Performing the recovery

Ensure that you have prepared for the recovery first.

See Preparing for the recovery.

To recover a database with one or more missing volumes using the VEA

  1. Close the SQL GUI and all Explorer windows, applications, consoles (except the VEA), or third-party system management tools that may be accessing the volumes. It is also recommended to bring the database offline.
  2. From the VEA console, navigate to the system where the database volumes are located.

  3. Expand the system node, the Storage Agent node, and the Applications node.
  4. Right-click SQL and click VSS Restore.
  5. Review the Welcome page and click Next.
  6. Select the snapshot set XML metadata file to be used for this operation and click Next.

    The XML metadata file contains all required information needed to restore the snapshot set, including the names of the database and transaction logs volumes. Click the appropriate header to sort the list of available files by File Name or Creation Time.

  7. On the Select Restore Type panel, click Recovery and select Recovery with missing original volume.
  8. You may receive a message "Some volumes in this component have open handles. Do you want to override these handles and do this restore? Click Yes to proceed." Click No, close any open handles and retry the command.
  9. Verify the restore specifications and click Finish.

    The snapshot of the missing volume is changed from a read-only volume to a read-write volume.

  10. If you have not already done so, in the VEA, ensure that the drive letter or mount path of the missing production volume is assigned to the snapshot volume.
  11. Bring the database online.

    If the production volume was missing, the snapshot volume is now changed to the production volume. The database is restored to the time the snapshot set was created or last refreshed.

  12. To ensure that another split-mirror snapshot set is immediately available, use the VSS SQL Snapshot Wizard to create a new snapshot of all the volumes in the database.

To recover a database with one or more missing volumes using the vxsnap restore command

  1. Close the SQL Enterprise Manager GUI and all Explorer windows, applications, consoles, or third-party system management tools that may be accessing the volumes. It is also recommended to bring the database offline.
  2. Type the command as in the following example:

    vxsnap -x billing_DB.xml -r restore RestoreType=RECOVERY noLogs

    where billing_DB.xml is the name of the metadata file generated by the vxsnap create command.

    The snapshot of the missing volume is changed from a read-only volume to a read-write volume.

  3. If you have not already done so, in the VEA, reassign the drive letter or mount path of the missing volume to the snapshot volume.
  4. Bring the database online.

    If the production volume was missing, the snapshot volume is now changed to the production volume. The database is restored to the time the snapshot set was created or last refreshed.

  5. To ensure that another split-mirror snapshot set is immediately available, use the vxsnap create command to create a new snapshot of all the volumes in the database.