There are two basic types of backups that you perform using SQL Server: full database backups and differential backups.

Full backups make a complete snapshot of the database for storage. Backups can be made directly to tape or to a file on disk. They can take up as much space as the .mdf and .ndf files do.

A differential backup stores only what is different since the last full backup. This means that the differentials are small immediately after a full backup. They grow larger throughout the day as more data changes. Then, after the next full backup, the differentials begin to be small again.

Because the differential backups are small, they happen quickly. This, in turn, means you can do them relatively frequently – every hour during business hours. If you have really fast hardware, then you can increase the frequency to, perhaps, every half-hour. This is how you get closer to the point of failure in a restore situation. If you do backups every hour, you can lose, at most, sixty minutes of data. When accesso Siriusware Technical Support helps you recover, that means that technical support personnel have to recover only, at most, sixty minutes worth of data from the salespoints, bringing you fully back online fast.

 

Note: Do not make file backups to a compressed directory – this can cause significant delays in processing the backup and can, in some cases, cause problems with your live salespoint’s connectivity.