Getting started with Server-Managed Recovery (SMR)

and Recovery Manager (RMAN)

Introduction:

This document explains the basic operation of SMR & RMAN. Because of the
enormous flexibility of RMAN only the most basic features will be covered
here. For more information, please read the Oracle8 Server Backup & Recovery
Guide. For comprehensive examples, please view the online case*.rcv scripts
in $ORACLE_HOME/rdbms/demo.

For the sake of clarity, I have excluded RMAN error messages and return
codes unless necessary. It is usually obvious when an error occurs!

NOTE: MUCH OF THE TEXT OF THIS DOCUMENT HAS BEEN EXTRACTED FROM THE ORACLE8
SERVER BACKUP AND RECOVERY GUIDE, AND THE ONLINE EXAMPLES.

Contents:
1. What is RMAN & SMR?
2. Terminology
3. The recovery catalog
4. Starting RMAN
5. Register the target database
6. Adding existing backups to the recovery catalog
7. Backing up in noarchivelog mode
8. Backing up in archivelog mode
9. Incremental backups
10. Cumulative incremental backups
11. Recovery
12. Scripts
13. Parallelization
14. Corruption detection
15. Channels
16. Balancing throughput on devices
17. Reports
18. Hints, tips, & best practices

1. What is RMAN?
RMAN can be used to backup and restore database files, archive logs, and
control files. It can also be used to perform complete or incomplete
database recovery. Note that RMAN cannot be used to backup initialization
files or password files.

RMAN starts Oracle server processes on the database to be backed up or

restored. The backup, restore, and recovery is driven through these processes
hence the term 'server-managed recovery'.

Note that SMR can also be controlled from OEM's Backup Manager GUI. This
article will not discuss Backup Manager.
2. Terminology
2.1. Backup sets

A backup set is characterised by the following:

o. Contains one or more datafiles or archivelogs

o. Stored in an Oracle proprietary format
o. Comprises a complete set of backup pieces
o. Constitutes a full or incremental backup

2.2. Backup pieces

A backup set is comprised of a number of backup pieces. Each backup piece

is a single output file. The size of a backup piece can be restricted;
if the size is not restricted, the backup set will comprise one backup
piece. Backup piece size should be restricted to no larger than the
maximum file size that your filsystem will support.

2.3. Image copies

An image copy is a copy of a single file (datafile, archivelog, or

controlfile). It is very similar to an O/S copy of the file. It is not
a backupset or a backup piece. No compression is performed.

2.4. Full backup sets

A full backup is a backup of one or more datafiles that contains all used
blocks in the datafile. Blocks that have never been used are not backed up
i.e. oracle performs backup set compression.

2.5. Incremental backup sets

An incremental backup is a backup of one or more datafiles that contains

only those blocks that have been modified since a previous backup at the
same or lower level. As with full backups, compression is performed.

2.6. File multiplexing

Datablocks from multiple datafiles can be multiplexed in the same

backupset.

2.7. Recovery catalog resyncing

Resyncing the recovery catalog involves sunchronising the recovery

catalog with the target database controlfile. Certain operations perform
this implicitly. To resync manually, issue the 'resync catalog;' command
from RMAN. The catalog should be resynced frequently, especially if
the target database generates many archive logs. It should also be
resynced after making any structural changes to the target database.
Although the target database's controlfile is automatically updated
whenever new controlfile records are created (for example, creation of
new archived logs or new datafiles), if the target is not resync'd
and a backup controlfile is restored, the new records must be cataloged
manually (catalog archivelog '<logname>';).
3. The recovery catalog
From the Oracle8 Server Backup & Recovery Guide '..the recovery catalog
is a repository of information that is used and maintained by RMAN. RMAN
uses the information in the recovery catalog to determine how to execute
requested backup and restore actions..'.

The recovery catalog can be in a schema of an existing Oracle8 database.

