VSS provides a Windows-specific interface that enables coordination between requesters that back up data, writers that update data on disk, and providers that manage storage.

Oracle Database functions as a writer that is integrated with VSS-enabled applications.

You can use VSS-enabled software and storage systems on Windows to back up and restore an Oracle Database. A key benefit is the ability to use a VSS-enabled application to make an online backup of the whole database.

Learn how to perform database backup and recovery in the VSS infrastructure.

This chapter assumes that you are familiar with VSS applications and the Oracle Database backup and recovery principles and techniques described in. This chapter does not attempt to provide an introduction to backup and recovery.