Re: Oracle Enterprise Backup Utility (EBU)

I have implemented EBU on a number of databases and have found it particularly useful to standardise the methods used across the organisation (which previously consisted of a number of different shell-scripted methods.

A good benefit to those DBA's that have a separate UNIX support group is that EBU can give more control, without having to resort to calling on the Unix team to schedule new or extra backups (or recoveries !). Also, far more checking (eg. checksums) take place, which makes problems with the backups highly visible to the DBA.

The best advise that I can give is to ensure that you fully test the backup and recovery of your database with any new/updated version of EBU as there are some bugs (some of which Oracle would call 'features') which, although not usually serious, could still cause unnecessary stress during a real-life recovery. For example, I have found situations where point-in-time restore does not recover all of the files required to perform the necessary point-in-time recovery. Often, there are work-arounds for these problems.

Assuming that you are not constrained to an early version by your operating system, then use 2.1 or later, as these will backup the catalogue to tape following the database backup (meaning that you do not have to perform your own exports of the catalogue). Also, implementation of the later versions are more straight-forward.

At my site, we now have EBU running on HP, SUN and Sequent with Legato's Networker and OpenVision's Netbackup. With a variety of DLT devices.

Restore takes significantly longer than the backups. An example in one of our environments is a 150Gb database took 3.5 hours to backup, and 12.5 hours to restore. It is worth experimenting with different sized archivelog files.

Check with your potential backup API vendors whether their software allows for parallel recovery as well as parallel backup.

I believe that the initial implementation and testing will more than justify itself in ease of administration once you have procedures in place.

Hope this helps.

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Chris Cummings wrote in message <357C2015.76E5D9B_at_dsworks.com>...


>I need to determine if Oracle's Enterprise Backup Utility is a reliable

>backup/recovery solution for an environment with multiple large database

>servers.  Comments from anyone who has production experience with this

>utility would be appreciated.  The proposed environment will include

>several RS/6000 database servers running Oracle 7.3.3 and a tape backup

>library from Legato or from IBM (ADSM).  The backup strategy will

>include both hot and cold backups.  Thanks in advance for your help!

>

>--

>Chris Cummings

>Dallas Softworks, Inc.

>

>chris_at_dsworks.com       (214) 350-6085 Voice  2351 W. Northwest Hwy.

>http://www.dsworks.com  (214) 769-4317 Cell   Suite 2215

>                        (214) 351-2139 Fax    Dallas, TX 75220

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