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Contributed
By: Cliff Hobbs [MVP SMS]
One of the BIG FAQS relating to SMS is how do you backup your SMS Site Server?
Well, in order to successfully
backup a SMS site, several Registry keys, files, and directories need to be
backed up.
Registry Keys - There are
two registry keys that need to be backed up:
- The SMS
registry key (HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\SMS)
contains configuration information that is unique to this site such as
encryption and decryption keys.
- The NAL
registry key (HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\NAL)
NAL is the Network Abstraction Layer, which is simply a software layer that
shields applications from the network. Applications pass any network requests
to the NAL layer which sets up and manages the network connection. It is vital
that this registry key is backed up as it contains network connection
information for the site such as the CAP list.
Files - The Site Control
File is a key file that needs to be backed up. The Site Control File is an ASCII
text file that contains the configuration settings for a site. Each time a
configuration change is made to the site, the Site Control File is updated to
reflect the change.
Directories - The SMS
directory needs to be backed up as it contains items used to maintain the site
as well as the SMS components themselves. This directory also contains other
files such as inventory files, error history files, trace logs, compressed
packages, and pending send requests.
Backing up an SMS Server
By default a SMS server isn't backed up. SMS SP1 includes the "Backup
SMS Site Server" task to help
automate this process, which is enabled from the "Database
Maintenance" window within
the MMC. This task is governed by the "SMSBKUP.CTL"
file, which is explained below.
SMSBKUP.CTL Explained
The SMSBKUP.CTL file is an ASCII text file that can be edited to customise
how an SMS site backup is performed. The file lives in "SMS\Inboxes\SMSbkup.box"
and is broken down into four distinct sections:
Tokens - This section of
the file doesn't normally require any modification. It contains an explanation
of the local variables that are already setup by SMS to be used by the SMS back
program (SMSBKUP.EXE)
to backup the SMS site. For example the "SITE_CODE"
variable contains the three character code assigned to the site at the time it
was installed.
Stop - As the SMS Site
Database is in fact a SQL 7.0 database that permits multi-user access, before
the database can be backed up using the SMSBKUP.CTL file, everyone using the
database needs to stop using it
This section of the file lists
the services that will be stopped in order for the database to be backed up.
Lines can be remmed out for any components that aren't installed to prevent
errors from being generated.
It is important to note that not
all of the SMS services need to be stopped in order for the site database to be
backed up (for example the Remote Control service doesn't need to be stopped).
Tasks - This section of
the file contains the tasks that actually perform the backup. The backup
directory is deleted first to ensure different versions of backups aren't mixed
up. Next the SMS directory is backed up.
After the SMS directory is backed
up, the "MACHINFO.BAT"
is called, the purpose of which is to report on the configuration of the SMS
Site Server being backed up and add it to the backup.
This batch file makes use of the
following NT Resource Kit utilities:
- NLTEST.EXE
(although SMSBKUP.CTL mentions it is required, there is no trace of this
command actually being used in either batch file)
- NOW.EXE (to
capture the current date and time)
- SRVINFO.EXE
(is initially run with the "-D"
switch to show which services and service drivers are running on the site
server. The command is then run a second time with the "-NS"
switch)
- TLIST.EXE (the
Task List Viewer that displays a list of tasks and processes running on
computer).
In addition to the above Resource
Kit utilities, this batch file also uses several standard NT commands and the
Windows version of Microsoft Diagnostics (WINMSD.EXE which is run with the "/A"
switch (to generate a complete system report) and "/F"
switch (for the report to be written to a file), to generate the system
configuration report.
Once the MACHINFO.BAT file has
completed running, various Registry keys are backed up including the SMS and NAL
registry keys.
Once again, lines can be remmed
out for any components that aren't installed to prevent errors from being
generated.
The next part of the batch file
relates to running the various SQL commands to check and repair the database for
any corruption before it is backed up. This section is often mis-read as meaning
if the lines to run the consistency checks are un-remarked, the commands
themselves will in fact run BEFORE the SQL database(s) is backed up. The reality
is that these lines are merely a recommendation by Microsoft to run these
commands separately BEFORE the SMS backup routine is run. These checks can be
run automatically from within SMS by enabling the "Rebuild
Indexes" task through the
MMC.
The standard SQL databases are
then backed up, including the SMS Site database.
The last two lines of this
section create two log files for the backup which can be used to check it's
status. These two lines rely on logging being enabled for the SMS_SITE_BACKUP
task.
Start - This section
performs exactly the opposite of the "Stop"
section - it restarts any SMS Services that were stopped in order to facilitate
the backup.
Help - The final section
of the file provides help with the syntax of the file.
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