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Back up a service application in SharePoint Server 2010

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Applies to: SharePoint Server 2010

We recommend that you regularly back up at the farm level. However, business or IT requirements might require that you back up a service application. Regularly backing up a service application reduces the possibility of data losses that might occur from hardware failures, power outages, or other problems. It is a simple process that helps to ensure that all the service application-related data and configurations are available for recovery, if that is required. You can back up one service application at a time, or you can back up all service applications at once. For information about what to back up and which tools to use, see Plan for backup and recovery in SharePoint Server 2010. For more information, see Back up a farm in SharePoint Server 2010.

Backing up a service application does not affect the state of the farm. However, it does require resources. Therefore, backing up a service application might affect farm performance while the backup is running. You can avoid performance issues by backing up the service application during hours when farm use is lowest.

Note

SharePoint Server 2010 backup backs up remote Binary Large Object (BLOB) stores but only if you are using the FILESTREAM remote BLOB store provider to put data in remote BLOB stores.
If you are using another provider, you must manually back up the remote BLOB stores.

Procedures in this topic:

  • To back up a service application by using Windows PowerShell

  • To back up a service application by using Central Administration

Note

You cannot use SQL Server tools or Data Protection Manager to back up a service application.

Task requirements for backing up a service application in SharePoint Server

Before you begin, you must create a folder on the local computer or the network in which to store the backups. For better performance, we recommend that you back up to the local computer and then move the backup files to a network folder. For more information about how to create a backup folder, see Prepare to back up and recover (SharePoint Server 2010).

Note

Microsoft SharePoint Server 2010 backup backs up the Business Data Connectivity service external content type definitions but does not back up the data source itself. To protect the data, you should back up the data source when you back up the Business Data Connectivity service or the farm.
If you back up the Business Data Connectivity service or the farm and then restore the data source to a different location, you must change the location information in the external content type definition. If you do not, the Business Data Connectivity service might not be able to locate the data source.

Use Windows PowerShell to back up a service application in SharePoint Server

You can use Windows PowerShell to back up one or more service applications manually or as part of a script that can be run at scheduled intervals.

To back up a service application by using Windows PowerShell

  1. Verify that you meet the following minimum requirements: See Add-SPShellAdmin.

  2. On the Start menu, click All Programs.

  3. Click Microsoft SharePoint 2010 Products.

  4. Click SharePoint 2010 Management Shell.

  5. At the Windows PowerShell command prompt, type the following command:

    Backup-SPFarm -Directory <BackupFolder> -BackupMethod {Full | Differential} -Item <ServiceApplicationName> [-Verbose]

    Where:

    • <BackupFolder> is the path of a folder on the local computer or on the network in which you want to store the backups.

    • <ServiceApplicationName> is the name of the service application that you want to back up.

      Note

      You must use the exact name for the service application that you are backing up with Windows PowerShell. To find the service application name in Central Administration click Manage service applications in the Application Management section.

    To back up all the service applications, at the Windows PowerShell command prompt, type the following command:

    Backup-SPFarm -Directory <BackupFolder> -BackupMethod {Full | Differential} -Item "Farm\Shared Service Applications" [-Verbose]

    Note

    If you are backing up the service application for the first time, you must use the Full option. You must perform a full backup before you can perform a differential backup.
    Some service applications always require a full backup. For these service applications, even if you select the Differential option, the system performs a full backup.

For more information, see Backup-SPFarm.

Note

We recommend that you use Windows PowerShell when performing command-line administrative tasks. The Stsadm command-line tool has been deprecated, but is included to support compatibility with previous product versions.

Use Central Administration to back up a service application in SharePoint Server

You can use Central Administration to back up a service application.

To back up a service application by using Central Administration

  1. Verify that the user account that performs this procedure is a member of the Farm Administrators group.

  2. In Central Administration, on the Home page, in the Backup and Restore section, click Perform a backup.

  3. On the Perform a Backup — Step 1 of 2: Select Component to Back Up page, select the service application from the list of components, and then click Next. To back up all the service applications, select the Shared Service Applications node.

    Note

    The service application might consist of several components. You must select the top-level component.

  4. On the Start Backup — Step 2 of 2: Select Backup Options page, in the Backup Type section, select either Full or Differential.

    Note

    If you are backing up the service application for the first time, you must use the Full option. You must perform a full backup before you can perform a differential backup.
    Some service applications always require a full backup. For these service applications, the system performs a full backup even if you select the Differential option.

  5. In the Backup File Location section, in the Backup location box, type the path of the backup folder, and then click Start Backup.

  6. You can view the general status of all backup jobs at the top of the Backup and Restore Job Status page in the Readiness section. You can view the status for the current backup job in the lower part of the page in the Backup section. The status page updates every 30 seconds automatically. You can manually update the status details by clicking Refresh. Backup and recovery are Timer service jobs. Therefore, it may take several seconds for the backup to start.

    If you receive any errors, you can review them in the Failure Message column of the Backup and Restore Job Status page. You can also find more details in the Spbackup.log file at the UNC path that you specified in step 5.

See Also

Concepts

Restore a service application in SharePoint 2010 Products

Other Resources

Resource Center: Business Continuity Management for SharePoint Server 2010