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What backup for Exchange 2007?

Hi experts! I am reading http://blogs.msdn.com/douggowans/archive/2007/10/16/backup-solutions-for-exchange-2007.aspx and trying to evaluate what backup will be best for us. Our Exchange 2007 SP1 is hosted on a 2008 server. We have only about 50 mailboxes.
I am asking myself if it would be a simple solution for us to do the following: During nighttime, the server is not needed. I would suspend all the exchange services, take a scheduled image (drive snapshot) of the partition where the database is on to be written to a network share and restart the services afterwards. I already tried and the restore worked perfectly.
My only problem: what about the transaction logs? They are growing and I am aware that they are meant to be deleted only after a database backup that is "exchange aware". Should I delete them after producing the image?

If that does not seem to be a good idea, please recommend a way for comfortable backup (to a network location) and restore at the given scenario.

ASKER CERTIFIED SOLUTION

Nitin Gupta

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CaptainAhab

ASKER

OK, thanks. Let's sort it:
1 "...delete the log files (make sure not the latest ones and the assigned ones)" - which are "the latest ones"? The logs just for today are the following:
--
21.07.2008 00:04 1.048.576 E0000000E28.log
21.07.2008 01:01 1.048.576 E0000000E29.log
21.07.2008 02:00 1.048.576 E0000000E2A.log
21.07.2008 02:20 1.048.576 E0000000E2B.log
21.07.2008 03:01 1.048.576 E0000000E2C.log
21.07.2008 04:07 1.048.576 E0000000E2D.log
21.07.2008 04:22 1.048.576 E0000000E2E.log
21.07.2008 09:00 1.048.576 E0000000E2F.log
21.07.2008 09:15 1.048.576 E0000000E30.log
21.07.2008 09:30 1.048.576 E0000000E31.log
21.07.2008 10:02 1.048.576 E0000000E32.log
21.07.2008 10:26 1.048.576 E0000000E33.log
21.07.2008 10:41 1.048.576 E0000000E34.log
21.07.2008 10:57 1.048.576 E0000000E35.log
21.07.2008 11:12 1.048.576 E0000000E36.log
21.07.2008 11:30 1.048.576 E0000000E37.log
21.07.2008 11:45 1.048.576 E0000000E38.log
21.07.2008 12:00 1.048.576 E0000000E39.log
21.07.2008 13:13 1.048.576 E0000000E3A.log
21.07.2008 13:47 1.048.576 E0000000E3B.log
21.07.2008 14:02 1.048.576 E0000000E3C.log
as well as an E00.log and an E00tmp.log datest the most recent (14:02)
--

2 Not possible: NTbackup is nop longer a part of 2008 server. Windows (2008)complete pc backup is officially not exchange aware.

3 LCR could be an idea but it is no real backup and has to use ISCSI if we would like the replica to be on the network

4 no solution for us, we will not add another server

So 1 seems ok to me. What logfiles to keep/delete?

Nitin Gupta

Hi,
You can go ahead and delete all, and keep the ones of last day and day before (last day) ie last 2days.
Log files of 1-2 days in your scenario would not be too much.
Hope it is clear
Thanks

CaptainAhab

ASKER

Since noone else has objected I suppose it's ok to proceed like this. Thank you.

Nitin Gupta

Hi,
Any specific reason why you felt that the solution was not a good one. "B" grade ?
Thanks
Nitin

CaptainAhab

ASKER

It was a good one. B means good, A is excellent.