Backing up Exchange 5.5

Unfortunnaly windows backup is just a simple backup and doesn't support advanced functions such as 'open file backup' and leaves a lot to be desired. You realy need to get a professional solution e.g. Arcserve by Computer Associates or Backup Exec from Veritas, there are a few others however these guys are pretty much the market leaders and been around the longest, there's not much difference between thier products, it comes down to personal preference. But which ever you choose also make sure to get the 'open file backup software' as well, this is a seperate add on for both Echange and SQL and will cost allmost as much as the main backup software but is Necessary to perform a '100% safe full backup'. Both of these companies will send you eval. versions of their software to try out. It is usualy a good idea to do this so you can try out both products and see which one you prefare rather than rushing in blind and buying the first one you see or heard of or cheepest.

That's the best advice I can offer from my own previous experience, hope it helps.

I hope this isn't seen as rude, but the previous reply to this is simply wrong.

First: the backup utility included with Windows NT and Windows 2000 Server can indeed backup Exchange databases, completely and reliably. When you install the Exchange Administrator program for Exchange 5.5, the native backup is updated so that it can perform online backups of Exchange. An online backup means you will get a complete backup of the database without taking the database offline. An online backup is the supported method of backing up Exchange.

Second (and perhaps most important) NEVER, repeat NEVER, use any Open File Option (OFO) on Exchange. Not only is it unnecessary for a complete backup, it can (and probably will) corrupt the database, transaction logs, etc.. OFO may be OK for a file-by-file backup of a file server (though I haven;t had good experiences with it) but it is bad news with Exchange.

There are some features you gain with third-party products. I've used Veritas with success, and you may find its features, such as enhanced performance over networks, to be worth the price.

Here's a good Exchange FAQ that covers many aspects of administration:

http://www.swinc.com/resource/exch_faq_sec3.htm

I would recommend Veritas as it can do Brick Level Backup and Restore successfully. Brick level means that U can restore even a single e-mail from a mailbox. Never had a good luck with Arcserve.
Good Luck...

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