5
Backing Up and Recovering Database Files

This chapter provides information on backing up and recovering your database.

This chapter contains these topics:

Selecting a Backup and Recovery Tool

Backing up and recovering your Oracle9i database is one of the most critical operations that a database administrator (DBA) performs. For this reason, it is extremely important to choose the correct tools. Table 5-1 describes available backup and recovery tools and makes recommendations on which tool to use with your Oracle9i database:

Table 5-1 Backup and Recovery Tools

Tool	Description	Analysis of Tool	To Use this Tool, See...
Recovery Manager (RMAN) in command line mode	Recovery Manager in command line mode is an Oracle9i tool that manages the process of backing up, restoring, and recovering files. Recovery Manager is automatically installed with Oracle Utilities. Recovery Manager uses a special PL/SQL interface to the server for invoking backup functions. The user is unaware of this interface and instead interfaces only with a command line.	Command line usage only. Must clearly understand the command line syntax described in Oracle9i Recovery Manager Reference before using. Backing up to tape requires an optional MML from a third-party vendor.	"Database Tools Overview" chapter of the Oracle9i Personal Edition Getting Started for Windows 98 for instructions on accessing this tool and Oracle9i Recovery Manager User's Guide for instructions on using this tool.
OCOPY utility	The OCOPY utility is one of several you may use when performing a user-managed backup and recovery. You can also make the following types of backups: Backups when the database is shut down Backups of a tablespace that is offline when the database is open Backups of a tablespace that is online when the database is open	Command line usage only Can back up only to disk Can only perform local backups	"Backing Up Files with the OCOPY Utility" and "Recovering Files with the OCOPY Utility" in this chapter and the Oracle9i User-Managed Backup and Recovery Guide

Tool

Description

Analysis of Tool

To Use this Tool, See...

Recovery Manager (RMAN) in command line mode

Recovery Manager in command line mode is an Oracle9i tool that manages the process of backing up, restoring, and recovering files. Recovery Manager is automatically installed with Oracle Utilities. Recovery Manager uses a special PL/SQL interface to the server for invoking backup functions. The user is unaware of this interface and instead interfaces only with a command line.

Command line usage only. Must clearly understand the command line syntax described in Oracle9i Recovery Manager Reference before using. Backing up to tape requires an optional MML from a third-party vendor.

"Database Tools Overview" chapter of the Oracle9i Personal Edition Getting Started for Windows 98 for instructions on accessing this tool and Oracle9i Recovery Manager User's Guide for instructions on using this tool.

OCOPY utility

The OCOPY utility is one of several you may use when performing a user-managed backup and recovery. You can also make the following types of backups:

Backups when the database is shut down
Backups of a tablespace that is offline when the database is open
Backups of a tablespace that is online when the database is open

Command line usage only
Can back up only to disk
Can only perform local backups

"Backing Up Files with the OCOPY Utility" and "Recovering Files with the OCOPY Utility" in this chapter and the Oracle9i User-Managed Backup and Recovery Guide

Backing Up Files with the OCOPY Utility

Use the OCOPY utility for both hot and raw database file backups of the file types described in Table 5-2:

Table 5-2 File Types for Database File Backups

File	Description
File Allocation Table (FAT)	FAT files you want to back up.

Table 5-3 describes the two copy modes in which to use the OCOPY utility:

Table 5-3 The OCOPY Utility Copy Modes

Copy Mode	The OCOPY utility is used to...
Hard disk	Copy hot files to a new name and location on a hard disk where you can use an archive utility to back them up.
Multiple diskettes	Back up large hot files directly to multiple diskettes.

Table 5-4 describes the syntax to use when backing up all file types to hard disk or multiple diskettes.

Table 5-4 Backing Up File Syntax

Copy Mode	File Type	Syntax
Hard disk	FAT files	`C:\> ocopy` `old_file` `new_file`
Multiple diskettes	FAT files	`C:\> ocopy /B` `hot_file` `a:`

Where...	Indicates the...
`old_file`	name and location of the hot file you want to back up.
`new_file`	name and location of the backup copy.

Note: Always use a fresh diskette for each OCOPY utility procedure; do not use the OCOPY utility to back up a file onto a diskette that contains part or all of another file backed up using the OCOPY utility.

Recovering Files with the OCOPY Utility

Table 5-5 describes the syntax to use when recovering all file types from hard disk or multiple diskettes.

Table 5-5 Recovering File Syntax

Restore From... File Type to Restore Syntax

Restore From...	File Type to Restore	Syntax
Hard Disk	FAT	Use the Windows 98 copy command.
Multiple diskettes	FAT	`C:\> ocopy /R a:` `restore_dir` Note: First insert the diskette containing the initial part of the backed up file.

Hard Disk

FAT

Use the Windows 98 copy command.

Multiple diskettes

FAT

C:\> ocopy /R a: restore_dir

Note: First insert the diskette containing the initial part of the backed up file.

Where...	Indicates the...
`new_file`	File name to which to restore the file.
`/R`	Restore option.
`a:`	Drive containing the diskette with the backed up file.
`restore_dir`	Directory on the server in which to place the file. (The restored file has the same name as the original file.)

5 Backing Up and Recovering Database Files