Use BARS to perform backups. Doing so is not just a best practice but also is a Cisco recommendation. BARS functionality has been tested and proven. If you choose to employ your own backup method or software, you should be aware that doing so is unsupported by Cisco.
Figure 4-2 Backup Schedule Settings
BARS can be used to back up the following:
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CallManager Publisher (usually designated as the backup server)•
CallManager Subscribers (known as backup targets)•
TFTP servers that are configured as Subscribers (known as backup targets)•
CDR Analysis and Reporting (CAR)•
Cisco Customer Response Solutions (CRS)Table 4-1 lists the files that BARS captures by default. Table 4-1 Files and Directories Captured by BARS
Backup Target Files and Directories Copied to the Backup Server
CallManager Staging directory:
C:\STI\Backup\CM\MachineName
LMHOSTS and HOSTS files CallManager database CDR database (optional) DC Directory database TFTP subdirectories and files
Bulk Administration Tool (BAT) components and files CallManager registry keys
CallManager DSN CDR/CMR flat files IPMA configuration files
Attendant Console configuration files Cisco Customer Response Solutions
(CRS)
Staging directory:
C:\STI\Backup\Apps\Machine_Name
LMHOSTS and HOSTS files
CRS configuration environment properties Files from C:\Program Files\Wfavvid\ Directories from
C:\Program Files\Cisco\Desktop_config\ Audio files from
C:\Program Files\Cisco\Desktop_Audio Files\ Configuration files (.cfg) from
C:\Program Files\Cisco\Desktop\ Alarm service file from
C:\Program Files\Cisco\AlarmService.ini Files referenced in
C:\Program Files\Wfavvid\sysparams.properties User and system grammar files (.GSL and .DIGIT) User and system prompt files (.wav)
Databases and remote databases (DB_CRA, DB_CRA_CCDR, SCHEDULERDB, FCRasSvr) CDR Analysis and Reporting (CAR)
Staging directory:
C:\STI\Backup\ART\Machine_Name
CAR database*
CAR pregenerated reports Registry keys
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* CAR was formerly called ART (Administrative Reporting Tool). Some directory and other structures still refer to ART.
The use of a third-party backup utility does not restore replication between Publisher and Subscriber servers for the SQL database and LDAP; therefore, the replication must be reestablished manually. Restoring SQL replication is a complex task that most people find quite difficult unless they have extensive SQL administration knowledge. Also, the system user accounts cannot be restored correctly when using third-party tools, because such tools are not configured to work specifically with CallManager. The best way to ensure that CallManager is backed up in a way that can be reliably restored is to use BARS. To back up data files that aren’t explicitly backed up by BARS, you may choose to implement a third-party backup tool in addition to BARS, but not as a replacement for BARS.
WARNING Third-party applications, including backup tools, running on the same platform as CallManager are not supported by Cisco.
Become Familiar with BARS
BARS can be configured to back up CallManager, CRS, CAR, and CER. BARS is supplied on a separate CD-ROM with the CallManager CD-ROM set, but it is not part of the base CallManager installation. It needs to be individually installed on every server that contains data you want backed up (Subscribers) and on the Publisher (which is the backup server). If you are certain that a Subscriber contains no unique information—such as CDR data, coresident applications such as CRS, or other configuration files—there is no need to install BARS on that server.
Table 4-1 summarizes the files and directories that BARS backs up. Always read the BARS release notes on Cisco.com for the latest information on what files are included in a BARS backup. As shown in Figure 4-3, databases go through a dump process that extracts the information from the database to a flat file that is placed in the staging directory before the contents are archived.
Backup Target Files and Directories Copied to the Backup Server
Cisco Emergency Responder (CER) Staging directory:
C:\STI\Backup\CER\Machine_Name
LMHOSTS and HOSTS files CER database
Directories from C:\Program Files\ Cisco Systems\CiscoER\
Individual .jar and .ini files Registry keys
Figure 4-3 Backup Target Through the Backup Destination
Check the Log Files for Errors During Backup
BARS saves the log data displayed during a backup or restore operation in the
C:\Program Files\Common Files\Cisco\Logs\BARS\ directory on the backup server. Files on the backup server contain the date within the filename, such as Restore04-01-04.log or Backup1-30-04.log. The existing log file is appended with additional information about each subsequent backup or restore operation if more than one backup or restore operation is performed on the same date. You should periodically check the log files for recent backup operations by opening the log file and searching for “failed” or “fatal.” It’s important to check the log file regularly, because your future recovery from disaster depends on BARS working as expected.
Move Backup Files if You Perform Multiple Backups in a Single Day
Like the log files, the backup file that contains the actual backed-up data includes the date information within the filename. The directory location or tape device that contains the backup file is specified in BARS. But unlike log files, the backup files, which have a .tar (tape archive) extension, are not appended. So if a backup occurs on June 30, resulting in the file Backup6-30-2004.tar, and another backup is run later in the day, the second backup overwrites the data contained in the Backup6-30-2004.tar file. To prevent the tar file from being overwritten during multiple backup operations on the same day, rename the file or move it from the directory before subsequent backups are performed. In the case of a tape device, remove the tape and insert another blank tape cartridge.
Access BARS via the Web Browser
Before CallManager Release 4.0, the Virtual Network Computing (VNC) remote console package was the preferred tool to use when accessing CallManager and remotely installing software. Windows Terminal Services is not recommended and is disabled during a default Replication Data Publication Data Registry Info LMHOSTS TFTP Files BAT Files CAR Data CRS Data CER Data … Files Database Dump Output Backup Server Backup Target Files and Databases
Backup Destination CCM DB CDR DB Dir DB Disk Storage - or - Staging Directory
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installation. After BARS is installed it can be reached though the web much as the CallManager Administration pages are. The base URL is http://hostname/BARS/ BARSmain.asp. Accessing BARS via a web browser completely eliminates the need for VNC to control backup and restore actions.
Make Sure You Have Enough Free Disk Space on the Backup Server and the Backup Target
BARS displays warnings if the free disk space on the backup server is less than 1.5 times the space needed for the last backup. At least 400 MB of space must exist for a backup to succeed. Each backup target needs enough free disk space for local database dumps plus the files. Therefore, even if sufficient free space is available on the backup server but less than 400 MB of free space is on the backup target, the backup on the target machine is likely to fail. As soon as all the backup data has been gathered (the action of gathering data at this point is called staging) from the backup server and target machines, it is written to the backup storage location. This location can be one of the following:
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A network share location—The best practice option when the network share isdependable and backed up
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A local tape drive—The recommended option when a reliable network share locationis not available