mds_backup

Description

The mds_backup backs up binaries and data from a Multi-Domain Server to a user specified working directory. You then copy the backup files from the working directory to external storage. This command requires Multi-Domain Superuser privileges.

The mds_backup runs the gtar and dump commands to back up all databases. The collected information is stored in one *.tar file. The file name is a combination of the backup date and time and is saved in the current working directory. For example: 13Sep2019-141437.mdsbk.tar

Important - Starting from Take 103 of R80.20 Jumbo Hotfix Accumulator (PMTR-36614), the mds_backup command generates a file with the *.tar extension (<timestamp>mdsbk.tar) instead of the *.tgz extension (<timestamp>mdsbk.tgz).

To back up a Multi-Domain Server:

Run the mds_backup command from a location outside the product directory tree to be backed up. This becomes the working directory.
After the backup completes, copy the backup *.tar file, together with the mds_restore, gtar and gzip binary files, to your external backup location.

Important notes about backing up and restoring in Management High Availability environment:

To back up and restore a consistent environment, make sure to collect and restore the backups and snapshots from all servers in the High Availability environment at the same time.
Make sure other administrators do not make changes in SmartConsole until the backup operation is completed.

For more information:

About Gaia Backup and Gaia Snapshot, see the R80.20 Gaia Administration Guide.
About Virtual Machine Snapshots, see the vendor documentation.

Syntax

mds_backup -h

mds_backup [-g -b [-d <target_directory>] -s [-v] [-l]]

Parameters

Parameter	Description
`-h`	Shows help text.
`-g`	Executes without prompting to disconnect GUI clients.
`-b`	Batch mode - executes without asking anything (-g is implied).
`-d <`target_directory`>`	Specifies the output directory. If not specified explicitly, the backup file is saved to the current directory. You cannot save the backup file to the root directory.
`-s`	Stop Multi-Domain processes before the backup starts.
`-v`	"Dry run" - Show all files to be backed up, but does not perform the backup operation.
`-l`	Exclude logs from the backup.

Notes:

Do not create or delete Domains or Domain Management Servers until the backup operation completes.
It is important not to run the mds_backup from directories that will be backed up. For example, when backing up a Multi-Domain Server, do not run the mds_backup from the /opt/CPmds-<current_release>/ directory, because it is a circular reference (backing up directory that you need to write into).
The mds_backup does not collect the active Security log files (*.log) and Audit log files (*.adtlog). This is necessary to prevent inconsistencies during the read-write operations.
Best Practice - We recommend that you do a log switch before you start the backup procedure.
You can back up the Multi-Domain Server configuration without the log files. This backup is typically significantly smaller than a full backup with logs. To back up without log files, add this line to the file $MDSDIR/conf/mds_exclude.dat configuration file:
log/*