Back Up a Database Using the Console

This article explains how to manage backups in the Recovery Service and the Object Storage using the Console.

For more information about backups, see Back Up and Recovery in Base Database Service.

Required IAM Policy

To use Oracle Cloud Infrastructure, you must be granted security access in a policy by an administrator. This access is required whether you’re using the Console or the REST API with an SDK, CLI, or other tool. If you get a message that you don’t have permission or are unauthorized, verify with your administrator what type of access you have and which compartment to work in.

If you’re new to policies, see Getting Started with Policies and Common Policies.

Navigate to the List of Standalone Backups for Your Current Compartment

Perform the following steps to navigate to the list of standalone backups in your compartment using the OCI Console:

1. Open the navigation menu, select Oracle AI Database, and then select Oracle Base Database Service.

   The DB Systems list page opens. All DB systems in the selected compartment are displayed in a table.

2. On the DB system list page, under Resources, select Standalone Backups to view the list of standalone backups.

Configure Automatic Backups for a Database

When you start a DB system, you can optionally enable automatic backups for the initial database.

Procedure

Perform the following steps to configure or disable automatic backups after the database is created using the OCI Console:

Note: Switching the backup destination will trigger an immediate full backup by default. This full backup cannot be rescheduled.

1. On the DB Systems list page, select the DB system that contains the database that you want to work with. If you need help finding the list page or the DB system, see List the DB Systems.
2. On the Databases tab, select the database that you want to work with.
3. On the database details page, on the Database information tab, the Backup section indicate whether automatic backups are enabled. When backups are enabled, the details also indicate the selected backup retention period.
4. On the database details page, from the Actions menu, select Configure automatic backups.
5. In the Configure automatic backups panel, enter the following details:

Switch on or off the Enable automatic backups toggle as per your requirement. If you are enabling automatic backups, you can select to configure the Recovery Service or Object Storage as the backup destination.

Note: To use Recovery Service as a backup destination, the Oracle Database version must be 19.18 or later.

Your choice to use Recovery Service as the backup destination depends on the available limits in your tenancy and the available capacity in the specific region. The following restrictions apply to all regions when you enable automatic backups and want to use Recovery Service as the backup destination:

• If you have available limits and if there is available capacity in the region, then your choices are Recovery Service (default) and Object Storage.
• If you have exhausted the default limits for the Recovery Service, then you can only use Object Storage. However, you can make an additional limits request and then use Recovery Service.
• If there is no available capacity in the region, then you can use only Object Storage. However, after the required capacity becomes available in the region, you can seamlessly switch from Object Storage to Recovery Storage.
• Ampere A1 shape-based DB systems can only be backed up in the Object Storage.

Effective June 23, 2026, when you enable automatic backups using the OCI Console, the Autonomous Recovery Service will be the only available backup destination under the following conditions:

• The tenancy was created on or after June 23, 2026.

• The database is deployed in one of the following OCI regions:

  Netherlands Northwest (Amsterdam) AMS, Colombia Central (Bogota) BOG, Brazil East (Sao Paulo) GRU, Indonesia North (Batam) HSG, India South (Hyderabad) HYD, US East (Ashburn) IAD, South Korea Central (Seoul) ICN, Malaysia West 2 (Kulai) JBP, Saudi Arabia West (Jeddah) JED, Morocco West (Casablanca) LEJ, UK South (London) LHR, Italy Northwest (Milan) LIN, Spain Central (Madrid) MAD, Israel Central (Jerusalem) MTZ, Italy North (Turin) NRQ, Spain Central (Madrid 3) ORF, Chile Central (Santiago) SCL, Chile West (Valparaiso) VAP, Brazil Southeast (Vinhedo) VCP, Canada Southeast (Montreal) YUL, and Canada Southeast (Toronto) YYZ.

• The Oracle Database version is later than 19.18 or 23.4.

If any of these conditions are not met, OCI Object Storage will be shown as a backup destination.

Effective May 15, 2026, when you enable automatic backups using the OCI Console, Autonomous Recovery Service will be the only available backup destination under the following conditions:

• The tenancy was created on or after May 15, 2026.

