnapMirror destination volumes and SnapVault secondary volumes (clustered Data ONTAP only).
When verifying the integrity of databases on a destination volume, SnapManager automatically detects the existing relationships in the SQL Server volumes and selects the available relationship for the selected volume.
The "Choose SnapMirror Destination Volumes for Integrity Verification" window shows the relationship between the source and the destination volumes. Each volume is displayed as a tree showing the relationship between the storage and the databases. For each source volume, there is a list of destination volumes. You can select a destination volume for each source volume for which you want to verify integrity.
To select the destination volume, complete the following steps.
Step Action
1 Click Backup Verification Settings in the Actions pane.
Result: The Verification Settings dialog box appears.
2 Click the SnapMirror and SnapVault Options tab.
3 Click the "Verification on Destination volumes" button.
Result SnapManager displays the Choose SnapMirror Destination Volumes for Integrity Verification window.
If the volume is not available, SnapManager displays an appropriate error message.
4 Select the destination volumes.
By default, SnapManager displays the "Number of Relationships" field. You cannot edit this value. If the SnapMirror destination volume is not in the SnapMirrored state or does not have FlexClone license installed, SnapManager displays an error message when you click Apply. Integrity verification completes for the source verification volume but fails for the destination volume.
5 Click Apply to save the changes.
Result: SnapManager saves the settings and makes it available whenever you launch the SnapManager application.
6 Click OK.
Understanding the requirements to run integrity verification for SnapMirror destination volumes
To run integrity verification on SnapMirror destination volumes, ensure that the following system configuration requirements are met:
• A SnapMirror license is enabled on the source volume and a FlexClone license is enabled on the destination volume. SnapManager uses SnapDrive to verify that the required licenses are enabled on the source and destination storage system.
• To run integrity verification on the destination volume, the destination volume must have CIFS shares configured, to be accessible by SnapDrive.
• SnapDrive provides access to the SQL Server databases that are stored on the destination volume, and SnapManager performs the integrity verification on backups of those databases.
• Data files and log files should be present on the SnapMirror destination volume.
Note: SnapManager fails the mount operation on a Snapshot copy in the destination volume if the FlexClone license is not enabled on the SnapMirror destination volumes.
Understanding different types of integrity verification for SnapMirror destination volumes
You can run integrity verification on the SnapMirror destination volumes for different SnapManager operations:
• Full database backup verification
• Deferred integrity verification
• Mount Snapshot and Attach Database
• Restore
• Remote verification of full database backup
Full database backup verification When you run integrity verification on the SnapMirror destination volume, SnapManager performs the following operations:
• Creates a Snapshot copy of the database volumes
• Requests SnapMirror update to replicate the data across destination volumes through SnapDrive
• When the SnapMirror update replicates the backup to the selected destination, SnapManager continuously monitors the SnapMirror update activity through SnapDrive, as follows:
◦ SnapDrive provides the SnapMirror update progress information continuously to SnapManager during the update.
◦ SnapManager logs the SnapMirror update activity to the backup report at every defined interval.
Note: If the SnapMirror update operation does not have any progress within a defined interval, SnapManager aborts monitoring it and leaves the backup unverified.
• Creates a Snapshot copy for the SnapInfo volume
• Mounts the available database in the Snapshot copy on the destination volumes.
• Verifies the integrity of databases and transaction logs in the selected destination volumes
• Dismounts the database in the Snapshot copy on the destination volumes.
• Updates database integrity verification result to the live backup SnapInfo.
• Request SnapMirror update to replicate the database verification result to the destination volumes.
Deferred integrity verification For deferred integrity verification (that is, verification at some stage after the backup has been created), SnapManager verifies the SnapMirror state of the destination storage system volume and the existence of a backup Snapshot copy on it. If the Snapshot copy does not exist, SnapManager displays an error message.
When you run a deferred integrity verification on available SnapMirror destination volumes, SnapManager performs the following actions:
If the "SnapMirror update after operation" option is not selected, SnapManager updates the verification results only on the source SnapInfo volumes.
If the "SnapMirror update after operation" option is selected, the following actions occur:
• SnapManager verifies the backup on the selected destination.
• SnapManager updates the verification results to the source SnapInfo volumes.
• SnapMirror replicates the verification results on the source SnapInfo volumes to all the destination SnapInfo volumes.
If the backup is not available on the destination volume, SnapManager fails the mount operation for integrity verification and leaves the backup unverified. In this case, SnapManager does not request the SnapMirror update.
Mount Snapshot and Attach Database When you run an integrity verification for the Mount Snapshot and Attach Database operation, SnapManager performs the following tasks:
• If "Run DBCC CHECKDEB" option is selected, it performs integrity verification on the available selected destination volumes. If "Leave database attached after DBCC" option is selected, the database from the Snapshot copy in the FlexClone destination volumes remains online and operational.
• Displays an appropriate error message, if a backup is not available on the destination volume.
• Updates the verification results to the source SnapInfo volumes
Note: SnapManager does not verify the backup on the source volume, if an unverified SnapManager backup is not available on the destination volume. If you try to run integrity verification in such a case, SnapManager displays an error message.
Restore When you run an integrity verification for a restore operation on the destination volume, SnapManager performs the following actions:
• Performs integrity verification on the destination SnapMirror volumes if a backup is available on the destination volume
• Displays an appropriate error message, if a backup is not available on the destination volume
• Updates the verification results to the source Snapinfo volumes
• Logs the additional steps to the Windows Application event log and to the SnapManager restore report
Remote verification When you run an integrity verification on the destination volume present on the remote destination, SnapManager performs the following actions:
• Creates a backup for the selected database
• Requests SnapMirror Update to replicate the new data to the destination volumes
• Creates a backup for the SnapInfo volume
• Requests SnapMirror Update to replicate the new SnapInfo data to the Destination volumes
• Mounts the database in the SnapShot copy on the destination volumes
• Performs database integrity verification
• Dismounts the database in the SnapShot copy on the destination volumes
• Updates database integrity verification result to the live backup SnapInfo
• Requests SnapMirror Update on the SnapInfo volume to replicate the database verification result to the destination volume