Backing Up the Database Instance 

Use

You save the database instance.

Prerequisites

You have the DBM operator authorization Backup.

You have opened a utility session.

Syntax

backup_start <medium> [<backup_for>] [<type>] [AUTOIGNORE]

<medium>

Name of the backup media,
For a backup on several parallel media specify the name of the media group. This must be defined first (
Defining or Changing a Backup Medium).

<backup_for>

RECOVERY | MIGRATION
Indicate whether the backup shall be made with checkpoint (for migration) or without checkpoint (for recovery). If nothing is specified, the backup is made without checkpoint.

<type>

Type of Backup: DATA (Complete data backup), PAGES (Incremental data backup) or LOG (Log backup)

AUTOIGNORE

The backup is to be automatically continued without the last medium reported as full (Continue Backup Without Last Known Full Medium)

If you are using media that is already available, it is vital you follow the current media naming conventions (see Defining or Chaning Backup Media) to avoid error messages.

Reply

The reply to this command provides information about the backup supplied by the kernel.

This information is only given when the backup has been ended or interrupted. This command may therefore take a long time to execute.

OK<NL>
Return code <value><NL>
Date [<value>]<NL>
Time [<value>]<NL>
Server [<value>]<NL>
Database [<value>]<NL>
Kernel Version [<value>]<NL>
Pages Transferred [<value>]<NL>
Pages Left [<value>]<NL>
Volumes [<value>]<NL>
Medianame [<value>]<NL>
Location [<value>]<NL>
Error text [<value>]<NL>
Label [<value>]<NL>
Is Consistent [<value>]<NL>
First LOG Page [<value>]<NL>
Last LOG Page [<value>]<NL>
DB Stamp 1 Date [<value>]<NL>
DB Stamp 1 Time [<value>]<NL>
DB Stamp 2 Date [<value>]<NL>
DB Stamp 2 Time [<value>]<NL>
Page Count [<value>]<NL>
Devices Used [<value>]<NL>
Database ID [<value>]<NL>
Max Used Data Page [<value>]<NL>

Values for the individual fields of the reply

Date

Date

Time

Time

Server

Name of the database server

Database

Name of the database

Kernel Version

Database kernel version

Pages Transferred

Number of pages transferred

Pages Left

Number of pages left

Volumes

Number of backup volumes used

Medianame

Name of backup medium

Location

File or device name

Errortext

Error message text

Label

Backup Label

Is Consistent

Only for data backup: backup is internally consistent

First LOG Page

For data backup: first page of log backup to be read

For log backup: first page saved in log

Last LOG Page

Only for log backup: last page saved in log

DB Stamp 1 Date
DB Stamp 1 Time

Time stamp for first page of log backup

DB Stamp 2 Date
DB Stamp 2 Time

Time stamp for last page of log backup

Page Count

Total number of pages saved

Devices Used

Number of backup devices used

Database ID

Database ID used to identify data and log backups that belong together

Max Used Data Page

Maximum number of pages used (indication of minimum database size when backup is imported)

Reply in the Event of an Error

If an error occurs while you are using an external backup tool, you will receive a reply in the following format:

ERR<NL>
<errcode>, <err_description><NL>
[<extended_description><NL>]

<errcode>

Error message number

See also: Messages: SAP DB 7.2 and 7.3

<err_description>

Description of the error

<extended_description>

Cause of error

 

The following errors may occur:

<errcode>

<err_description>

Explanation

-24927

ERR_TOOLCHK: the external backup tool was not found

The external backup tool could not be found or has been installed incorrectly.

-24926

ERR_MEDIUMCHK: the medium cannot be used with an external backup tool

The medium specified cannot be used with the backup tool the medium name refers to (Defining and Changing Backup Media).

-24925

ERR_PREPARE: prepare of the backup operation failed

The preparations necessary to use the backup tool were not made correctly.

-24924

ERR_DBREQ: cannot start database kernel request

The database instance was unable to start the backup.

-24923

ERR_TOOLREQ: cannot start external backup tool correctly

The backup tool could not be started correctly.

-24922

ERR_OPCHK: cannot check state of backup operation

Unable to check the status of the database instance or the backup tool.

-24921

ERR_POSTOP: cannot finish backup operation correctly

Although the backup was successful, the post-processing steps required could not be performed.

-24920

ERR_BACKUPOP: backup operation was unsuccessful

The backup failed due to a problem with the database or the backup tool.

-24919

ERR_CLEANUP: cannot clean up correctly after backup operation

Although the backup was successful, the temporary system resources that were used could not be freed up again.

If it is clear from the message number that the backup was only interrupted, the session must be continued with the continuation command: (backup_replace, backup_ignore), or terminated with backup_cancel.