• The database is deployed in one of the following OCI regions:

  Sweden Central (Stockholm) ARN, UAE Central (Abu Dhabi) AUH, India West (Mumbai) BOM, France Central (Paris) CDG, UK West (Newport) CWL, UAE East (Dubai) DXB, South Africa Central (Johannesburg) JNB, Japan Central (Osaka) KIX, Australia Southeast (Melbourne) MEL, France South (Marseille) MRS, Mexico Northeast (Monterrey) MTY, US Midwest (Chicago) ORD, Mexico Central (Queretaro) QRO, Saudi Arabia Central (Riyadh) RUH, US West (San Jose) SJC, Singapore (Singapore) SIN, Australia East (Sydney) SYD, Singapore West (Singapore) XSP, South Korea North (Chuncheon) YNY, or Switzerland North (Zurich) ZRH.

• The Oracle Database version is later than 19.18 or 23.4.

If any of these conditions are not met, OCI Object Storage will be shown as a backup destination.

Effective August 06, 2025, when you enable automatic backups through the OCI Console, Autonomous Recovery Service will be the only available backup destination under the following conditions:

• The tenancy was created on or after August 06, 2025.

• The database is deployed in one of the following OCI regions:

  Germany Central (Frankfurt) FRA, US West (Phoenix) PHX, or Japan East (Tokyo) NRT.

• The Oracle Database version is later than 19.18 or 23.4.

If any of these conditions are not met, OCI Object Storage will be shown as a backup destination.

Recovery Service

If Recovery Service is selected as the Backup destination, you can configure the following options:

• Protection policy: You can select from one of the preset protection policies or a custom policy. The system automatically deletes your backups at the end of your chosen protection policy recovery window.

  The following retention periods are available for Recovery Service. The retention periods (in days) are defined in the Recovery Service protection policy.

  • Bronze (14 days)
  • Silver (35 days) (default)
  • Gold (65 days)
  • Platinum (95 days)
  • Custom (User defined protection policy)
• Real-time data protection: Real-time protection is the continuous transfer of redo changes from a protected database to Recovery Service. This reduces data loss and provides a recovery point objective (RPO) near 0. This is an extra cost option.

• Deletion options after database termination: You can use the following options to retain managed database backups after the database is terminated. These options can also help restore the database from backups in case of accidental or malicious damage to the database.

  • Retain backups according to the retention period: When a database is terminated, the automatic database backups associated with the terminated database and all of its resources will be removed at the end of the specified retention period.
  • Retain backups for 72 hours, then delete: When a database is terminated, the automatic database backups associated with the terminated database and all of its resources will be retained for 72 hours and then deleted. The backups are retained for 72 hours to safeguard against accidental deletion by the user.
• Scheduled day for initial backup: Select a day of the week for the initial backup to begin.
• Scheduled time for initial backup (UTC): Select a time for the initial backup to begin. The initial backup could start at any time or within the chosen two-hour scheduling window.
• Scheduled time for daily backup (UTC): Select a time for the daily backup to begin. The daily backup could start at any time or within the chosen two-hour scheduling window.
• Take the first backup immediately: A full backup is an operating system backup of all data files and the control file that constitute an Oracle Database. A full backup must also include the parameter files associated with the database. You can take a database backup when the database is shut down or while the database is open. You must typically not take a backup after an instance failure or other unusual circumstances. If you select to defer the initial backup, your database may not be recoverable in the event of a database failure.

Object Storage

If Object Storage is selected as the Backup destination, you can configure the following options:

• Backup retention period: If you select to enable automatic backups, you can select a policy with one of the preset retention periods. The system automatically deletes your incremental backups at the end of your chosen retention period. You can change the backup retention period after provisioning.

  The following retention periods are available for Object Storage.

  • 7 days
  • 15 days
  • 30 days (default)
  • 45 days
  • 60 days

• Deletion options after database termination: You can use the following options to retain managed database backups after the database is terminated. These options can also help restore the database from backups in case of accidental or malicious damage to the database.

  • Retain backups according to the retention period: When a database is terminated, the automatic database backups associated with the terminated database and all of its resources will be removed at the end of the specified retention period.
  • Retain backups for 72 hours, then delete: When a database is terminated, the automatic database backups associated with the terminated database and all of its resources will be retained for 72 hours and then deleted. The backups are retained for 72 hours to safeguard against accidental deletion by the user.
• Scheduled day for full backup: Select a day of the week for the initial and future full backups to begin.
• Scheduled time for full backup (UTC): Select a time for the full backup to begin. The full backup could start at any time or within the chosen two-hour scheduling window.
• Scheduled time for incremental backup (UTC): Select a time for the incremental backup to begin. The incremental backup could start at any time or within the chosen two-hour scheduling window.
• Take the first backup immediately: A full backup is an operating system backup of all data files and the control file that constitute an Oracle Database. A full backup must also include the parameter files associated with the database. You can take a database backup when the database is shut down or while the database is open. You must typically not take a backup after an instance failure or other unusual circumstances. If you select to defer the initial backup, your database may not be recoverable in the event of a database failure.

