Inside The Edge

Unable to connect Native Error: 17

Daniel Pauley — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 12:43:00 GMT

Windows Server 2008 has been out for a while and it’s easier to move your Blackbaud product(s) to a new server than to continue maintaining the old server. After moving to a new server some of you may have trouble connecting your Blackbaud application to the new SQL Server. Workstations may get the error, “SQL Server does not exist or access denied. Native error: 17.” This is much more common with the release of Windows Server 2008.

The single most common reason can be summed up in one word – “Firewall.” Windows Server 2008 comes with the Firewall enabled by default and Windows Update has a habit of turning on Firewalls that have been turned off.

When moving servers, check the Firewall settings and the ports being used by SQL Server on the new server, sometimes they match up fine, other times they will be different. To determine if the Firewall is your issue, disable the firewall on your server and try to connect through your Blackbaud application on the workstation. If you can log in then the Firewall is your issue and you need to add an exception for the SQL Server port. If you still can’t log in then you have another issue.

The second most common issue is with DNS. The DNS server may not yet reflect the new server Name and IP Address. Try to PING the server by Name to see if it resolves to the correct IP Address. For example, when you open a command prompt and type PING Servername, it should result in a response of “Pinging Servername [192.168.0.1] (where Servername is the name of your server and 192.168.0.1 is the IP Address of your Server). If the results return a different IP address then you need to check your DNS settings. If you receive the correct IP address but failed ping results then you need to check Network Connectivity to the server.

How to Troubleshoot login issues is a useful solution if we are still having trouble logging in after moving to a new server. If you are familiar with working in the registry check the InstallSource (The Raiser’s Edge or Financial Edge/Education Edge/Student Information System) for your product to see if it has updated to point to the new Deploy kit on the new server. A simple repair by running the Setup.exe located in the Deploy folder will typically point the workstation to the new server.

Problems connecting to the database can be a common issue when working with SQL Server applications such as Blackbaud Products. Many of these issues are caused by Firewalls or incorrect DNS settings. Checking these two areas first will help resolve a majority of database connectivity issues related to the error “SQL Server does not exist or access denied. Native error: 17.”

Windows 7, Blackbaud and You

David Johnson — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 21:24:00 GMT

Thursday's the big day; Windows 7 is finally being released to the public after months of promotion and marketing from Microsoft. Before updating there a few things you will want to do.

First, make sure to read all the Microsoft documentation about the update process and new features. 77 windows 7 Tips is a good starting point for learning about some of the new features and update tips. Also, check out the Microsoft Spingboard Series for more articles on Windows 7. Once you have read the documentation are ready to make the move to Windows 7, test the update to make sure you are and your users are ready for the update.

Finally, read the system requirements for your Blackbaud Products to make sure they will work on Windows 7. We are currently in the process of testing the next releases of most of our software with Windows 7 and will update our System Requirements as we determine an application is compatible with Windows 7. Until then Microsoft has a new feature called Windows XP Mode that makes it easy to run applications in a Windows XP environment

And for those of you who think 77 tips is too many to read, here is a short list of tips that I found interesting (I will add some more in my next post):

7. Record Problems. The Problem Steps Recorder (PSR) is a great new feature that helps in troubleshooting a system (see Figure 1). At times, Remote Assistance may not be possible. However, if a person types psr in their Instant Search, it will launch the recorder. Now they can perform the actions needed to recreate the problem and each click will record the screen and the step. They can even add comments. Once complete, the PSR compiles the whole thing into an MHTML file and zips it up so that it can be e-mailed for analysis to the network admin (or family problem solver, depending on how it's being used).

11. Consider Clean Installs. Even when upgrading Windows Vista machines, consider a clean install rather than an in-place upgrade. Yes, it's more hassle, but it'll produce a more trouble-free computer in the long run.

20. Get Snippy. The snipping tool has also been around in various incarnations but it's even easier to use in Windows 7. Launch the tool, then drag and drop any part of your screen. The tool will snip the selection. You can save it as a graphic file or annotate with basic drawing tools. Teach your end users how to use this tool so they can grab the snapshots of their problems and send them to the help desk. Or create your own library of visual notes.

