Backup Control for SQL2008 – Troubleshooting

If you’re seeing failure messages when you check the backup logs follow the below steps

Check whether a terminal server school

BCU should be removed at time of TS installation

If this hasn’t happened delete the Backup Control program folder and the associated scheduled task

Browse to http://upgrades.scomis.org/upgrades/logBackup/updateactivestatus.php

Search for the school

Select T-Server

Click ‘Set School as Non Active’

Check there is sufficient disk space

The amount of disk space necessary to complete backups depends on the size of the MIS databases, normally SIMS is the largest. If the drive contains less than 2GB free space there is a distinct possibility that this is the problem. If a remote SIMS Upgrade recently taken place you can remove the C:\Support\SIMSBackup folder to free up some space. Alternatively perform a general tidy-up of their hard drive

Check the SIMS and windows backup accounts

There should be a Windows account named ‘backup’ which must be a member of the Administrators and Backup Operators groups. There should also be an identically named account is SIMS.Net.

WINDOWS

Ensure the ‘backup’ account hasn’t locked, expired or been disabled

Main Admin PC (Start > Run > LUSRMGR.EXE)

Dedicated Server (Start > All Programs > Active Directory Users & Computers)

SIMS.NET

Go to Tools > System Manager > Users > Backup Operator

Needs to be a member of the System Manager group and to be Windows authenticated, i.e. the username should say %machine name%\backup

Check the backup task

The backup task should be configured to be run by the backup user and it should NOT be set to only run if the user is logged on.

Ensure that the password entered for the task is synchronised with the Windows account being used, you will have to reset it here and in the user console simultaneously to be certain of this.

To ensure a past instance of the backup task hasn’t jammed

Click Start > Type tasks > End the SQL Backup task if it is set to running

Right-click on the taskbar > Open Task Manager > Go to the Processes tab

Ensure none of the three following processes are running (via the backup user) – If they are end them.

BCTRL.EXE

DBATTACH.EXE

CMD.EXE

Close Task Manager and attempt to re-run the backup task by right clicking on the task name and clicking on ‘Run’.

Recreate failing backup job

Open Backup Control (Start > Programs > Scomis > Backup Control Utility)

Highlight the job which is failing and click Delete

Recreate the job, selecting ‘SIMS.Net’ backup type for SIMS

Or for FMS, SCOMIS_APPS_SIMS, MASTER or MSDB choose ‘Other’ backup type

Reinstall backup control (Best to delete the backup control program folder first from C:\Program Files\ScoMIS)

Browse to Scomis Updates and log in as the school

Select the Backup Control Utility listed on January 2010

Download and install as normal – The backup jobs will need to be re-added

Find out more @ R:\Traded\ScoMIS\Managed Services\Backup Control Utility

Log file shows Error message :
Error executing MSSQL backup.The server principal “backup user” is not able to access the database “database name” under the current security context

You will need to install the SQL Management Studio and make sure the user which you are using for the SQL backup (likely called backup) has sysadmin rights.

Open the SQL Management Studio

Open Security and locate the Backup user

Double click the  backup user and click Server Roles on the left panel.

Tick ‘sysadmin’ on the right panel

close the dialogue and SQL Management then run the backup task again.

Reviewed 01/08/2019