Select Save.

The database details page displays the automatic backup status and details in the Backup section.

Configure Automatic Backups for a Standby Database

Procedure

Perform the following steps to configure automatic backups for a standby database using the OCI Console:

1. On the DB Systems list page, select the DB system that contains the database that you want to work with. If you need help finding the list page or the DB system, see List the DB Systems.
2. On the Databases tab, select the database that you want to work with.
3. On the database details page, select the Data Guard associations tab.
4. In the list of standby databases, select the database for which you want to configure automatic backups.
5. On the standby database details page, on the Database information tab, the Backup section indicate whether automatic backups are enabled. When backups are enabled, the details also indicate the selected backup retention period.
6. On the standby database details page, from the Actions menu, select Configure automatic backups.
7. In the Configure automatic backups panel, enter the following details:

Note: If the backup was already configured on the primary database, then the standby must use the same backup destination.

Switch on or off the Enable automatic backups toggle as per your requirement. If you are enabling automatic backups, you can select to configure the Recovery Service or Object Storage as the backup destination.

Note: To use Recovery Service as a backup destination, the Oracle Database version must be 19.18 or later.

Your choice to use Recovery Service as the backup destination depends on the available limits in your tenancy and the available capacity in the specific region. The following restrictions apply to all regions when you enable automatic backups and want to use Recovery Service as the backup destination:

• If you have available limits and if there is available capacity in the region, then your choices are Recovery Service (default) and Object Storage.
• If you have exhausted the default limits for the Recovery Service, then you can only use Object Storage. However, you can make an additional limits request and then use Recovery Service.
• If there is no available capacity in the region, then you can use only Object Storage. However, after the required capacity becomes available in the region, you can seamlessly switch from Object Storage to Recovery Storage.
• Ampere A1 shape-based DB systems can only be backed up in the Object Storage.

Effective June 23, 2026, when you enable automatic backups using the OCI Console, the Autonomous Recovery Service will be the only available backup destination under the following conditions:

• The tenancy was created on or after June 23, 2026.

• The database is deployed in one of the following OCI regions:

  Netherlands Northwest (Amsterdam) AMS, Colombia Central (Bogota) BOG, Brazil East (Sao Paulo) GRU, Indonesia North (Batam) HSG, India South (Hyderabad) HYD, US East (Ashburn) IAD, South Korea Central (Seoul) ICN, Malaysia West 2 (Kulai) JBP, Saudi Arabia West (Jeddah) JED, Morocco West (Casablanca) LEJ, UK South (London) LHR, Italy Northwest (Milan) LIN, Spain Central (Madrid) MAD, Israel Central (Jerusalem) MTZ, Italy North (Turin) NRQ, Spain Central (Madrid 3) ORF, Chile Central (Santiago) SCL, Chile West (Valparaiso) VAP, Brazil Southeast (Vinhedo) VCP, Canada Southeast (Montreal) YUL, and Canada Southeast (Toronto) YYZ.

• The Oracle Database version is later than 19.18 or 23.4.

If any of these conditions are not met, OCI Object Storage will be shown as a backup destination.

Effective May 15, 2026, when you enable automatic backups using the OCI Console, Autonomous Recovery Service will be the only available backup destination under the following conditions:

• The tenancy was created on or after May 15, 2026.

• The database is deployed in one of the following OCI regions:

  Sweden Central (Stockholm) ARN, UAE Central (Abu Dhabi) AUH, India West (Mumbai) BOM, France Central (Paris) CDG, UK West (Newport) CWL, UAE East (Dubai) DXB, South Africa Central (Johannesburg) JNB, Japan Central (Osaka) KIX, Australia Southeast (Melbourne) MEL, France South (Marseille) MRS, Mexico Northeast (Monterrey) MTY, US Midwest (Chicago) ORD, Mexico Central (Queretaro) QRO, Saudi Arabia Central (Riyadh) RUH, US West (San Jose) SJC, Singapore (Singapore) SIN, Australia East (Sydney) SYD, Singapore West (Singapore) XSP, South Korea North (Chuncheon) YNY, or Switzerland North (Zurich) ZRH.

• The Oracle Database version is later than 19.18 or 23.4.

If any of these conditions are not met, OCI Object Storage will be shown as a backup destination.