However if RMAN is being used to backup multiple databases, it is probably
worth creating a dedicated recovery catalog database. THE RECOVERY CATALOG
DATABASE CANNOT BE USED TO CATALOG BACKUPS OF ITSELF.

The Oracle8 Server Backup & Recovery Guide p.6-3 lists typical space
requirements for the recovery catalog.

To set up the recovery catalog, firstly ensure that catalog and catproc
have been run, then execute the following:

SVRMGR> spool create_rman.log

SVRMGR> connect internal
SVRMGR> create user rman identified by rman
temporary tablespace temp
default tablespace rcvcat quota unlimited on rcvcat;
SVRMGR> grant recovery_catalog_owner to rman;
SVRMGR> connect rman/rman
SVRMGR> @?/rdbms/admin/catrman

Check create_rman.log for errors. The above commands assume that the
TEMP and RCVCAT tablespaces have been created.

Also ensure that catproc has been run on the target database; RMAN makes
extensive use of RPCs.

It is very important that the recovery catalog database is backed up

regularly and frequently.

Note: Although you are not required to use a recovery catalog with RMAN,
it is recommended. Because most of the information in the recovery catalog
is available via the target database's controlfile, RMAN can use this
information for recovery purposes. For more information and limitations
on using RMAN without a recovery catalog, please see the Oracle8 Server
Backup & Recovery Guide pp.7-8, 7-8.

4. Starting RMAN
RMAN has a command line interface, or can be run from Enterprise Manager.
For the purposes of this document, only the CLI will be covered.

For the purposes of the following examples, assume that

o. the target database is called "targdb" and has the same TNS alias
o. "targdba" has been granted SYSDBA privileges
o. the recovery catalog database is called "rcat" and has the same TNS alias
o. the schema containing the recovery catalog is "rman" (same password)
 Before invoking RMAN, set the NLS_DATE_FORMAT and NLS_LANG environment
variables. Much of the RMAN LIST output is date/time related. It is often
necessary to have this information displayed as accurately as possible
when performing time-based recovery. Example NLS settings:

NLS_LANG=AMERICAN_AMERICA.WE8ISO8859P1
NLS_DATE_FORMAT=DD-MON-YYYY HH24:MI:SS

For RMAN to connect to the recovery catalog and the target database, the
recovery catalog database must be OPEN, while the target instance must be
at least STARTED. If not, RMAN will give an error. To perform backups with
the target database open, the target MUST be in archivelog mode.

4.1. Connecting to RMAN without a recovery catalog

Set ORACLE_SID to be the target database, and issue the following:

% rman nocatalog
RMAN> connect target
or if the target database uses a password file,
RMAN> connect target targdba/<password>@targdb

4.2. Connecting to RMAN with a recovery catalog

% rman rcvcat rman/rman@rcat

RMAN> connect target
or if the target database uses a password file,
% rman rcvcat rman/rman@rcat target targdba/<password>@targdb

4.3. Using RMAN

Once connected to the target database, you can specify RMAN commands
either interactively or by using stored scripts. An example of
using RMAN interactively would be:

RMAN> resync catalog;

An example of calling a stored script would be:

RMAN> execute script alloc_1_disk;

To create/replace a stored script:

RMAN> replace script alloc_1_disk {

2> allocate channel d1 type disk;
3> }

5. Register the target database

Database status:
Recovery catalog: open
Target: mounted or open

The target database must be registered with the recovery catalog before
using RMAN against the database for the first time:
 RMAN> register database;

6. Adding existing backups to the recovery catalog

Database status:
Recovery catalog: open
Target: mounted or open

If user-created backups existed under version 8.x prior to registering with

the target database, these can be added to the recovery catalog as follows:

RMAN> catalog datafilecopy '/supp/ .... /systargdb.dbf';

To view this file in the catalog, use the following command:

RMAN> list copy of database;

7. Backing up in noarchivelog mode

Database status:
Recovery catalog: open
Target: instance started or database mounted