23. Be a Mouse-Click Administrator. Windows 7 makes it easy to gain admin rights with a keyboard shortcut. Click on Ctrl+Shift on a taskbar-locked icon, and voila! You've launched it with appropriate admin rights.

57. Manage Services from Task Manager. The Windows 7 Task Manager now includes a tab to manage services. You can quickly see at a glance the status of all services on your machine. Click a column heading to sort. You can even start and stop services with a simple right-click. If you need full-blown service management, use the Services button to launch the Services management console. You may often have the Task Manager running in the system tray; now, having service management access means one less window to have open.

61. Put It on Old Stuff. One perhaps-not-so-obvious Windows 7 tip is that you should attempt to install it everywhere. One user has a 6-year-old laptop that originally shipped with Windows XP. He could never get Windows Vista to install on it. But Windows 7 installed without complaint and runs extremely smooth. Granted, there are some Windows 7 features he can't take advantage of because the processor lacks certain features, but these are minor issues considering the laptop now has life again.

Support Roundtable: What Every DBA Ought to Know Q&A (Part 4)

David Johnson — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 19:53:00 GMT

This is our last segment of questions from last week's Support Roundtable, What Every Blackbaud Database Administrator Ought to Know. If you are interested in what the presentation covered please download the Presentation (you will need PowerPoint or the PowerPoint viewer to download the presentation).

Backups (continued)

Q: Hypothetical: you delete 100 constituents in global and don't know who. Don't realize for a few days. Is there a way to compare current records to previous, backed-up record, to trace changes?
A: The best option to compare databases is to restore a backup from before the global delete onto a Standalone machine or test server. Then run the query that was used for the global delete on both the live environment and test environment to compare results. If you are worried about this occurring you may need to review your users’ security settings so they don’t have the ability to globally delete records.

Q: You mentioned that things other than the databases should be backed up. Am I correct that the backup in the BMC only backs up the database and not the application, settings, deploy share, etc?
A: That is correct. The application and deploy folders are not backed up because they can be reinstalled using a download or installation CD. If you would prefer to back these items up you may decide to use a third part backup utility that backs up files and directories.

Troubleshooting

Q: If you are using a remote Citrix environment to connect multiple locations to the server, is it possible to provide them with the Microsoft products integration like Outlook so they can email reports or export reports to their location as opposed to the server, etc. as if it were a desktop application?
A: Yes, this is possible. It requires that you install Microsoft Office on the servers in your Citrix environment. Once installed you must setup each users Outlook profile on the server so that they are able to send emails via Outlook.

Q: We have a couple users who have had some difficulty logging in to Raiser's Edge would a rest of the registry help?
A: Generally, resetting the registry is used for issues that occur within the product. Log in issues are mainly caused by network issues. BB300248 and BB144086 are common solutions for connectivity issues.

Q: Do you have a decision tree for troubleshooting that you can share?
A: Yes, the General Troubleshooting Process Wizard will provide you with different questions and fixes based on the answers you provide.

Support Roundtable: What Every DBA Ought to Know Q&A (Part 3)

David Johnson — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 12:00:00 GMT

Here is part 3 of our Question and Answers from last week's Support Roundtable, What Every Blackbaud Database Administrator Ought to Know.

Database Maintenance and the BMC

Q: Should a workstation have access to both production and test environment or should it be totally separate?
A: Workstations can only have access to one environment because the versions between production and test may differ. Each workstation may only have one version of the software installed at a time. If you have a database license for a second database then you can attach your non-production copy of the database to the same server; therefore, the workstations would have access to both databases.

Q: We have a fairly large and complex database in both RE and FE, how often would you suggest that we perform maintenance?
A: I would suggest running Rebuild Indexes, Update Statistics, and Check Integrity at least once a week. For larger organizations that are frequently updating their database through batch and import, twice a week may be necessary.

