sql-server-managed-backup-to-microsoft-azure.md

title	description	author	ms.author	ms.reviewer	ms.date	ms.service	ms.subservice	ms.topic
SQL Server managed backup to Microsoft Azure	SQL Server Managed Backup to Microsoft Azure manages and automates SQL Server backups to Microsoft Azure Blob storage.	MashaMSFT	mathoma	randolphwest	04/18/2024	sql	backup-restore	conceptual

SQL Server managed backup to Microsoft Azure

[!INCLUDE SQL Server]

[!INCLUDE ss-managed-backup] manages and automates SQL Server backups to Microsoft Azure Blob storage. You can choose to allow SQL Server to determine the backup schedule based on the transaction workload of your database, or use advanced options to define a schedule. The retention settings determine how long the backups are stored in Azure Blob storage. [!INCLUDE ss-managed-backup] supports point in time restore for the retention time period specified.

Note

In [!INCLUDE sssql16-md], the procedures and underlying behavior of [!INCLUDE ss-managed-backup] have changed. For more information, see Migrate managed backup settings.

[!INCLUDE ss-managed-backup] is recommended for SQL Server instances running on Microsoft Azure virtual machines.

Benefits

Currently automating backups for multiple databases requires developing a backup strategy, writing custom code, and scheduling backups. Using [!INCLUDE ss-managed-backup], you can create a backup plan by specifying only the retention period and storage location. Although advanced settings are available, they aren't required. [!INCLUDE ss-managed-backup] schedules, performs, and maintains the backups.

[!INCLUDE ss-managed-backup] can be configured at the database level or at the SQL Server instance level. When configured at the instance level, any new databases are also backed up automatically. Settings at the database level can be used to override instance level defaults on an individual case.

You can also encrypt the backups for added security, and you can set up a custom schedule to control when the backups are taken. For more information on the benefits of using Microsoft Azure Blob storage for [!INCLUDE ssNoVersion] backups, see SQL Server backup and restore with Azure Blob Storage.

Prerequisites

Microsoft Azure Storage is used by [!INCLUDE ss-managed-backup] to store the backup files. The following prerequisites are required:

Prerequisite	Description
Microsoft Azure Account	You can get started with Azure with a free trial before exploring purchase options.
Azure Storage account	The backups are stored in Azure Blob Storage associated with an Azure storage account. For step-by-step instructions to create a storage account, see Create a storage account.
Blob container	Blobs are organized in containers. You specify the target container for the backup files. You can create a container in the Azure Management Portal, or you use the New-AzureStorageContainerAzure PowerShell command.
Shared access signature (SAS)	Access to the target container is controlled by a Shared Access Signature (SAS). For an overview of SAS, see Grant limited access to Azure Storage resources using shared access signatures (SAS). You can create a SAS token in code or with the New-AzureStorageContainerSASToken PowerShell command. For a PowerShell script that simplifies this process, see Simplifying creation of SQL Credentials with Shared Access Signature ( SAS ) tokens on Azure Storage with PowerShell. The SAS token can be stored in a SQL Credential for use with [!INCLUDE ss-managed-backup].
SQL Server Agent	SQL Server Agent must be running for [!INCLUDE ss-managed-backup] to work. Consider setting the startup option to automatic.
Readable AG secondary	If you're offloading your managed backups to a secondary replica of an Always On availability group, the secondary replica must be set to Readable for managed backups to succeed.

Components

Transact-SQL is the main interface to interact with [!INCLUDE ss-managed-backup]. System stored procedures are used for enabling, configuring, and monitoring [!INCLUDE ss-managed-backup]. System functions are used to retrieve existing configuration settings, parameter values, and backup file information. Extended events are used to surface errors and warnings. Alert mechanisms are enabled through SQL Agent jobs and SQL Server Policy Based Management. The following list of objects include a description of their functionality in relation to [!INCLUDE ss-managed-backup].

PowerShell cmdlets are also available to configure [!INCLUDE ss-managed-backup]. SQL Server Management Studio supports restoring backups created by [!INCLUDE ss-managed-backup] by using the Restore Database task.

System object	Description
msdb	Stores the metadata, backup history for all the backups created by [!INCLUDE ss-managed-backup].
managed_backup.sp_backup_config_basic	Enables [!INCLUDE ss-managed-backup].
managed_backup.sp_backup_config_advanced	Configures advanced settings for [!INCLUDE ss-managed-backup], such as encryption.
managed_backup.sp_backup_config_schedule	Creates a custom schedule for [!INCLUDE ss-managed-backup].
managed_backup.sp_ backup_master_switch	Pauses and resumes [!INCLUDE ss-managed-backup].
managed_backup.sp_set_parameter	Enables and configures monitoring for [!INCLUDE ss-managed-backup]. Examples: enabling extended events, mail settings for notifications.
managed_backup.sp_backup_on_demand	Performs an ad hoc backup for a database that is enabled to use [!INCLUDE ss-managed-backup] without breaking the log chain.
managed_backup.fn_backup_db_config	Returns the current [!INCLUDE ss-managed-backup] status and configuration values for a database, or for all the databases on the instance.
managed_backup.fn_is_master_switch_on	Returns the status of the master switch.
managed_backup.sp_get_backup_diagnostics	Returns the events logged by Extended Events.
managed_backup.fn_get_parameter	Returns the current values for backup system settings such as monitoring and mail settings for alerts.
managed_backup.fn_available_backups	Retrieves available backups for a specified database or for all the databases in an instance.
managed_backup.fn_get_current_xevent_settings	Returns the current extended event settings.
managed_backup.fn_get_health_status	Returns the aggregated counts of errors logged by Extended Events for a specified period.

