Backup Central

Attachments: Message as HTML

Dear All,

I am running bacula version "2.0.2" on Linux Redhat enterprise 4. The server
is running moodle application. Basically a web application with MYSQL
database.

I want to make sure that the back up of MYSQL is done even when the database
is being accessed. Meaning when users are modifying the database, and the
backup is running at the same time, I just want to make sure about the
result, and how bacula will handle this. As I read it takes a shadow or
snapshot, backs it up and then delete the image, I just want a confirmation
message, that the database will not be skipped during the back up.

Best regards,
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mostafa Itani

System Administrator

American University of Beirut
College Hall B2

P.O. Box 11-0236 Beirut, Lebanon

Tel: +961 1 350000 - Ext: 3518

Cell: +961 3 811972

Web: http://www.aub.edu.lb

On 2007.06.12. 11:27, Mostafa Itani wrote:
Dear All,

I am running bacula version “2.0.2” on Linux Redhat enterprise 4. The
server is running moodle application. Basically a web application with
MYSQL database.

I want to make sure that the back up of MYSQL is done even when the
database is being accessed. Meaning when users are modifying the
database, and the backup is running at the same time, I just want to
make sure about the result, and how bacula will handle this. As I read
it takes a shadow or snapshot, backs it up and then delete the image, I
just want a confirmation message, that the database will not be skipped
during the back up.

there are several ways to accomplish this.

1. if all (or most) of your tables are innodb, the best probably is to
use mysqldump and dump databases in a single transaction.
a) you can dump the data to files, which later get backed up by bacula;
b) you can take db backup through a pipe

2. you can also place your db on lvm, and backup script can lock all
tables for writing, take a volume snapshot, unlock tables and then back
up the snapshot.
could be less reliable for complex systems.

Best regards,
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mostafa Itani

System Administrator

American University of Beirut
College Hall B2

P.O. Box 11-0236 Beirut, Lebanon

Tel: +961 1 350000 - Ext: 3518

Cell: +961 3 811972

Web: http://www.aub.edu.lb <http://www.aub.edu.lb>
--
Rich

Mostafa Itani wrote:
Dear All,



I am running bacula version “2.0.2” on Linux Redhat enterprise 4. The
server is running moodle application. Basically a web application with
MYSQL database.



I want to make sure that the back up of MYSQL is done even when the
database is being accessed. Meaning when users are modifying the
database, and the backup is running at the same time, I just want to
make sure about the result, and how bacula will handle this. As I read
it takes a shadow or snapshot, backs it up and then delete the image, I
just want a confirmation message, that the database will not be skipped
during the back up.

Bacula by itself doesn't have anything special for backing up MySQL (or any
other databases) - it just reads the files it's pointed at. Typically you
want to do something like this:

1) Ensure the database is in a consistent state (no partial transactions
committed), if necessary by stopping the applications.

2) Create an extract of the database, such as via mysqldump.

3) Restart the application.

4) Let Bacula back up the extract.

--
Frank Sweetser fs at wpi.edu | For every problem, there is a solution that
WPI Senior Network Engineer | is simple, elegant, and wrong. - HL Mencken
GPG fingerprint = 6174 1257 129E 0D21 D8D4 E8A3 8E39 29E3 E2E8 8CEC