NetVault Plug-in for Oracle 11.3

Selecting data for a backup

You must use sets — Backup Selection Set, Backup Options Set, Schedule Set, Target Set, and Advanced Options Set — to create a backup job.

Backup Selection Sets are essential for Incremental and Differential Backups. Create the Backup Selection Set during a Full Backup, and use it for Full, Incremental, and Differential Backups. The backup job reports an error if you do not use a Selection Set for the Incremental or Differential Backup. For more information, see the Quest NetVault Backup Administrator’s Guide.


	TIP: To use an existing set, click Create Backup Job, and select the set from the Selections list.

In the Navigation pane, click Create Backup Job.

You can also start the wizard from the Guided Configuration link. In the Navigation pane, click Guided Configuration. On the NetVault Configuration Wizard page, click Create backup jobs.

In Job Name, specify a name for the job.

Assign a descriptive name that lets you easily identify the job when monitoring its progress or restoring data. The job name can contain alphanumeric and non-alphanumeric characters, but it cannot contain non-Latin characters. On Linux®, the name can have a maximum of 200 characters. On Windows®, there is no length restriction. However, a maximum of 40 characters is recommended on all platforms.

Next to the Selections list, click Create New.

In the list of plug-ins, open Plug‑in for Oracle, and then open the database you want to back up.

If you have not configured the plug-in’s authentication details, enter the required information when the prompt appears, and then click OK.

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Account Name: Specify an Oracle® database user with SYSDBA privileges.

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Password: Enter the password associated with the name specified in the preceding field.

After the plug-in connects to the database and lists the supported file types for selection, select the data that you want to back up.

The plug-in supports the following file types for User Managed backups:

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Parameter File: Select this check box to include the PFILE or the SPFILE for the Oracle database. You can open this node and see the filename; however, file selection is not permitted at that level.

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Control File: When selected, the plug-in takes a snapshot of the Control File and saves it to the path and file specified in the Control File Save Filename (Full Path) field on the Add, or Edit, Oracle Database dialog box. The snapshot copy of the Control File is then backed up to the backup device.

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Archive Logs: Select this option to back up all the archived redo logs specified in the Archive Log Destination Directory field on the User Managed Details tab. The plug-in does not delete the backed-up archived redo logs automatically.

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All Tablespaces: Select this node to back up all the tablespaces within the database, or open it and select individual tablespaces to include in the backup. Currently, the plug-in does not support backing up individual datafiles for User Managed backup selections, but you can select an individual datafile for restoration.

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External Configuration Files (for RMAN Backup Method only): This option applies to the RMAN backup method. If External Configuration Files are included in the selections for the User Managed backup method, a Warning message is shown in the NetVault Backup binary logs. However, the backup job status is not set to Backup Completed for Warnings for this single warning. That is, the backup task ignores the logged warning.

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Post-Backup Scripts: This option applies to the RMAN backup method.


	IMPORTANT: Selecting individual datafiles for backup with the User Managed backup method results in a backup error and a message in the NetVault Backup binary logs, “Individual Datafile Level Backup is not supported by the User Managed Backup Method.” If the files stored in Oracle’s ASM are selected for backup with the User Managed backup method, the backup job fails. This selection includes any datafile, SPFILE, Control File, or any other file stored in ASM. If ASM is enabled for this database, the RMAN backup method must be used.

Click Save, enter a name in the Create New Set dialog box, and click Save.

The name can contain alphanumeric and non-alphanumeric characters, but it cannot contain non-Latin characters. On Linux®, the name can have a maximum of 200 characters. On Windows®, there is no length restriction. However, a maximum of 40 characters is recommended on all platforms.

Inclusive Oracle tablespace backup selection

If a large Oracle® database has been split over a number of separate backup jobs, the content for these jobs is typically explicitly defined; that is, tablespaces are explicitly or manually selected with a large green check mark. If new tablespaces are created within the Oracle Instance, they are not included in the existing backup jobs; they are excluded because the tablespaces have been manually selected while the new tablespaces have not been included in the list of tablespaces to back up.

To ensure that new tablespaces are included in the backups, create another inclusive backup job where the All Tablespaces node is explicitly or manually selected. This step allows newly created tablespaces to be backed up as part of the inclusive backup job.

Example

The database has the following tablespaces:

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Create an ASIA_TS backup job that explicitly selects China_Sales, Japan_Sales, and Korea_Sales tablespaces.

Create a US_TS backup job that explicitly selects LA_Sales, NY_Sales, and SD_Sales tablespaces.

Create an EMEA_TS backup job that explicitly selects London_Sales and UK_Sales tablespaces.

Create an All_TS backup job that explicitly selects the All Tablespaces node and clears all the tablespaces included in the other backup jobs.

Selecting backup options

The next step involves creating the Backup Options Set or selecting an existing one.


	TIP: To use an existing set, in the Plugin Options list, select the set that you want to use.

Next to the Plugin Options list, click Create New.

In the Backup Method section, select the User Managed option to perform a User Managed backup.

If applicable, select the following options:

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Include Read-Only and Offline Tablespaces: By default, the plug-in does not back up read-only and offline tablespaces even if you selected them explicitly on the NetVault Backup Selections page. Read-only and offline tablespaces typically do not require backing up unless the read-only data has been updated or the offline tablespaces have been brought online. Eliminating these tablespaces from the Full User Managed backups reduces the backup window. To include read-only and offline tablespace in the backup, select this option.

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Delete Archive Logs After Successful Backup: If you want to delete the archive logs automatically after they are backed up, thus eliminating the need to delete them manually, select this option. This option is useful when you are backing up the archive logs to backup media.

The plug-in backs up each log sequence number and then delete the file that it has backed up. If you have multiple archive destinations for your redo logs, the other copies of the same log sequence number are not deleted.


	IMPORTANT: Selecting the Delete Archive Logs After Successful Backup option deletes the archive logs even if the backup job fails. Therefore, ensure that the option selected for Incomplete Backup of ALL Items Selected includes retaining a backup saveset to ensure that the archive logs can still be restored.

From the Incomplete Backup of ALL Items Selected list, select the default action for the plug-in.

When multiple items are included in a backup and the plug-in is unable to back up all the items selected, the plug-in lets you specify what action the backup should take. For example, if a job includes multiple tablespaces and archive logs, and the backup of the archive logs is unsuccessful while the tablespaces are backed up successfully, you can specify what action the backup job should take.

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Complete with Warnings — Saveset Retained: The job returns a status of “Backup Completed with warnings” and a backup saveset is created that includes the items that were successfully backed up.

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Complete without Warnings — Saveset Retained: The job completes and returns a status of “Backup Completed.” The errors are logged in the NetVault Backup binary logs and ignored on the Job Status page. A backup saveset is created that includes the items that were backed up.

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Fail — Saveset Retained: The job returns a status of “Backup Failed.” However, a backup saveset is generated that includes the items that were successfully backed up.

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Fail — No Saveset Retained: The job returns a status of “Backup Failed” and no saveset of backed-up objects is kept. That is, even if some of the objects were successfully backed up, the saveset is discarded.

Click Save to save the set.

In the Create New Set dialog box, specify a name for the set, and click Save.

Finalizing and submitting the job

Use the Schedule, Target Storage, and Advanced Options lists to configure any additional required options.

Click Save or Save & Submit, whichever is applicable.


	TIP: To run a job that you have already created and saved, select Manage Job Definitions in the Navigation pane, select the applicable job, and click Run Now.

You can monitor progress on the Job Status page and view the logs on the View Logs page. For more information, see the Quest NetVault Backup Administrator’s Guide.