4.2.13.7 Information System Backup

This topic provides information on information system backup.

The below mentioned following points are true for the topic. These recommendations may yield better results.

1. Database related files through, data files, control files, redo-logs, archived files, init.ora, config.ora etc should be taken at the end of the day.
2. On-line backup of archived redo-log files to be done periodically.
3. Complete export of database and the application should be done atleast once in a week and this can be stored off-site.
4. Complete backup of the Oracle directory (excluding the database related files) periodically.
5. When the database is huge, incremental exports (that is delta or differential exports) and on-line tablespace backups are recommended.
6. RMAN secure backup should be used to ensure that the backups stolen from the production/deployed system cannot be restored in another remote system. Additionally, data masking - a feature offered by Oracle Enterprise Manager – can be used to move data from production environment to a test environment. Both these are very crucial steps towards securing confidential customer data.
7. The database backups should be stored for the required period as per the regulations and bank’s history retention policies. These backups should be securely stored and access should be controlled to authorized users only.