Recovery catalog database is OPEN, target database is started (optionally

mounted). Because the target database is not in archivelog mode, it must
not be open when performing backups of datafiles. This would be equivalent
of making filesystem copies of datafiles without putting tablespaces into
hot backup mode. If the database is open and not in archivelog mode, RMAN
will generate an error when you attempt to perform a datafile backup

7.1. Example of how to back up a complete database

RMAN> run {
2> # backup the complete database to disk
3> allocate channel dev1 type disk;
4> backup
5> full
6> tag full_db_sunday_night
7> format '/oracle/backups/db_t%t_s%s_p%p'
8> (database);
9> release channel dev1;
10> }

Line#
2: Comment line (anything after the '#' is a comment)
3&9: See section 15 - Channels
5: Full backup (default if full or incremental not specified)
6: Meaningful string (<=30 chars)
7: Filename to use for backup pieces, including substitution variables.
Oracle8 Backup & Recovery Guide p8-26 explains these variables
8: Indicates all files including controlfiles are to be backed up

To view this backup in the catalog, use the following command:

 RMAN> list backupset of database;

7.2. Example of how to back up a tablespace

RMAN> run {
2> allocate channel dev1 type disk;
3> backup
4> tag tbs_users_read_only
5> format '/oracle/backups/tbs_users_t%t_s%s'
6> (tablespace users);
7> release channel dev1;
10> }

Line#
6: Specifying only the USERS tablespace for backup

To view this tablespace backup in the catalog, use the following command:

RMAN> list backupset of tablespace users;

If for example the USERS tablespace is going to be put READ ONLY after
being backed up, subsequent full database backups would not need to
backup this tablespace. To cater for this, specify the 'skip readonly'
option in subsequent backups.

Note that although this is a tablespace backup, the target database

does NOT have to be open, only mounted. This is because tablespace
information is stored in the controlfile in o8.

7.3. Example of how to backup individual datafiles

RMAN> run {
2> allocate channel dev1 type 'SBT_TAPE';
3> backup
4> format '%d_%u'
5> (datafile '/oracle/dbs/sysbigdb.dbf');
6> release channel dev1;
7> }

Line#
2: Allocates a tape drive using the media manager layer (MML)
Note that no tag was specified and is therefore null.

To view this tablespace backup in the catalog, use the following command:

RMAN> list backupset of datafile 1;

7.4. Copying datafiles

RMAN> run {
2> allocate channel dev1 type 'SBT_TAPE';
3> copy datafile '/oracle/dbs/temp.dbf' to '/oracle/backups/temp.dbf';
4> release channel dev1;
5> }
 To view this file copy in the catalog, use the following command:

RMAN> list copy of datafile '/oracle/dbs/temp.dbf';

Copying a datafile is different to backing up a datafile. A datafile copy

is an image copy of the file. A backup of the file creates a backupset.

7.5. Backing up the controlfile

RMAN> run {
2> allocate channel dev1 type 'SBT_TAPE';
3> backup
4> format 'cf_t%t_s%s_p%p'
5> tag cf_monday_night
6> (current controlfile);
7> release channel dev1;
8> }

Note that a database backup will automatically back up the controlfile.

8. Backing up in archivelog mode

Database status:
Recovery catalog: open
Target: instance started, database mounted or open

The commands are identical to those in section 7 except that the target
database is in archivelog mode.