Q: Are there suggested parameters to be used when running the Maintenance functions (Indexes/Statistics)?
A: The default option is generally preferred for the Maintenance tasks in the Blackbaud Management Console. Only change the parameters if advised by Blackbaud or by a qualified SQL Server administrator.

Backups

Q: Is it possible to backup the G-L distribution grid in RE? If not are there any steps that the DBA can take to maintain the grid in order to minimize problems?
A: The G-L distribution is backed up with a full database backup but there is not a way to backup just the G-L distribution grid. The G-L distribution is not something that should be changing often. To prevent users from changing the distribution you may want to review and adjust the users security settings in The Raiser’s Edge.

Q: Am I correct the SQL Server 2005 express does not include a backup manager to assist with manually backing up SQL? We had to download SQL Server Management Studio Express.
A: The Blackbaud Management Console provides the interface to create backups with SQL Server 2005 Express (or any other edition of SQL Server). SQL Server 2005, when downloaded and installed from Microsoft’s web site, does not come with a graphical user interface to create backups, however, they do provide the SQL Server Management Studio Express as a separate download for this. Blackbaud, however, recommends and supports the use of the Blackbaud Management Console for backing up the database.

Q: What types of testing should we do with the backups? Meaning do we spot check records, are there queries we should run, reports, etc?
A: The biggest test you should run is to restore the database and then log into it. Once logged in check one or two records, one or two reports and queries. This will let us know that the data is valid. Generally a backup failure is all or none, meaning that no data will restore or all data will restore.

Support Roundtable: What Every DBA Ought to Know Q&A (Part 2)

David Johnson — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 20:29:00 GMT

Here is the second installment of our Questions and Answers from last week's Support Roundtable, What Every Blackbaud Database Administrator Ought to Know.

Updating Workstations, Installing Patches and Testing Updates

Q: Is it possible to run the application directly from the server (deploy) share? We would like to avoid a end user to have access to write/replace the executables.
A: The best option to provide this security is to use Terminal Services so that users can access their Blackbaud application via a central server that your administrators manage.

Q: Just for clarification: non production environment is different from sample database?
A: Yes, a non-production environment is different than the sample database. The sample database is a database created by Blackbaud programmers while a non-production environment is a copy of your live database installed on a separate server to be used for testing and training.

Q: Does Blackbaud support running the production applications (RE, FE, BBNC) in a VMWare environment?
A: Yes, Blackbaud supports its applications in a virtual environment. However, we are not able to assist with the setup of the virtual environment or any performance issues that are related to the virtual environment.

Q: At some point, I was told a terminal server environment was not recommended. Is that still the case?
A: No, this is not the case. All version 7 Blackbaud products are supported in a terminal server environment. In fact, our OnDemand services use Terminal Services installed with Citrix to publish Blackbaud applications for remote access. See our System Requirements for more information.

Q: How often do you recommend backing up the data to the test environment? Should that be just when you are planning to test?
A: We do not have a set recommendation for refreshing the data on the test environment. I would suggest that at a minimum you refresh the database before testing major changes, such as global changes, Blackbaud updates, SQL Server updates, etc... Some clients that use a test environment frequently may refresh the database every week or every couple of days. Refreshing the test environment helps to test the validity of your backups so it doesn’t hurt to do it weekly, or more often, if you have the time and resources.

Support Roundtable: What Every DBA Ought to Know Q&A (Part 1)

David Johnson — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 19:51:00 GMT

I would like to thank everyone that joined our 2nd What Every Blackbaud Database Administrator Ought to Know Support Roundtable. If you weren't able to make it (or if you were and just want to review the information) we will be posting the recording soon and plan on having another session in a couple months.

Over the next few days, I will be posting the questions from our session on Inside the Edge. Today I am posting the Q & A from the first section of the presentation. Keep an eye out over Monday and Tuesday for the rest of the questions and answers.

Installing and Updating the Application Server

Q: Is the BMC available for BBNC?
A: All database management for BBNC is done through SQL Server Management Studio so the Blackbaud Management Console (BMC) is not available.

