Backup a SQL Server (geo)database for Esri Support Services

Summary

In certain instances, Esri Support Services may request a backup of your SQL Server database or geodatabase. This article outlines the required processes for backing up a SQL Server database to share with Esri Support.

While there can be multiple ways to back up a database, there are specific supported processes for backing up databases for use and successful restoration by Esri support.

Procedure

A video outlining the SQL Server backup processes in this article is available online:
How To Backup a SQL Server (geo)database for Esri Support Services

Prerequisites:

• SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS) This should at least match the version of SQL Server in your environment.  For best results, download the latest version: Download Microsoft SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS)
• The credentials of a Database Administrator (a user with sysadmin privileges).
• Access to the location where the database backup will be stored. This is typically on the database server machine.

Gather important information about your SQL Server Environment:

1. Open SQL Server Management Studio and log in as a user with sysadmin privileges. 
2. Expand the Databases folder in the Object Explorer pane, locate the database to back up, right-click it, and choose New Query.
3. In the query window, paste the following script: 

SELECT @@VERSION AS 'SQL SERVER VERSION';

4. Execute the query.
5. Right-click the results and choose Copy with Headers.
6. Paste the results into a text file.

Back up the database:

1. Right-click the database to backup.
2. Choose Tasks > Back Up.
3. Configure the settings in the Back Up Database pane.
   1. Select the General option under the Select a page pane.
   2. The Database drop-down should list the name of the database to backup.
   3. The Backup Type drop-down should be set to Full.
   4. Under Backup Component, choose the Database radio button.
   5. Under Destination, set the Back up to drop-down to Disk to save the backup file to a disk location.
   6. If necessary, use the Add... Remove buttons to change the path to the location to save the backup file. Make note of this path to retrieve the backup file when the process is complete.
   7. Select Media Options under the Select a page pane.
   8. Under Reliability, place a check in the box for Verify backup when finished. This minimizes any errors in the backup process.
   9. Click OK to back up the database.

Provide the file to Esri Support:

Once the backup has been completed successfully;

1. Browse to the backup location specified above, and locate the .bak file.
2. Provide this .bak file and the results of the SELECT @@VERSION AS 'SQL SEVER VERSION'; query above, to the Esri Support analyst assisting with the support case.