8.1. Backing up archived logs

The following script backs up all archive logs:

RMAN> run {
2> allocate channel dev1 type disk;
3> backup
4> format '/oracle/backups/log_t%t_s%s_p%p'
5> (archivelog all);
6> release channel dev1;
7> }

The following script backs up archive logs from sequence# 90 to 100:

RMAN> run {
2> allocate channel dev1 type disk;
3> backup
4> format '/oracle/backups/log_t%t_s%s_p%p'
5> (archivelog from logseq=90 until logseq=100 thread 1);
6> release channel dev1;
7> }

The following script backs up all archive logs generated in the past
24 hours. Furthermore it actually deletes the logs after backing them
up. If the backup fails, logs will NOT be deleted:
 RMAN> run {
2> allocate channel dev1 type disk;
3> backup
4> format '/oracle/backups/log_t%t_s%s_p%p'
5> (archivelog from time 'sysdate-1' all delete input);
6> release channel dev1;
7> }

To view the archive logs in the catalog, use the following command:

RMAN> list backupset of archivelog all;

Note that RMAN will backup specified logs if it finds them. If it can't
find a log, it does not issue a warning.

8.2. Backing up the online logs

Online logs CANNOT be backed up using RMAN; they must be archived first.
To do this, you can issue SQL commands from RMAN e.g.

RMAN> run {
2> allocate channel dev1 type disk;
3> sql "alter system archive log current";
4> backup
5> format '/oracle/backups/log_t%t_s%s_p%p'
6> (archivelog from time 'sysdate-1' all delete input);
7> release channel dev1;
8> }

The above script might be run after performing a full 'database open'
backup. It would ensure that all redo to recover the database to a
consistent state would be backed up.

Note, you cannot tag archive log backupsets.

9. Incremental backups
A level N incremental backup backs up blocks that have changed since the
most recent incremental backup at level N or less.

9.1. Level 0 - the basis of the incremental backup strategy

RMAN> run {
2> allocate channel dev1 type disk;
3> backup
4> incremental level 0
5> filesperset 4
6> format '/oracle/backups/sunday_level0_%t'
7> (database);
8> release channel dev1;
9> }

Line#
4: Level 0 backup - backups of level > 0 can be applied to this
 5: Specifies maximum files in the backupset

A list of the database backupsets will show the above backup. The 'type'
column is marked 'Incremental'; the 'LV' column shows '0'.

9.2. Example backup strategy using incremental backups

A typical incremental backup cycle would be as follows:

o. Sun night - level 0 backup performed

o. Mon night - level 2 backup performed
o. Tue night - level 2 backup performed
o. Wed night - level 2 backup performed
o. Thu night - level 1 backup performed
o. Fri night - level 2 backup performed
o. Sat night - level 2 backup performed

If the database suffered a failure on Sat morning and this resulted in

a restore operation, RMAN could recover to the point of failure by
restoring the backups from Sunday, Thursday, and Friday. This is
because Thursdays level 1 backup contains all changes since Sunday, and
Friday's level 2 backup contains all changes since Thursday. Whether
the database could be completely recovered would depend on whether
archive logging is enabled.

10. Cumulative incremental backups

A cumulative incremental backup backs up all blocks that have changed since
the the most recent incremental backup at level N-1 or less (contrast with
non-cumulative incremental backups that backup blocks that have changed
since the the most recent incremental backup at level N or less). This
means that more work is done in performing the backup (duplication of
backup effort), but time may be saved when restoring (potentially fewer
backupsets to restore).

11. Recovery
As with backup, recovery is probably best explained with a few examples

11.1. Database open, datafile deleted

Datafile has been deleted from a running database. There are two methods
of open database recovery: restore the datafile and recover either the
datafile, or the tablespace. The next two examples show both methods:

(a) Datafile recovery

RMAN> run {
2> allocate channel dev1 type disk;
3> sql "alter tablespace users offline immediate";
4> restore datafile 4;
5> recover datafile 4;
6> sql "alter tablespace users online";
7> release channel dev1;
 8> }

(b) Tablespace recovery

RMAN> run {
2> allocate channel dev1 type disk;
3> sql "alter tablespace users offline immediate";
4> restore tablespace users;
5> recover tablespace users;
6> sql "alter tablespace users online";
7> release channel dev1;
8> }

Note that if it is the system tablespace datafiles to be restored, the

database must be closed. It is not possible to offline the system
tablespace.