Q: So we should not be seeing a prompt for the deploy folder for upgrades?
A: Correct, when updating the server you should not be prompted for a deploy folder location this will only occur during the initial installation of your product. The update process will recognize the currently installed location of the deploy folder and update this directory.

Q: Where can I get detailed information on the changes that will occur during updates in order to make recommendations as to whether to deploy or not?
A: The release notes, available on the Downloads page for your product, contain information about the new feature changes. To find the changes that a made in a patch, review the Readme files which are also available on the downloads page.

Q: Should workstations automatically update or do you have to update manually at each workstation?
A: Workstations should automatically update after installing an update or patch on the server. You may have to manually update the workstations if you are installing the update on a new server. If the end users don’t have the correct permissions or if the deploy folder has moved since the last update then the updates will not occur automatically. See BB24924 for further information on troubleshooting workstations that are not updating automatically.

Upgrading SQL Server

David Johnson — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 15:28:00 GMT

There are numerous reasons to upgrade SQL Server. You may be on SQL Server 2000 and have read that Blackbaud is ending support for SQL Server 2000 on March 31, 2010 or you may want to use new features in SQL Server 2008. Whatever your reason, you can upgrade SQL server using one of three different methods:

An In-Place Upgrades
A Side-by-Side Installation
Installation on a new server

Your organization’s needs will determine which upgrade method is best. Let’s take a look at each option.

An in-place upgrade makes upgrading fast and easy if all your databases are compatible with the new version of SQL Server. It will upgrade each database automatically during the process. Plus, it will kept intact any customized SQL Server settings and jobs you may have. To perform an in-place upgrade, use the SQL Server installation package to update your current version of SQL Server. You will be prompted to select the SQL Instance to upgrade and it will update all files and databases associated with that instance. When performing an in-place upgrade, ensure all databases are compatible with that version of SQL Server. If they are not, then you may need to perform a side-by-side installation.

A side-by-side installation gives you the flexibility of deciding which databases to upgrade because it installs a brand new instance of SQL Server alongside your current instance, and does not affect the current instance or its attached databases. Instead of choosing a current SQL Instance to upgrade, you will choose the option for a new SQL Server Instance. To upgrade a database, you must detach it from the old SQL Server and attach it to the new instance.

Another key benefit to side-by-side installation is the ability to easily roll back to the old version of SQL Server if any unforeseen issues arise during the upgrade. You simply restore a backup of your database from before the upgrade to the old instance of SQL server. You do not have this benefit with an in-place upgrade.

A potential disadvantage to a side-by-side installation is that you have two separate SQL Instances running at once, which means each takes up resources such as CPU and RAM, on your server. If you run a side-by-side upgrade, make sure your server is beefy enough to handle both instances. After all databases have been moved off of the old SQL Server, you can uninstall or disable the old instance.

You may have noticed I haven’t talked much about a new server installation. There are two reasons for this. First, there’s not really a decision here, you are either installing on a new server or you are not. In this case you must have new hardware ready for the installation. Second, the benefits and installation processes are the same as a side-by-side installation. Both require a fresh installation of SQL Server and both require you to attach a copy of your database to the new SQL Instance.

After deciding the best upgrade path for your organization and selecting the databases to update, setup a test environment to use for testing the upgrade. This will help you prepare for the upgrade so you don’t have any surprises during the live upgrade.

End of Support for SQL 2000 and What it Means to You

David Johnson — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 14:20:00 GMT

Last month, we announced that we will end support for SQL Server 2000 on March 31, 2010. This decision was made because Microsoft ended Mainstream support for SQL Server 2000 on April 8, 2008, which means that they do not address issues or bugs found to be part of SQL Server 2000. I understand you may have some questions about how this affects your organization. Most of you are already on a supported version of SQL Server, so you will not be affected. For those of you who are on SQL 2000, we will still answer your product questions.

What does the end of support mean?

