Creating VSS backups of SQL Server databases

You can back up standard SQL Server databases or availability databases by using Microsoft Volume Shadow Copy Service (VSS).

1. Start Microsoft Management Console (MMC).
2. If you plan to use offloaded backups, and your environment is configured for use with a Tivoli Storage Manager server, specify a value in the Remote DSMAGENT Node name field.
   1. Select the SQL Server instance in the tree view, and click Properties in the Actions pane.
   2. Select the VSS Backup property page. If the Remote DSMAGENT Node name is blank, enter a node name.
   An offloaded backup uses another system (specified with the Remote DSMAGENT Node name parameter) to move SQL Server data to Tivoli Storage Manager server storage. Offloaded backups can reduce the load on network, I/O, and processor resources during backup processing.
3. On the Protect tab of an SQL Server instance, select an option for viewing databases.

   Table 1. Database backup views

   Task	Action
   View a list of SQL Server databases that are available for a backup operation	Click View: Databases.
   View a list of SQL Server 2012 and later version availability databases that are available for a backup operation	Click Standard Databases. Information about the availability databases in an availability group is displayed, including the replica role, synchronization state, and space and log usage. Toggle the Standard Databases / Availability Databases button for the respective database views.

   Refine the list of available databases in the results pane by entering a keyword in the Search field. Then, select the databases to back up.

4. Verify the backup options. If the backup options are not displayed, click Show Backup Options. If you want to use offloaded backups, select Yes in the Offload field.
5. In the Actions pane, click Backup Method and select VSS.
6. On the Actions pane, select TSM for the Backup Destination. The only option that is available to you is TSM because the database backups are stored on Tivoli Storage Manager server storage.
7. Optional: Choose a mode for the current task:
   • Run Interactively: Click this item to run the current task interactively. This selection is the default.
   • Run Scheduled: Click this item to convert the current action into a scheduled task. When you select this item, the schedule wizard runs the command that is required to complete the task.
8. To start the backup operation, in the Actions pane, take one of the following actions:
   1. Click Full Backup. Alternatively, right-click a database and select the backup action that you require from the menu.
   2. Click Copy-Only Full Backup. A copy-only full backup is independent of the sequence of SQL Server backups, and is not used as a base for a differential backup. A differential backup is not associated with the copy-full backup, but is associated with the previous full backup that completed. You might use a copy-only full backup as a special purpose backup that does not affect backup and restore operations, and retain such a backup for longer than conventional backups.
9. Review the status of the backup operation by clicking Task List in the results pane. Click Task Details to view detailed status information.