11.2. Complete restore (lost online redo) and rollforward - database closed

RMAN> run {
2> allocate channel dev1 type disk;
3> set until logseq=105 thread=1;
4> restore controlfile to '/oracle/dbs/ctrltargdb.ctl';
5> replicate controlfile from '/oracle/dbs/ctrltargdb.ctl';
6> restore database;
7> sql "alter database mount";
8> recover database;
9> sql "alter database open resetlogs";
10> release channel dev1;
11> }

Notes:
- The 'set until' command dictates at which log sequence recovery will
stop. It is critical that this command is issued BEFORE datafiles
are restored, otherwise RMAN will attempt to restore the most recent
set of datafiles, which could be ahead of the specified log
- The 'replicate controlfile' copies the restored controlfile to
the controlfiles referenced in init.ora
- Because the database is opened with resetlogs, it is necessary to
register the new incarnation of the database with the RESET DATABASE
command. As with v7, it is important to take a full backup of the
database immediately after a resetlogs

11.3. Restore of a subset of datafiles, complete recovery

RMAN> run {
2> allocate channel dev1 type disk;
3> sql "alter database mount";
4> restore datafile 2;
5> restore datafile 3;
6> restore archivelog all;
7> recover database;
8> sql "alter database open";
9> release channel dev1;
10> }
12. Scripts
It is very easy to create and replace stored scripts with RMAN. E.g.

RMAN> create script alloc_disk {

2> # Allocates one disk
3> allocate channel dev1 type disk;
4> setlimit channel dev1 kbytes 2097150 maxopenfiles 32 readrate 200;
5> }

RMAN> replace script rel_disk {

2> # releases disk
3> release channel dev1;
5> }

RMAN> replace script backup_db_full {

2> # Performs a complete backup
3> execute script alloc_disk;
4> backup
5> .....<backup commands here>
6> execute script rel_disk;
7> }

The first 2 scripts allocate and deallocate channels respectively. The

alloc_disk script additionally specifies the maximum size of backup
pieces created on this channel (kbytes), the maximum number of input files
that a backup will have open (maxopenfiles), and the maximum number of
buffers per second which will be read from each of the input datafiles.

The 3rd script calls the previously stored scripts either side of
performing a backup.

Example of executing a stored script:

RMAN> run {
2> execute script backup_db_full;
3> }

Note that a stored scripts must be called from within a job command
list i.e. run { .... execute <script>; ....}.

It is possible to create a job command list in a flat file and call that
script from the O/S command line as an RMAN option. E.g. to call scripts
stored in a file called 'weekly_cold_backup':

% rman <other RMAN options> cmdfile weekly_cold_backup

13. Parallelization
RMAN can parallelize it's operations. When creating backup sets, the
granule of parallelization is the backup set. E.g. if your backup consists
 of 10 backup sets, RMAN will potentially use 10 channels. To create an
environment for this to take place, you must allocate sufficient channels
and dictate the number of backup sets created (using the filesperset
parameter). E.g. if you are backing up a database consisting of 50
datafiles and you allocate 20 channels and specify 'filesperset 10',
only 5 channels will be used. This is because only 5 backup sets (50/10)
will be created.

It is also possible to parallelize datafile copy backups by allocating

multiple channels, and specifying multiple datafiles in one copy command.

Please see the Oracle8 Backup and Recovery Guide p.7-20 for examples
of parallelization.

14. Corruption detection

SMR will back up datafiles that contain corrupt blocks. However it is
possible to set a limit on the number of datablock corruptions; if this
limit is exceeded the backup terminates. The limit is set using the
'set maxcorrupt' clause.

E.g.

RMAN> replace script backup_db_full {

2> # Performs a complete backup
3> execute script alloc_disk;
4> set maxcorrupt for datafile 1 to 0;
5> backup
6> .....<backup commands here>
7> execute script rel_disk;
8> }

When the above script the backup will fail if ANY corrupt blocks are
found in datafile 1.

