SQL Server Magazine

Without a proper backup, your organization's data is just one administrator error away from disappearing into a dark void. If you're shopping for a backup solution for SQL Server 7.0 data, consider the many factors that affect data backup, such as shrinking backup windows, cost of equipment, and personnel experience in backing up data. You'll notice differences in table backups between SQL Server 6.5 and 7.0. With SQL Server 7.0, you back up only files and filegroups; to back up one table, you need to save that table in a file or filegroup and then back it up. This difference might frustrate systems administrators, but Microsoft's reasons for implementing these changes include system and database stability and consistency.

What should you look for in a tool to assist you in backing up your SQL Server 7.0 databases? Speed and reliability are the two main features, but also look for the ability to restore the database to any hard drive you choose. I evaluated current enterprise-level backup solutions: UltraBac.com's UltraBac 5.02, Computer Associates' ARCserveIT 6.61, Legato's NetWorker 5.5.1, SQL Server's native backup, and VERITAS's NetBackup 3.2.

Test Configuration
To test each product's features and speed, I took a trip to Data General's corporate testing labs in Westboro, Massachusetts. I used a Data General 8700 system with four 500MHz processors and 4GB of RAM (constrained to 3.2GB), connected to a CLARiiON disk array with 60 18GB Seagate Cheetah hard drives. I configured five sets of 10 hard drives, each as RAID 5. Eight additional drives, configured as RAID 5, held the Master and tempdb databases. The other two hard drives mirrored each other and included SQL Server logs. I also set up a second CLARiiON disk array with the same number of drives, each containing formatted 18GB Seagate Cheetah hard drives. I restored each backup product's data set to a new disk system on the second array to simulate an after-disaster full database restore.

Using fibre channel connectivity, I connected an ATL 7100-series tape autoloader to the CLARiiON disk drive. The autoloader included seven DLT drives and a 100-tape storage capacity. I spread the tapes across four SCSI buses on the autoloader to improve response time and reduce network bottlenecks.

To test the backup programs, I set up a 500GB SQL Server 7.0 database called TeraCLIN, which contained all the database tables, on the CLARiiON disk array. Next, I used each product to run a full backup of the database. In some cases, I configured all seven DLT tape drives to write simultaneously using RAID 0; other times, the backup software allowed simultaneous read/write in parallel. Next, I restored the backed-up data to a second disk array and timed the process. I timed each product's backup and restore of the test data separately and then added the times together.

I reviewed additional backup features, such as support for open-file backup (or third-party, open-file backup utilities included with the products), which is important if your databases run 24*7. I evaluated the product's support for parallel data streaming (interleaving) or, lacking that, its support for configuring the drives for simultaneous data streaming with RAID 0. Further, I looked at each product's support for autoloaders, automatic drive configuration, and bar coding of tapes. Finally, I evaluated the documentation and technical support for each product. Table 1, page 48, shows the results.

UltraBac 5.02 Enterprise Edition
UltraBac from UltraBac.com (BEI Corporation) focuses on the Windows NT market, from the small business to the enterprise. UltraBac was the only backup product I tested that came on floppy diskettes—two, to be exact. After starting the setup program, I accepted the default settings and the prompt for the software to create an account with appropriate privileges. Next, I had to set up the optional BEI Medium Changer driver to enable UltraBac to use the ATL autochanger. Then I rebooted my system and opened UltraBac from the Start menu.

Although UltraBac supports autoloaders, it doesn't fully support parallel streaming, bar-code reading and labeling, or other common enterprise-level features. I had to manually load the tapes into each of the seven DLT drives because UltraBac was built to work with individual drives first and autoloaders or jukeboxes second. I set the seven drives as a RAID 0 set to maximize performance.

When UltraBac first ran, it created the BEI Scheduler service and started it automatically. UltraBac documentation states that DLT tape drives lose hardware compression, and recommends that you use the BEI DLTTAPE drive or upgrade the NT 4.0 DLTTAPE.SYS with the corrected version from Service Pack 3 (SP3) or later. To back up my SQL Server 7.0 database, I had to install UltraBac's SQL Server Agent. To use the SQL Server Agent, I had to run the SQL Server 7.0 Client Network utility from the Start menu and enable Named Pipes as the default network library. Next, I checked that SQL Server and Windows NT were selected in the Authentication area of the Security tab in the Properties dialog box.

UltraBac's uncluttered interface was easy to navigate. To back up the test database, I chose a new online SQL backup, selected the TeraCLIN database, gave the set a name, then started the backup. The backup ran without any problems, finishing in 3 hours 15 minutes. This time was the slowest of all the products, and 9 minutes longer than SQL Server's native backup.

Next, I prepared to restore the database. I selected the TeraCLIN database, and the restore started without a hitch. The restore took 7 hours 15 minutes, 20 minutes more than the leader in this review. UltraBac's total backup and restore time was 10 hours 30 minutes, which gave it third place. I was disappointed that if I wanted to do a test restore of the database, I couldn't specify specific drive locations, although I could specify a different system to restore to.

Scheduling backups is easy with UltraBac's intuitive scheduler GUI, which you see in Screen 1; I didn't use the Help file or documentation. UltraBac includes UltraCopy, a media duplication utility, and UltraVue, a utility to view backup data and logs. You can change user preferences and tailor them to your work habits or to the tasks you're trying to complete.

UltraBac performed admirably in backing up my enterprise database; UltraBac also offers Windows NT file and Microsoft Exchange backup in the same program. Although UltraBac finished in the middle of the pack in total backup and restore time, its installation and configuration was among the easiest of the five products. However, I was disappointed that I couldn't use the ATL autoloader's full capabilities.

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