SQL Backup 7 on Azure, possible ?

pGrnd

Is it possible to work with the SQL Backup from yours redgate toolbelt on azure servers ?

when I trying to connect to my SQL server on azure, with the username and the password that I use to raise the databases, and with which I soupose to have all privilegues, it gives me the error :

Login Failure with nameserver.database.sindow...
A problem was encounter whilst comunicating with the server
The user credentials supplied do not represent a member of the sysadmin role,
SQL Backup requieres sysadmin privileges


I had check forums and blogs, and all I can see is that the user and pasword I have, should have enough to perform any single activity on the server, but instead, thats all I got.

Regards,
pGrnd

stanori

Hello,

Thanks for your post. In regards to your question about backing up Azure databases, we have an SQL Azure offering here:

http://cloudservices.red-gate.com/

(If you are looking to backup databases that are located in a virtualized environment that is hosted in the Azure cloud, then as long as you can connect to it via SSMS and have the ability to install Windows Services (for our SQL Backup Agent) you can use SQL Backup Pro)

Best Regards,
Steve

pGrnd

I have see this other product, but I see very much limited compared with the other redGate tools

I am mostly interested in having a reliable backup of the DBs, of course (own azure Websites backups are not 100% reliable according the DBs aside of the limitations) but also have the functionality to make a schema and data comparison between live database and backup version, and I believe this is limited to the SQL toolbet

also, I am already used to your traditional tools

Eddie D

Thank you for your reply.

You cannot use SQL Backup V7 to backup an Azure database. You cannot deploy the SQL Backup Server Components to the Azure server. It is the SQL Backup Server Components that actually perform the backup and restore tasks.

The only work around is to use either the CloudServices offering my colleague directed you to in his reply.

Or, use SQL Compare. Compare and deploy to an empty local SQL Server database / server. Once successfully deployed to the local SQL Server database, backup this database using SQL Backup.

Many Thanks
Eddie

pGrnd

Thanks Eddie for the response

eddie davis wrote:

You cannot use SQL Backup V7 to backup an Azure database. You cannot deploy the SQL Backup Server Components to the Azure server. It is the SQL Backup Server Components that actually perform the backup and restore tasks.

That is finally very clear, much more than any azure information.

eddie davis wrote:

Or, use SQL Compare. Compare and deploy to an empty local SQL Server database / server. Once successfully deployed to the local SQL Server database, backup this database using SQL Backup.

Seem a very large workaround, but it is probably even better than the bacpac that offer azure

The question is, wouldn't be redgate (and many others) be VERY VERY INTERESTED to have Microsoft implementing (full or partial) the SQL Backup Server Components on azure ??

br,
pGrnd

Eddie D

Hi, thank you for your reply.

I am sure that we (Redgate) would love to have a backup solution or add features to our SQL Backup Pro tool for Azure databases.

The problem is with the SQL Backup Server Components, which contain a total of 9 Extended Stored Procedures.

When you make use of an Azure database, there are some limitations listed HERE in this MSDN article. One of those features listed (in amongst a long list) as not being supported, is Extended Stored Procedures. This means that the Server Components installer cannot create the SQL Backup Xprocs.

Also listed as not supported is Backup and Restore, and SQL Server Agent/Jobs.

As Backup and Restore is not supported, our SQL Backup Pro relies upon SQL Server to collect the backup data and write it to the Virtual Device Interface (VDI) created when the backup command is sent to SQL Server. SQL Backup Pro collects the backup data from the VDI, compresses the data (and optionally encrypts it) before the compressed data is written to disk. On an Azure database this process does not occur.

I hope the above provides some further information as to why SQL Backup Pro cannot be used to backup and restore Azure databases.

The solution using our Redgate Tools is either, make use of Redgate cloud services http://cloudservices.red-gate.com/

Or use the tools available in SQL Toolbelt, in particular SQL Compare and SQL Data Compare (Sorry, I omitted the use of SQL Data Compare in my previous reply) to create a local copy of the database that can then be backed up.

Many Thanks
Eddie

pGrnd

Hi Eddie

first of all, thanks a lot for so detailed reply, I am very satisfy with redgate support as I am with your products, that's a hurray for all of you.

what I mean by
"wouldn't be redgate be VERY INTERESTED to have Microsoft implementing the SQL Backup Server Components on azure ?"
is offering my help by asking (or begging) Microsoft to add this functionality, and I sure plenty of other users will follow.

As said, looking forward be able to use your great products on Azure.
Br,
pGrnd

Colin Millerchip

Hi,

There's a Microsoft feedback portal, for Azure SQL Database feature requests - this would be the place to make such a request, so please feel free to hassle them! :-)
http://feedback.azure.com/forums/217321-sql-database

Thanks,


Colin.