Block corruptions are detected by checksum mismatches during backups. The

checksum option is enabled by default but can be disabled by specifying
the 'nochecksum' option.

15. Channels
A channel is a connection from RMAN to a target database. The 'allocate
channel' command starts a server process on the target instance. It also
specifies the type of I/O device that the server process will use to
perform the backup or restore operation.

Channel control commands can be used to:

o. Control the O/S resources RMAN uses

o. Affect the degree of parallelism (see section 13)
o. Specify limits on I/O bandwidth (set limit read rate)
o. Specify limits on the size of backup pieces (set limit kbytes)
o. Specify limits on the number of concurrently open files (set limit
maxopenfiles)
 See the Oracle8 Server Backup & Recovery pp.7-19, 7-20 for more details

16. Balancing throughput on devices

17. Report & list commands

17.1. List

The list command queries the recovery catalog to produce a formatted

listing of contents. E.g.

RMAN> list backupset of datafile 1;

Output:

Key File Type LV Completion_time Ckp SCN Ckp Time

------- ---- ------------ -- --------------- ---------- --------
165 1 Full Oct 03 11:24 32022 Oct 03 11:24
208 1 Full Oct 24 14:27 52059 Oct 24 14:26
219 1 Full Oct 24 14:31 52061 Oct 24 14:31
<< other entries here >>

RMAN> list backupset of archivelog all;

Output:

Key Thrd Seq Completion time

------- ---- ------- ---------------
179 1 94 Oct 03 11:26
179 1 95 Oct 03 11:26
<< other entries here >>

17.2. Report

The report command also queries the recovery catalog, However, the report
command syntax is constructed in such a way to produce a more useful
listing. E.g. the following command can be used to list all datafiles
in a database that have had UNRECOVERABLE operations performed on objects
in those datafiles since the last backup:

RMAN> report unrecoverable database;

See Oracle8 Server Backup & Recovery Guide pp.8-12, 8-18 for more
information on lists and reports.

18. Hints, tips, & best practices

18.1. Resyncing the recovery catalog

It is very important that the recovery catalog be as up to date as

possible i.e. it should reflect the state of the target database. This
is achieved by resyncing the catalog from the target controlfile.
 There are two types of resync operation: full and partial. Furthermore
a resync can be explicit or implicit.

A full resync updates the catalog with ALL controlfile information that
has changed since the last resync. This includes changes to the physical
structure of the database. A manual (explicit) resync performs a full
resync, whilst full (implicit) resyncs are performed after an SMR backup.

A partial resync only updates the catalog with redo log, backupset, and
datafile copy information i.e. physical structure changes are NOT
refreshed. A partial (implicit) resync is performed before an SMR backup.

At a MINIMUM, you should resync the recovery catalog at intervals less

than the init.ora parameter CONTROL_FILE_RECORD_KEEP_TIME. After this
number of days, controlfile information will be overwritten. Because
resyncing is a relatively cheap operation, it is advisable to resync
as often as possible, especially if the database switches logs
frequently. The following sample shell script could be scheduled to
run hourly:

rman target un/pw@<target alias> rcvcat un/pw@<rcvcat alias> << EOF

resync catalog;
exit;
EOF

18.2. Deleting archive logs

As can be seen from an earlier example, it is possible to direct an SMR

server session to delete archived redo logs once they have been backed
up. This option should obviously be used with extreme caution! Only
ever delete archivelogs if you are 100% satisfied that you have good
copies/backups elsewhere.

18.3. Keep it simple

As with all backup & recovery strategies, they should be as simple as

possible, and should be tested thoroughly.

A few simple stored scripts should be adequate for the vast majority
of backup & recovery requirements.

18.4. RMAN errors

When RMAN goes wrong it's spectacular! The error stacks are usually
very long. If an error is reported, it is worth getting the complete
stack sent to support as most of the errors will not help in diagnosing
the problem.

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