Best practices for continuous protection of Exchange

When you use continuous protection as part of your backup strategy, note the following best practices:

  • Symantec recommends that you back up only one Exchange server for each continuous backup job. Create a separate selection list for each Exchange server resource.

  • If you must copy backup sets to tape for off-site storage, create a job to duplicate backup sets. You can configure the job to copy the backup sets to tape after each occurrence of the full backup job.

    If necessary, you can create a copy job to run before the full backup. This copies all of the transaction logs, as well as the full backup sets, to tape.

  • If you duplicate Information Store backup sets to tape, and then back to disk, specify the same volume for the full and the incremental backups. The backup sets must be on the same volume to restore individual items from the incremental backup.

  • You can create a custom filter to limit the display of recovery points in the Job History view.

  • After you create and run a CPS Exchange backup job, do not change the backup-to-disk folder that it was run to. If you must change backup-to-disk folders, then create a new CPS Exchange backup job with a new backup-to-disk folder as the destination device. Delete the previous job.

More Information

Creating selection lists

Adding a duplicate backup template to a policy

About managing custom filters

About backing up Exchange 2003/2007

About reviewing disk space availability for CPS Exchange backup jobs

Troubleshooting CPS Exchange backup jobs

Best practices for continuous protection of Exchange