Before we get into what this means, let’s talk about SQL Server and how it affects Blackbaud products. SQL Server is the database engine that is the backbone of all current Blackbaud applications. This allows multiple users across your organization to access one set of data from a centralized server. Most Blackbaud products (including The Raiser’s Edge, The Financial Edge, The Education Edge, and Blackbaud Student Information System) are packaged with a free version of SQL Server called SQL Server 2005 Express (Patron Edge requires a full version of SQL Server). SQL Server 2005 Express supports databases up to 4 GB in size. If your database exceeds this size, you must purchase a licensed edition of SQL Server such as Standard or Enterprise.

Now back to what this means to you.

If you are using SQL Server 2005 Express, SQL Server 2005, or SQL Server 2008 then you don’t have to do anything. To determine your version of SQL Server, log into your application and go the Help>About <Product Name> from the menu bar. If you’re using SQL Server 2000, don’t worry, we will still support your product functionality questions.

Keep in mind you must be on a supported version of SQL Server to update to any Blackbaud application released after March 31, 2010. If your database is less than 4 GB, you can use SQL Server 2005 Express for free. SQL Express does have other limitations, such the amount of RAM and the number of CPUs supported, that may affect your organization. If you decide not to use SQL Express, you will need to purchase a license of SQL Server that is supported by your application. Before you purchase a SQL Server license, make sure to review the differences between SQL server versions and editions as well as our System Requirements. Most nonprofits (excluding schools) are eligible to purchase SQL Server at a discounted rate from Tech Soup.

Once you determine the best SQL Server edition for your organization, you will need to install or upgrade SQL Server. We will talk about the options for upgrading in my next post.

For more information review Knowledgebase solution BB592364.

Getting Started with Scheduled Queues

Rob Smith — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 20:45:00 GMT

When a customer calls a plumber and states "My sink is running." The plumber is safe in the assumption that it is leaking water rather than jogging down the street. However, "My scheduled queue's are not processing" can mean many different things! Today we will take a look at scheduled queue's and a some basic ideas to help troubleshoot them.

The first thing we should do when troubleshooting a scheduled queue is ensure that the queue service has been properly installed and setup. Part of that setup is to ensure that it is installed on only one machine and preferrably one that stays turned on. Blackbaud recommends installing it on the server because it's usually left on over night and users don't usually log into the applications while physically sitting at the server. This will stop overlapping queue's from interfering with each other and causing blocks in your database. It's also a good idea when testing an issue with a scheduled queue, to start out by setting them all to "On Demand." This ensures you don't have a stack of queue's trying to run and yours isn't lost in the mix.

After you have ensured that the queue user and the scheduled queue's are setup properly, you'll want to ask yourself 2 questions:

What is the queue service being asked to do?
What exactly is the queue service not doing?

In this area, we need to be as specific as we can, because the answers to those two questions will direct most of your focus. If for example, if queue is setup to export a query to a folder somewhere other than locally, you will need to know if the query is being run and then if the export is being run. If the query is not actually getting done, you will want to troubleshoot the query. Whereas if the export is not completing, you will want to verify that you have access to that network location where the export is supposed to be going.

Perhaps you have a scheduled queue that is supposed to query the database, export the information to a network drive for your staff meeting tomorrow, and email the results of the scheduled queue to you. In this scenario, it is a good idea to break the queue down into it's simplist form. Create a simple queue that refreshes the query you were planning to run. If the query worked, then reschedule the queue to run the query and export to a local folder. Once that succeeds, then move the export to a shared folder somewhere else on the network. In this fashion you can keep adding steps until one fails, then troubleshoot that portion of the queue.

If the query failed, then create a new query with even simpler requests. For example, instead of querying an entire years worth of data, only query data for a 14 day period. Even simpler, create a queue that is scheduled to refresh a query. If you don't have a simple query, then create one that is designed to request a unique first or last name from the database and refresh that query.

These same steps can also be completed in the reverse order. In the same example above where you're querying, exporting and emailing results, you can try to run the query. If it fails, then remove the email function and run it again. If it fails there, then remove the export, or set it to export locally instead of on a network drive.

