Backup Your Server After Sccm Installation

Backup Your Server After Sccm Installation : In the last part of this SCCM Installation Guide, we will setup automation backup for Configuration Manager sites by scheduling the predefined Backup Site Server maintenance task. This task has the following features:

• Runs on a schedule
• Backs up the site database
• Backs up specific registry keys
• Backs up specific folders and files
• Backs up the CD.Latest folder

Plan to run the default site backup task at a minimum of every five days. This schedule is because Configuration Manager uses a SQL Server change tracking retention period of five days.

To simplify the backup process, you can create an AfterBackup.bat file. This script automatically runs post-backup actions after the backup task completes successfully. Use the AfterBackup.bat file to archive the backup snapshot to a secure location. You can also use the AfterBackup.bat file to copy files to your backup folder, or to start other backup tasks.

Site backup status information is written to the Smsbkup.log file. This file is created in the destination folder that you specify in the properties of the Backup Site Server maintenance task.

TO ENABLE THE SITE BACKUP MAINTENANCE TASK

• Go to the Administration workspace, expand Site Configuration
• Click Site Maintenance Tasks in the ribbon.
• Select the Backup Site Server task, and click Edit.
• Select the option to Enable this task. Click Set Paths to specify the backup destination. You have the following options:
• Local drive on site server for site data and database: Specifies that the task stores the backup files for the site and site database in the specified path on the local disk drive of the site server. Create the local folder before the backup task runs. The Local System account on the site server must have Write NTFS file permissions to the local folder for the site server backup. The Local System account on the computer that’s running SQL Server must have Write NTFS permissions to the folder for the site database backup.
• Network path (UNC name) for site data and database: Specifies that the task stores the backup files for the site and site database in the specified network path. Create the share before the backup task runs. The computer account of the site server must have Write NTFS and share permissions to the shared network folder. If SQL Server is installed on another computer, the computer account of the SQL Server must have the same permissions.
• Local drives on site server and SQL Server: Specifies that the task stores the backup files for the site in the specified path on the local drive of the site server. The task stores the backup files for the site database in the specified path on the local drive of the site database server. Create the local folders before the backup task runs. The computer account of the site server must have Write NTFS permissions to the folder that you create on the site server. The computer account of the SQL Server must have Write NTFS permissions to the folder that you create on the site database server. This option is available only when the site database isn’t installed on the site server.

VERIFY THAT THE BACKUP SITE SERVER MAINTENANCE TASK IS RUNNING

• Check the timestamp on the files in the backup destination folder that the task created. Verify that the timestamp updates to the time when the task was last scheduled to run.
  • Go to the Component Status node of the Monitoring workspace. Review the status messages for SMS_SITE_BACKUP. When site backup completes successfully, you see message ID 5035. This message indicates that the site backup completed without any errors.
  • When you configure the backup task to create an alert when it fails, look for backup failure alerts in the Alerts node of the Monitoring workspace.
  • Open Windows Explorer on the site server and browse to <ConfigMgrInstallationFolder>\Logs. Review Smsbkup.log for warnings and errors. When site backup completes successfully, the log shows Backup completed with message ID STATMSG: ID=5035.

SQL BACKUP

It’s also possible to backup your SCCM server using SQL Maintenance task. The biggest advantage of this method is that it offers compression. Please read this blog post if you prefer this method. Be aware that this backup method doesn’t backup the CD.Latest folder which is important. You could also have both backup methods enabled if needed.

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