Backup and DR Service for SAP HANA

Protect the SAP production environment against data loss, errors, and corruption

SAP HANA is one of the most popular enterprise databases in the world. It's unique because it runs in-memory, so it can return query results very quickly. Many enterprises use SAP HANA for their mission critical applications. As can happen with any database, SAP HANA is susceptible to corruption, accidental deletion, or even security threats such as ransomware attacks. Therefore, enterprises use traditional backup solutions to help them with their data management and protection needs.

Backup and DR Service lets you capture data from production systems, manage it in the most efficient way possible, and use virtual copies of the data for business requirements like backup, test and development, analytics, and AI.

Protection methods

Backup and DR efficiently and securely manages SAP HANA database copies in Google Cloud. Backup and DR supports two methods to backup SAP HANA:

  • SAP HANA savepoint API (volume-level backup) (recommended method)

  • SAP backint API (Full+Incremental backup)

Both methods support protection of SAP HANA log files as well as the databases. For details, see Set up the log mode and log backup in HANA studio. Use this method if the savepoint method is unavailable.

This recommended method leverages an SAP HANA database internal snapshot based on savepoint stored in the data volumes area and in Linux change block tracking to take an efficient, space saving, incremental forever backup.

SAP HANA data is captured in application first format, according to a specified backup plan. A golden copy of that data is created and stored once, and is then updated incrementally with only the changed blocks of data in an incremental forever model. This provides the advantage of instantaneous mount and recovery of SAP HANA databases. Virtual copies of the data can be made available instantly for use, without proliferating physical copies and taking up additional storage infrastructure.

SAP Backint API (Full+Incremental backup)

The traditional way of backing up SAP HANA is using the Backint API using hdbsql. The Backint API sends backups to a staging disk mapped to the SAP HANA host over iSCSI or NFS. In both approaches, there is a periodic full backup and the data captured is in a proprietary backup format and not in block format.

Backup and DR supportability of different SAP HANA configurations

Backup and DR can virtualize and protect the following:

  • Single container system (HANA 1.0 or 2.0) dedicated: In a single-container system the system database and tenant database are seen as a single unit and are administered as one.

  • Multiple-container systems (HANA 2.0): Multiple isolated databases in a single SAP HANA system. These are referred to as multi-tenant database containers. A multiple-container system always has exactly one system database used for central system administration, and any number of multi-tenant databases (including zero), also called tenant databases.

This table lists all the supported HANA configurations and the backup methods that apply with each one.

  • HANA SavePoint API method is the preferred method when available, for all HANA configurations except for scale-out with shared storage.

  • The backint method is available for all HANA configurations.

  • HANA log backups are always handled automatically for all configurations and options.

Configuration SAP HANA savepoint API SAP HANA backint
SAP HANA 2.0 standalone or HA (1+1) Yes Yes
Scale-out HANA 2.0, non-shared storage Yes, requires SPS 04 or higher Yes
Scale-out HANA 2.0, shared storage No Yes
Single container system (HANA 1.0) Yes, requires SPS 04 or higher Yes

What's next

Prepare the database for Backup and DR

The Backup and DR Service SAP HANA DBA guide

This page is one in a series of pages specific to protecting and recovering SAP HANA databases with Backup and DR Service. You can find additional information in the following pages: