Database Snapshot Recovery System
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional database restoration methods are time-intensive and require significant resources, making them inefficient for quick error mitigation, and log shipping adds complexity and hardware requirements.
Innovation Solution
The creation and use of a database snapshot that serves as a read-only, point-in-time copy of a source database, allowing for quick restoration by copying sparse files and applying open transactions to revert to a previous state, thereby minimizing resource usage and time.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a full database restore is performed to revert to a point in time prior to user error, then data integrity is restored, but the restoration process is time-intensive and may take days to complete
Solution Approach 1:
The database is segmented into two separate databases: a primary database for current operations and a restore database for maintaining historical states. This segmentation allows the restore database to be updated independently through log shipping, enabling faster restoration by only copying necessary log files rather than performing a complete database restore, thus reducing restoration time while maintaining data integrity.
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary actions by continuously maintaining a restore database that is constantly updated with log files from the primary database. This preliminary preparation ensures that when restoration is needed, the restore database is already ready with the required historical state, eliminating the need for time-consuming full restores and reducing restoration time to minutes.
2Loss of time
If log shipping is used to maintain a copy of the database on a secondary server, then restoration can be performed quickly by reverting to the secondary server, but the system complexity and hardware requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The invention merges the restore database functionality into the same server system as the primary database, rather than requiring a separate secondary server. The restore database resides on the same server and can be accessed locally, eliminating the need for additional hardware and network infrastructure while maintaining the ability to perform quick restorations by switching between databases on the same system.
Solution Approach 2:
The restore database serves multiple functions: it acts as a backup repository, a restoration target, and a historical data archive. By making the restore database multi-functional and accessible on the same server, the system eliminates the need for dedicated secondary servers while still providing quick restoration capabilities, thus reducing system complexity and hardware requirements.
3Reliability
If log backups are applied to a secondary database only after a delay, then the secondary database remains in a restore state, but additional resources and space are required
Solution Approach 1:
The system discards the need for extensive hardware resources by implementing efficient log file management. Old log files are discarded after being applied to the restore database, and only necessary log files are retained. This allows the restore database to maintain restoration capability without requiring proportional increases in hardware resources, as the system recovers and reuses storage space efficiently.
Data Source
AI summary
The present invention relates to a system and method of data restoration, for instance, after the occurrence of a user error. In particular, snapshot database can be maintained that stores a copy of database data. The snapshot database does not have to store a complete copy of all data on a source database, but rather shares data that is common to both but not necessarily identical. If an error occurs on the primary database then the database can be reverted back to a point in time prior to the error by replacing source database files with snapshot files. Additionally, an undo component can be employed in conjunction with the snapshot to approach an error to a finer grained point in time. In brief, the present invention can restore a database much faster and simpler, while utilizing less space and resources than conventional data restoration technologies.