You can use the SQL Safe log shipping, backup, and restore policies to automate and enforce your disaster recovery requirements or Service Level Agreements (SLAs). Note that SQL Safe no longer provides the Maintenance Plan Conversion Utility.
How to use log shipping policies as maintenance plans
Use the following steps to create a new log shipping policy based on an existing SQL Server Log Shipping maintenance plan.
To create a log shipping policy based on a maintenance plan:
- Use SQL Server Management Studio to connect to the SQL Server instances for which you have a native maintenance plan.
- Disable the backup jobs associated with the primary instance.
- Allow all restore jobs associated with the secondary instances to complete, and then disable these jobs.
- Start the SQL Safe Management Console, and start the Log Shipping Policy wizard.
- On each wizard window, specify the appropriate options, and then click Finish. Because the selected instances were previously included in a native maintenance plan, you do not need to initialize the secondary instances.
- Test your new log shipping policy by tracking the policy status.
- Delete your native maintenance plan.
How to use backup policies as maintenance plans
Use the following steps to create a new backup policy based on an existing SQL Server maintenance plan.
To create a backup policy based on a maintenance plan:
- Use SQL Server Management Studio to connect to the SQL Server instances for which you have a native maintenance plan.
- Disable the backup jobs associated with this plan.
- Start the SQL Safe Management Console, and start the Backup Policy wizard.
- On each wizard window, specify the appropriate options, and then click Finish.
- Test your new backup policy by tracking the policy status.
- Open your maintenance plan and delete the tasks that performed your backups, and then enable the appropriate jobs associated with this plan. If your maintenance plan performed backups only, delete your native maintenance plan.
How to use restore policies as maintenance plans
Use the following steps to create a new restore policy based on an existing SQL Server maintenance plan.
- Create a backup policy that archives the databases you want to routinely restore.
- Test your backup policy by running the policy jobs. This action also creates source backup files for your new restore policy.
- Use SQL Server Management Studio to connect to the SQL Server instances that have a native maintenance plan you want to replace.
- Disable the backup and restore jobs associated with this plan.
- Start the SQL Safe Management Console, and start the Restore Policy wizard.
- On each wizard window, specify the appropriate options, and then click Finish.
- Test your new restore policy by tracking the policy status.
- Open your maintenance plan and delete the tasks that performed your backups and restores, and then enable the appropriate jobs associated with this plan. If your maintenance plan performed backups and restores only, delete your native maintenance plan.