Effective August 06, 2025, when you enable automatic backups through the OCI Console, Autonomous Recovery Service will be the only available backup destination under the following conditions:

• The tenancy was created on or after August 06, 2025.

• The database is deployed in one of the following OCI regions:

  Germany Central (Frankfurt) FRA, US West (Phoenix) PHX, or Japan East (Tokyo) NRT.

• The Oracle Database version is later than 19.18 or 23.4.

If any of these conditions are not met, OCI Object Storage will be shown as a backup destination.

Recovery Service

If Recovery Service is selected as the Backup destination, you can configure the following options:

• Protection policy: You can select from one of the preset protection policies or a custom policy. The system automatically deletes your backups at the end of your chosen protection policy recovery window.

  The following retention periods are available for Recovery Service. The retention periods (in days) are defined in the Recovery Service protection policy.

  • Bronze (14 days)
  • Silver (35 days) (default)
  • Gold (65 days)
  • Platinum (95 days)
  • Custom (User defined protection policy)
• Real-time data protection: Real-time protection is the continuous transfer of redo changes from a protected database to Recovery Service. This reduces data loss and provides a recovery point objective (RPO) near 0. This is an extra cost option.

• Deletion options after database termination: You can use the following options to retain managed database backups after the database is terminated. These options can also help restore the database from backups in case of accidental or malicious damage to the database.

  • Retain backups according to the retention period: When a database is terminated, the automatic database backups associated with the terminated database and all of its resources will be removed at the end of the specified retention period.
  • Retain backups for 72 hours, then delete: When a database is terminated, the automatic database backups associated with the terminated database and all of its resources will be retained for 72 hours and then deleted. The backups are retained for 72 hours to safeguard against accidental deletion by the user.
• Scheduled day for initial backup: Select a day of the week for the initial backup to begin.
• Scheduled time for initial backup (UTC): Select a time for the initial backup to begin. The initial backup could start at any time or within the chosen two-hour scheduling window.
• Scheduled time for daily backup (UTC): Select a time for the daily backup to begin. The daily backup could start at any time or within the chosen two-hour scheduling window.
• Take the first backup immediately: A full backup is an operating system backup of all data files and the control file that constitute an Oracle Database. A full backup must also include the parameter files associated with the database. You can take a database backup when the database is shut down or while the database is open. You must typically not take a backup after an instance failure or other unusual circumstances. If you select to defer the initial backup, your database may not be recoverable in the event of a database failure.

Object Storage

If Object Storage is selected as the Backup destination, you can configure the following options:

• Backup retention period: If you select to enable automatic backups, you can select a policy with one of the preset retention periods. The system automatically deletes your incremental backups at the end of your chosen retention period. You can change the backup retention period after provisioning.

  The following retention periods are available for Object Storage.

  • 7 days
  • 15 days
  • 30 days (default)
  • 45 days
  • 60 days

• Deletion options after database termination: You can use the following options to retain managed database backups after the database is terminated. These options can also help restore the database from backups in case of accidental or malicious damage to the database.

  • Retain backups according to the retention period: When a database is terminated, the automatic database backups associated with the terminated database and all of its resources will be removed at the end of the specified retention period.
  • Retain backups for 72 hours, then delete: When a database is terminated, the automatic database backups associated with the terminated database and all of its resources will be retained for 72 hours and then deleted. The backups are retained for 72 hours to safeguard against accidental deletion by the user.
• Scheduled day for full backup: Select a day of the week for the initial and future full backups to begin.
• Scheduled time for full backup (UTC): Select a time for the full backup to begin. The full backup could start at any time or within the chosen two-hour scheduling window.
• Scheduled time for incremental backup (UTC): Select a time for the incremental backup to begin. The incremental backup could start at any time or within the chosen two-hour scheduling window.
• Take the first backup immediately: A full backup is an operating system backup of all data files and the control file that constitute an Oracle Database. A full backup must also include the parameter files associated with the database. You can take a database backup when the database is shut down or while the database is open. You must typically not take a backup after an instance failure or other unusual circumstances. If you select to defer the initial backup, your database may not be recoverable in the event of a database failure.

Select Save.

The database details page displays the automatic backup status and details in the Backup section.

Create an On-Demand Backup of a Database

Perform the following steps to create an on-demand backup of a database using the OCI Console:

Note: Object Storage creates a full backup, while the Recovery Service creates an incremental backup of the database.

