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Backing up the database using loaddb CHECKDB

This procedure describes how to manually back up the Legacy Content Delivery database with a consistency check on the server. The CHECKDB command checks the database for consistency, and can also be used to manually back up the database. The backup you create can be restored to another system, even if that system has a different operating system than the computer on which you create the backup. Only use this command if the recommended loaddb BACKUP command does not work.

Before you begin

Legacy Content Delivery will be unavailable for the duration of the execution.

Legacy Content Delivery must be running. The database is suspended and all requests will be pending until the backup has completed.

If the backup you intend to create includes user information and credentials (that is, if it will contain a backup of the folder /db/system/), take note of the admin password now. If this password ever changes, you will need the original password in order to perform a successful restore.

About this task

By default the CHECKDB command backs up the entire Legacy Content Delivery database: users, groups, publications, forms (definitions and instances) and packages. The following files are not part of the database, and are therefore not backed up by this task:
  • conf.xml
  • lc.properties
  • log4j.xml
  • LiveContent*.xml files

If you have modified any or all of these files, you must back up and restore them separately.

Procedure

  1. Make sure that no end users are using Legacy Content Delivery during the execution.
  2. At a command prompt, in the directory where Legacy Content Delivery is installed, type one of the following (without pressing Enter):
    • On a Windows machine, type loaddb.bat
    • On a Unix machine, type loaddb.sh
  3. Specify one or more of the following switches, as needed (again without pressing Enter):
    Switch and valueDescriptionDefault if omitted
    -Dlc.file="FILENAME"The path to, and name of, the ZIP file in which you want to store your database backup.backup.zip
    -Dlc.host=HOSTNAMEThe host name of the Legacy Content Delivery instance to connect to. When using this parameter to migrate from one server to another, ensure that each server within the secure group shares the same lc_auth_seed value in its lc.properties file. .localhost
    -Dlc.port=PORTNUMBERThe port to connect to.8080
    -Dlc.context=CONTEXTThe specific application context in which Legacy Content Delivery runs (must start with a /)./LiveContent
    -Dlc.protocol=HTTPSAdd this switch if you connect to Legacy Content Delivery over a secure HTTPS connection.HTTP
    -Dlc.max_zip=NUMOFBACKUPSThe number of backups to retain. The lc.backup=yes and -Dlc.zip=yes variables must be set. If -Dlc.zip=no, a backup to a folder will be created instead of to a .zip file.5
    -Dlc.backup=yesThis backs up the database; otherwise, only a consistency check is performed.no
    -Dlc.zip=yes(Requires that lc.backup is set to yes.) Store the backup in a ZIP file, rather than in a folder.no
  4. After the batch file name and your switches (if any), add the word CHECKDB and press Enter.
    The database is backed up, and a log file with a filename report-YYYYMMDD-HHMM.log, with YYYYMMDD-HHMM as a timestamp of the log, is produced. The log file is located in the WEB-INF/logs/ subdirectory of your SDL Tridion Docs home directory if you use your own Web application server, or in the logs/ subdirectory if you do not.

Example

Example:
loaddb.bat -Dlc.file="myBackup1.zip" CHECKDB