Re: Informix 5.x/7.x Backup

Tony, When you do a restore from an ontape in version 7.x you are asked if you want to restore a specific dbspace or the whole instance. When you do the ontape backup it is the same as version 5 you don't have to change tapes for each dbspace. Regards David Ashby ______________________________ Reply Separator _________________________________ Subject: Informix 5.x/7.x Backup Author: Tony Marasco <tonmar@berksiu.k12.pa.us> at WCA-INET Date: 23/12/97 4:11 PM We are considering many backup strategies and I was wondering if anyone has similar needs. We are running Online 5.x presently with many unique databases. Using "tbtape" saves all spaces and databases and I was told it restores all spaces and databases. This is not satisfactory as it is possible for one database to need a restore while the others do not. We were told that Online 7.x allows single spaces to be saved and restored. It was suggested that each database be placed into its own space. A restore to a space is equivalent to a single database restore. I am guessing that Online 7.x saves a space to a tape. That is, I cannot save two or more different spaces to the same tape. Therefore, using the above scenario forces me to store 3 databases/spaces on 3 tapes. We will have at least 25 of these unique databases so that could mean 25 tapes! Presently I am using tbtape and dbexport to perform the nightly backups. That way I have each database stored and the complete collection of databases on different tapes. I was told (and read) that I should not rely on dbexport for backups (I do check to see if it was completed.) I also know that I have to change logging manually (down Online, archive, change logging, turn Online online) after a dbimport. This action causes me to force all Informix users. My questions are: Is there a way to perform 'on-the-fly' restores without changing logging to a specific database? Is there any 3rd party backup software that allows me to save/restore a single database? I am considering writing a script to archive all databases to a single 'save' space so they can be restored any time. Should I consider this or simply rely on dbexport? Any help is greatly appreciated! Happy Holidays!