1. On the DB Systems list page, select the DB system that contains the database that you want to work with. If you need help finding the list page or the DB system, see List the DB Systems.
2. On the Databases tab, select the database that you want to work with.
3. On the database details page, select the Backups tab to view the list of backups.
4. Select Create backup.

5. In the Create Backup panel, enter the following details:

   • Provide a name for the backup database.

   • Select Backup retention from the following options:

     • Retain backups per backup retention period: Select this option to use the protection policy retention period for this backup.
     • Specify long-term backup retention period: Select this option to specify an LTR period with Recovery Service. The retention period must be in days (90 - 3650) or years (1 - 10) from when the backup was created.
6. Select Create.

Change the Retention Period of a Long-Term Retention Backup

Perform the following steps to change the retention period of an LTR backup with Recovery Service using the OCI Console:

1. Open the navigation menu, select Oracle AI Database, and then select Oracle Base Database Service.

   The DB Systems list page opens. All DB systems in the selected compartment are displayed in a table.

2. If you have a standalone backup, under Resources, select Standalone backups, and skip to step 7 below.
3. On the DB Systems list page, select the DB system that contains the database that you want to work with. If you need help finding the list page or the DB system, see List the DB Systems.
4. On the Databases tab, select the database that you want to work with.
5. On the database details page, select the Backups tab to view the list of backups.
6. In the list of backups, select the Actions menu for the backup with type Long-term backup for which you want to change the retention period.
7. Select Change retention period.
8. Enter the Backup retention period. The retention period must be in days (90 - 3650) or years (1 - 10) from when the backup was created.
9. Select Save.

View Details of a Protected Database

Perform the following steps to view the details of the protected database using the OCI Console:

1. On the DB Systems list page, select the DB system that contains the database that you want to work with. If you need help finding the list page or the DB system, see List the DB Systems.
2. On the Databases tab, select the database that you want to work with.
3. On the database details page, on the Database information tab, the Backup section indicate whether automatic backups are enabled. When backups are enabled, the details also indicate the chosen backup details.
4. Select the Recovery Service link in the Backup destination to view the details of the protected database.

For more information, see Managing Protected Databases.

View Status of a Backup

Perform the following steps to view the backup status of a database using the OCI Console:

1. On the DB Systems list page, select the DB system that contains the database that you want to work with. If you need help finding the list page or the DB system, see List the DB Systems.
2. On the Databases tab, select the database that you want to work with.
3. On the database details page, select the Backups tab to view the list of backups.

4. The State column displays the status of the backup.

   The following are the various states of the backup: Active, Creating, Canceled, Canceling, or Failed.

Cancel a Backup

Perform the following steps to cancel a backup of a database using the OCI Console:

Note: Only backups in the Creating state can be canceled.

1. On the DB Systems list page, select the DB system that contains the database that you want to work with. If you need help finding the list page or the DB system, see List the DB Systems.
2. On the Databases tab, select the database that you want to work with.
3. On the database details page, select the Backups tab to view the list of backups.

4. The State column displays the status of the backup.

   The following are the various states of the backup: Active, Creating, Canceled, Canceling, or Failed.

5. Select the Actions menu for the backup you want to cancel.
6. Select Cancel backup and confirm.
7. The status of the backup changes to Canceling.

If the cancel backup fails, in the Work requests pane under Resources, you will see a line item called Cancel database backup in Failed state. There will also be a work request for the backup initiated by Create database backup that will reflect the state of the backup operation.

Delete Full Backups of a Database

Perform the following steps to delete the full backup of a database using the OCI Console:

Note: You cannot explicitly delete automatic backups. Unless you terminate the database, automatic backups remain in the Recovery Service and Object Storage for the number of days specified by the user, after which time they are automatically deleted.

1. On the DB Systems list page, select the DB system that contains the database that you want to work with. If you need help finding the list page or the DB system, see List the DB Systems.
2. On the Databases tab, select the database that you want to work with.
3. On the database details page, select the Backups tab to view the list of backups.
4. Select the Actions menu for the backup you want to delete.
5. Select Delete and confirm.

Delete Standalone Backups of a Database

Perform the following steps to delete a standalone backup of a database using the OCI Console:

1. Open the navigation menu, select Oracle AI Database, and then select Oracle Base Database Service.

   The DB Systems list page opens. All DB systems in the selected compartment are displayed in a table.

2. On the DB Systems list page, under Resources, select Standalone Backups.

   A list of standalone backups is displayed.

3. On the standalone backups list page, select the Actions menu for the backup you want to delete.
4. Select Delete and confirm.