Gettings Started: Microsoft SQL Backups

Applies to NovaBACKUP Business Essentials and NovaStor DataCenter

There are not many prerequisites for performing a backup of a MSSQL Instance, but there are a couple that absolutely must be done.

Make sure your version of MSSQL is supported by NovaBACKUP

• NovaBACKUP Business Essentials: Current NovaBACKUP Version / Changelog
• NovaStor DataCenter: DataCenter System Requirements

Make sure you are using the current available version of Business Essentials or DataCenter

• NovaBACKUP Business Essentials: http://novabackup.com/downloads 
• NovaStor DataCenter: Contact your rep or email enterprisesupport@novastor.com 

Make sure you are on the current Service Pack ( at the minimum) for your edition of MSSQL

• Good resources to check build versions: 
  • https://buildnumbers.wordpress.com/sqlserver/ 
  • https://sqlserverbuilds.blogspot.com/ 

REQUIRED SQL SETTING: Ensure Windows or Mixed Mode Authentication is enabled

• SQL is normally not restricted anymore, but in the instance where your installation is set to run in SQL Only mode, this must be adjusted
• By default, SQL will have Windows Authentication enabled, our service must be able to connect to your SQL Instance to request a backup using "Local System" or a Windows Administrator Account
• Information on how to change this can be found in various places:
  • https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/sql/database-engine/configure-windows/change-server-authentication-mode?view=sql-server-ver15
  • http://kb.kcsi.ca/Knowledgebase/How-to-Change-from-Sql-Server-Windows-mode-to-Mixed-Mode-SQL-SERVER-2008
  • https://www.top-password.com/knowledge/sql-server-authentication-mode.html

REQUIRED SQL SETTING: Database access for our service(s)

• By default our backup service runs as the "Local System" account that also, by default, has access to a SQL Instance. If your SQL configuration has been restricted though you will need to make sure the account our service is running as is able to request a backup
  1. Add the sysadmin role to NT AUTHORITY\LOCAL SYSTEM using SQL Server Management Studio
     
     • [SMB] Cannot see SQL 2017/2016/2014/2012/2008r2 in NovaBACKUP
  2. OR Change the account the backup service utilizes to request data
     • NovaBACKUP Business Essentials: nsService.exe performs backup operations
     • NovaBACKUP DataCenter: The services that start with with either "NovaStor DC" or "NBK" (depending on the version of DataCenter used), it is only needed to set the service to run as a different user for two services, the "DC Hiserv" service and the "DC Remote Command Executor" service, you do not need to edit any other services.
       • See [Guide] Adding Credentials to Services For MSSQL, NAS, and Hypervisor backups

OPTIONAL SQL SETTING: For DataCenter make sure the "Recovery Model" of the database is set to "Full"

• If the "Recovery Model" is set to "Simple", Incremental/log backups will fail. Full backups will still function