Whether your business is big or small, a company's data is always an essential component in operating successfully. In this blog, we will explore how to backup and restore your Aras Innovator databases using Microsoft's SQL Server Management Studio tool.

How to back up a database

1. Open SQL Server Management Studio

2. Expand the Databases menu item, and find the database that you wish to back up. For this example, I will be using my TestDB

3. Right click on the database and hover over Tasks. Once the new section of the context menu pops up, click Back up.  

4. The Back Up Database configuration dialog will appear. Click Remove on the right side of the dialog, then click Add

5. The Select Backup Destination dialog will appear. This dialog is used to select the location for your backup file. Click the "…" button.

6. Select where you would like to save your backup file. For this example, I will be keeping mine in C:_Databases. Give the file a name, and click OK

7. Select OK on the Select Backup Destination dialog

8. Click OK on the Back Up Database dialog, and Voila! Now you have a database backup file located at the location you specified

How to restore a database from a backup

1. Inside of SQL Server Management Studio, right click on the Databases menu item

2. Select Restore Database in the context menu  

3. Once the Restore Database dialog appears, select the Device radio button

4. Select the "…" menu button that is located to the right of the Device radio button

5. Once the Select backup devices dialog appears, click the Add button

6. Select the backup file that you wish to restore 

7. Click OK on the Select backup devices dialog

8. On the Restore Database dialog, change the Database field to whatever you want your database to be called. 

9. Select OK on the Restore Database dialog

10. The restoration should complete successfully and you should now see database listed under Databases

11. Run the following queries one at a time. Please note that the second query should fail.

— Query 1 (should succeed)
— use $(dbname);
sp_change_users_login 'Update_One','innovator_regular','innovator_regular'
sp_change_users_login 'Update_One','innovator','innovator'

— Query 2 (should fail)
— use $(dbname);
sp_grantdbaccess 'innovator','innovator'

— Query 3 (should succeed)
— use $(dbname);
sp_addrolemember 'db_owner','innovator'

11. Once the queries have completed, you will have a fully operational Aras Innovator database! Please note that if you deleted and restored a previously existing database, you will have to restart SQL Server and your IIS. 

Closing Thoughts

Properly backing up your database is a crucial task that should always be done before making any major change to your environment. Whether you're installing a new application, a community project, or just preparing to deploy to a new environment, manually taking a database back up can save you a world of headache. For more information about the back up and restore process, as well as some best practices and recommendations, please see our documentation found here. 


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