You can use Hybrid Backup Recovery (HBR) to back up Oracle databases that are deployed on Elastic Compute Service (ECS) instances or on your on-premises servers. You can also restore these databases based on your business requirements. This topic describes how to back up an Oracle database.

Prerequisites

An Oracle instance is registered. For more information, see Register an ECS-hosted Oracle database or Register an on-premises Oracle database.

Create a backup plan

After you register an Oracle instance, you must create a backup plan in the HBR console to back up the instance. To create a backup plan, perform the following steps:

  1. Log on to the HBR console.
  2. In the left-side navigation pane, choose Backup > Database Backup.
  3. In the top navigation bar, select a region.
  4. On the Database Backup page, click Oracle.
  5. Click the ECS Database Instance or Local Database Instance tab.
  6. On the ECS Database Instance or Local Database Instance tab, find the Oracle instance for which you want to create a backup plan, and click Back Up in the Actions column.
  7. In the Create Backup Plan panel, perform the following steps:
    1. Set the backup parameters and click Next.
      1. Specify Plan Name.
      2. Select the database instance that you want to back up or select a tablespace.
    2. Configure the backup plan and click Next.
      ParameterDescription
      Recommended PlanThe recommended backup plan. Default value: Typical Plan.
      • Typical Plan: enables the Full Backup and Incremental Backup features.
      • Critical Application: enables the Full Backup, Incremental Backup, and Log Backup features.
      • Customize: enables a custom backup policy.
      Full BackupIf you select Full Backup, all the database files in the operating system are backed up. However, you can restore the files to only the point in time at which the files are backed up.

      You can back up files immediately or at a specified point in time. You can also schedule periodic backups by hour, day, week, or month.

      Incremental BackupIf you select Cumulative Incremental Backup, all incremental database files in the operating system are backed up. However, you can restore the files to only the point in time at which the files are backed up.

      You can back up files immediately or at a specified point in time. You can also schedule periodic backups by hour, day, week, or month.

      Important

      To restore an incremental backup file, HBR must obtain the most recent full backup file. Therefore, the full backup file is not recycled until the incremental backup file expires. We recommend that you configure a reasonable backup cycle and expiration time. For more information, see How does HBR clear expired database backup files?.

      Log BackupYou can back up database logs at a regular interval.

      You can back up files immediately or at a specific point in time. You can also specify periodic backups by hour, day, week, or month.

      Important

      To restore a log backup file, HBR must obtain the most recent full backup file. Therefore, the full backup file is not recycled until the log backup file expires. We recommend that you configure a reasonable backup cycle and expiration time. For more information, see How does HBR clear expired database backup files?.

      Real-time BackupIf you select Real-time Backup, database logs are backed up in real time.
      Before you enable real-time backup, you must complete a full backup. After real-time backup is enabled, database logs are continuously backed up. Therefore, the recovery point objective (RPO) of data backups can be reduced to seconds. During the free trial period, you can perform real-time backups free of charge. When the free trial period expires, you are charged for the storage usage of real-time backups. For more information, see Hybrid Backup Recovery (HBR) Pricing.
      Important You can create only one backup plan for a single Oracle instance if you enable real-time backup for the backup plan.
    3. Configure the backup settings and click Next.
      ParameterDescription
      Concurrent ThreadsThe number of concurrent threads that are used to back up files.
      Retry TimeThe time interval between two consecutive reconnection attempts if the database is disconnected during backup. Unit: minutes.
      Speed LimitThe maximum size of data that is backed up per second. Unit: MB/s.
      If Keep Archive LogsSpecifies the retention policy for the archived logs that are backed up. By default, the archived logs are retained for 24 hours.
      • No: After a backup is performed, all archived logs are deleted.
      • Retain All: After a backup is performed, the archived logs are retained.
      • Retain for a Period: After a backup is performed, the archived logs are retained only for a specified number of hours.
    4. Configure a backup vault and click OK.
      Important You can back up an instance to only one backup vault.
      ParameterDescription
      Backup VaultThe backup vault to which you want to store the backup data. Valid values:
      • Create Vault: If you select this option, specify a name for the vault in the Vault Name field. If you do not configure this parameter, a random name is specified for the backup vault.
      • Select Vault: If you select this option, select a backup vault from the Vault Name drop-down list.
      Important After a backup vault is created, you are charged for the backup vault regardless of whether backup data is generated. For more information, see Billing methods and billable items.
      Vault NameThe name of the backup vault.
      Data Redundancy TypeThis parameter is required only if you set the Backup Vault parameter to Create Vault. This parameter specifies the type of data redundancy for the backup vault. The data redundancy mechanism improves data reliability of the backup vault.
      • Locally redundant storage (LRS)
        If LRS is enabled, HBR stores the copies of data on multiple devices of different facilities in the same zone. This way, HBR ensures data durability and availability even if hardware failures occur.
        Important Data redundancy for an LRS-enabled backup vault is implemented in a specific zone. If the zone fails, the data in the zone becomes inaccessible. We strongly recommend that you select a ZRS-enabled backup vault.
      • Zone-redundant storage (ZRS)

        If ZRS is enabled, HBR stores the copies of data in three zones within the same region. If a zone fails, the data that is stored in the other two zones is still accessible.

      For more information, see Storage vault types.

      Retention PeriodThe retention period of the backup data. Unit: days, weeks, months, or years.

      You can change the retention period on the Storage Vaults page. This change takes effect on all newly generated backup data in the backup vault.

      Important

      To restore an incremental backup file or log backup file, HBR must obtain the most recent full backup file. Therefore, the full backup file is not recycled until the incremental backup file or log backup file expires. We recommend that you configure a reasonable backup cycle and expiration time. For more information, see How does HBR clear expired database backup files?.

What to do next

On the Backup Plan tab, find the backup plan. In the Actions column, you can click buttons to perform the following operations:

  • Modify a backup plan

    If a backup plan does not meet your requirements, you can click Edit to modify the backup plan.

  • Configure alerts

    You can choose More > Alert Settings in the Actions column and then select a backup alert policy. The following table describes the alert policies.

    Alert policyDescription
    DisabledThe backup client does not send alert notifications.
    Same as Backup VaultThe backup client sends alert notifications based on the alert settings that are specified for the backup vault.
    DefaultThe backup client sends alert notifications to the owner of the Alibaba Cloud account by using emails.
    CustomIf you select this option, you must select one or more contacts or contact groups. Then, the backup client sends alert notifications to the selected contacts or contact groups.
  • Delete a backup plan

    If you delete a backup plan, all backup and restoration jobs that are being performed based on the backup plan are interrupted.

    To delete a backup plan, find the backup plan and choose More > Delete Backup in the Actions column.

What to do next

Restore an Oracle database