On Wed, Sep 11, 2013 at 10:53 PM, Richard Stovall <[email protected]> wrote: > There was a discussion here a few weeks ago that centered on image-based > backups for entire VMs vs data-based backups of applications only. My > recollection is that most of us smaller guys prefer (or at least lean > toward) the image-based variety, and the bigger, more mature orgs prefer > data backups.
As I understand it, image backups are actually not a problem at all. It's restores that cause issues. A program may use things like serial numbers, Update Sequence Numbers, etc., to track activity internally. Say your SQL database is at USN 1002, and you take a snapshot of the SQL host. Then you update a record to have a new phone number, and that change gets assigned USN 1003. Then something bad happens, so you restore, and now we're back at USN 1002. Someone else submits a delete of a different record, and now *that* gets USN 1003 again. Meanwhile, some other part of the system/network that wasn't restored thinks USN 1003 was an update. Weird behavior ensues. > Long story short, having the ability to (almost) immediately spin up a brand > new, sandboxed copy of the CRM server allowed me to experiment and figure > out how to resolve the problem without touching the one the devs actually > use. In a sandbox scenario, the restore issue described above is not an issue. What you describe here is a tried and true technique. Just make sure your sandbox is good. :) -- Ben