Backup strategy

The following sections describe a backup strategy for [!INCLUDE ss-managed-backup].

Backup scheduling

You can specify a custom backup schedule using the system stored procedure managed_backup.sp_backup_config_schedule. If you don't specify a custom schedule, the type of backups scheduled and the backup frequency is determined based on the workload of the database. The retention period settings are used to determine the length of time a backup file should be retained in the storage and the ability to recover the database to a point-in-time within the retention period.

Backup file naming conventions

[!INCLUDE ss-managed-backup] uses the container that you specify, so you have control over the name of the container. For the backup files, non availability databases are named using the following convention: The name is created using the first 40 characters of the database name, the database GUID without the -, and the timestamp. The underscore character is inserted between segments as separators. The .bak file extension is used for full backup and .log for log backups. For databases in an availability group (AG), in addition to the file naming convention described previously, the AG database GUID is added after the 40 characters of the database name. The AG database GUID value is the value for group_database_id in sys.databases.

Full database backup

[!INCLUDE ss-managed-backup] agent schedules a full database backup if any of the following conditions is true.

• A database is [!INCLUDE ss-managed-backup] enabled for the first time, or when [!INCLUDE ss-managed-backup] is enabled with default settings at the instance level.

• The log growth since last full database backup is equal to or larger than 1 GB.

• The maximum time interval of one week has passed since the last full database backup.

• The log chain is broken. [!INCLUDE ss-managed-backup] periodically checks to see whether the log chain is intact by comparing the first and last LSNs of the backup files. If there's break in the log chain for any reason, [!INCLUDE ss-managed-backup] schedules a full database backup. The most common reason for log chain breaks is probably a backup command issued using Transact-SQL or through the Backup task in SQL Server Management Studio. Other common scenarios include accidental deletion of the backup log files, or accidental overwrites of backups.

Transaction log backup

[!INCLUDE ss-managed-backup] schedules a log backup if any of the following conditions is true:

• No log backup history can be found. This is usually true when [!INCLUDE ss-managed-backup] is enabled for the first time.

• The transaction log space used is 5 MB or larger.

• The maximum time interval of 2 hours since the last log backup is reached.

• Anytime the transaction log backup is lagging behind a full database backup. The goal is to keep the log chain ahead of full backup.

Retention period settings

When enabling backup, you must set the retention period in days: The minimum is 1 day, and maximum is 90 days.

[!INCLUDE ss-managed-backup] based on the retention period settings, assesses the ability to recover to a point in time in the specified time, to determine what backup files to keep and identifying the backup files to delete. The backup_finish_date of the backup is used to determine and match the time specified by the retention period settings.

Considerations

For a database, if there's an existing full database backup job running, then [!INCLUDE ss-managed-backup] waits for the current job to be completed before doing another full database backup for the same database. Similarly, only one transaction log backup can be running at a given time. However, a full database backup and a transaction log backup can run concurrently. Failures are logged as Extended Events.

If more than 10 concurrent full database backups are scheduled, a warning is issued through the debug channel of Extended Events. [!INCLUDE ss-managed-backup] then maintains a priority queue for the remaining databases that require a backup until the all backups are scheduled and completed.

Note

SQL Server managed backup isn't supported with proxy servers.

Supportability

The following support limitations and considerations are specific to [!INCLUDE ssnoversion-md]:

• Backup of master, model, and msdb system databases is supported. Backup of tempdb isn't supported.

• All recovery models are supported (Full, Bulk-logged, and Simple).

• [!INCLUDE ss-managed-backup] agent only supports database full and log backups. File backup automation isn't supported.

• The Microsoft Azure Blob Storage is the only supported backup storage option. Backups to disk or tape aren't supported.

• [!INCLUDE ss-managed-backup] uses the Backup to Block Blob feature. The maximum size of a block blob is 200 GB. But by utilizing striping, the maximum size of an individual backup can be up to 12 TB. If your backup requirements exceed this limit, consider using compression, and test the backup file size before setting up [!INCLUDE ss-managed-backup]. You can either test by backing up to a local disk or manually backing up to Microsoft Azure storage using the BACKUP TO URL Transact-SQL statement. For more information, see SQL Server backup to URL for Microsoft Azure Blob Storage.

• [!INCLUDE ss-managed-backup] might have some limitations when it's configured with other technologies supporting backup, high availability, or disaster recovery.

• Backups of databases in an availability group are copy-only backups.

• If you're offloading your managed backups to a secondary replica of an Always On availability group, the secondary replica must be set to Readable for managed backups to stripe multiple files.

Related content

• Enable SQL Server managed backup to Azure
• Configure advanced options for SQL Server managed backup to Microsoft Azure
• Disable SQL Server Managed Backup to Microsoft Azure
• Back up and restore: System databases (SQL Server)
• Back Up and Restore of SQL Server Databases