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Encrypted Retrospect FMP backups to a Snap Server Apps
Retrospect is a popular utility for scripting automated cummulative backups to tape drives that I have used for many years for backing up a FileMakerPro Server installation. This hint documents a migration and a working solution for backing up a large FileMakerPro Server database using mirrored drives to a Snap Server using mirrored drives instead of backing up to a local tape drive. The large capacity of the Snap Server provides a hands off long term solution to on site data backup.

The availability of affordable network file servers such as Snap Servers running as mirrored drives offers a very reliable (redundant) alternative to local tape drives. Retrospect offers automated backup to public folders on a Snap Server, but this represents a security risk since other users on the network can also access this public folder. Although you can create an immediate DES encrypted backup to a Snap Server, I cannot find any option for encryption when creating an automated script. The apparent work around is to create an immediate encrypted backup to the remote mounted Snap Server and then create an automated script that uses this encrypted backup file. If you decide to try this, I encourage you to look at the file using a text editor to ensure that the file remains encrypted over time.

To back up a FileMakerPro Server, use FMP's built-in backup option to create seven scripts (Monday ... Sunday) that halt the server daily when the server is not in use and backup the server database files to seven different folders (Monday ... Sunday). This provides a seven-day rotating local backup. Then use Retrospect to automatically copy one of the folders to an encryted file on a remote Snap Server on a weekly basis (Sat on Sat). This strategy is valid only if both servers use mirrored drives to protect against drive failure. Finally, burn an encrypted backup to CD on a regular basis and store this CD off site.

The use of mirrored drives on both the FMP server and Snap Server provides protection against a drive failure. The Snap Server is not setup to use mirrored drives by default, but is an optional setup on dual-drive Snap Servers. If you don't want to use mirrored drives on the FMP server, you could write the seven local backups to an external drive, but your server will still fail if the internal hard drive goes down. Mirrored drives do not protect you from accidental deletion of a file or simultaneous/unrecognized hard drive failures. I have been running FMPServer under OS X 10.2 on mirrored drives for 16 months without a failure.

Choose DES encryption since simple crypt simply XORs the data against a key and is easily defeated. Use a private IP address pool and an NAT router to protect against Internet access. TEST, TEST, TEST your backups. Remember, if you have not test restored your database on an offsite computer, you do not have a backup system!

Have fun.

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Just a Reminder
Authored by: moop2000 on Apr 21, '04 11:28:26PM

Having done tech support for FileMaker Databases in the past, make sure you don't backup the files being shared by the server. It will corrupt the databases, and I can give you a whole list of problems I've seen when people do this.



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