Many things can cause a scheduled queue to fail. You can help speed up the process of narrowing the issue down by considering the factors above. While troubleshooting scheduled queues in their entirety can be a daunting task, I hope I've given you some solid ground to start with!

What Every Blackbaud Database Administrator Ought to Know

David Johnson — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 14:15:00 GMT

On Tuesday, June 23rd at 1:00 p.m. ET, we are trying something a little different - a new way for customers and support to discuss topics together. We want to create an open forum where ideas and questions flow freely between you and us.

Our first session is "What Every Blackbaud Database Administrator Ought to Know” which is geared toward individuals new to administrating Blackbaud databases. This session will begin with a brief presentation which covers basics like installing, updating, backing up, recovering, and maintaining your database and troubleshooting technical issues. Then it’s time for your questions and ideas!

We will conduct this session via a conference call with LiveMeeting. If you are interested in joining us for this session on June 23rd or would prefer a different date, please vote on our Database Administrator Forum Poll. Post a reply if you have ideas for future session topics.

If you vote to attend the session, we will send you a follow-up email with more details.

The Conficker Worm: Should you be worried?

David Johnson — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 14:19:00 GMT

There has been a lot of news about the Conficker Worm in the past week including a segment on 60 Minutes. According to these articles, the Conficker Worm is set to be activated on April 1st. Right now millions of computers could be infected with the Worm and we would never know because it has been laying dormant waiting for commands since being installed.

Once activated, the Worm will try to disable essential services on your computer including Windows Updates and Windows Security Center. In addition, Conficker may be able to log your keystrokes on web sites which could compromise the user names and passwords of your personal accounts. The worm may also be able to exploit weak administrator passwords in your network. These are just of few of the behaviors that Conficker can exhibit if you are not properly protected.

To help protect your computer from Conficker make sure you have Microsoft Security Bulletin MS08-067 installed. According to Ars Technica, Conficker installs its own version of this patch when it detects that it has not been installed. Also make sure that you are up to date with your Anti-Virus software and definitions. Then make sure that all your administrator accounts have strong passwords. For more steps to protect your computer, see the Microsoft TechNet Article, Conficker Worm: Help Protect Windows from Conficker.

There are people out there that say the threats of Conficker are being exaggerated and they very well may be correct. But why take the risk? Make sure you are up to date on Windows Security Patches, and your Anti-Virus Software, and you shouldn’t have anything to worry about.

If worse comes to worse and you think your computer is infected, check your Anti-Virus Software Vendor’s web site. They should have some type of removal tool for Conficker.

Backup and Recovery, Part 2 - Testing your Backups

David Johnson — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 17:16:00 GMT

In my last post, we discussed the importance of backing up your database and we briefly discussed the importance of testing your backups. In this post we will discuss, in more detail, the importance of testing your backups and some ways to achieve testing to best suite your needs.

This afternoon I did a quick search on Google to find out others' ideas on testing backups and I found a cool site about backup policys. The Tao of Backup is a creative look why a sound backup policy is necessary. In their section on testing, they provide us with an interesting thought:

“If you really believe that your backups are sound, would you be comfortable erasing everything on your hard drive right now, and restoring it from backups?”

If you said yes, then I hope it is because you have done thorough testing of your backups and know that they will work as planned if, or when, the time comes. If you said no, then it is time to start testing your backups so you can be confident that you will be able to restore all your data when the time comes.

There are various reasons why your backups may not be sound. These include (but are definitely not limited to) the following:

Failed Backups through the Blackbaud Management Console or SQL Server

Not all software is perfect. The BMC and SQL Server can run into issues when attempting to backup your. Luckily the BMC, provides an easy to read Maintenance History to provide you with a specific error

We have a good Knowledgebase solution to address most reasons why backups fail in the BMC

Failed Third Party backup software

Most backup solutions have a backup history and should provide you with errors on why the backups are failing

You may need to check with that vendor’s Customer Support if necessary

Corrupt Backups

Sometimes the backups will complete successfully but the backups will be corrupt
The only way to find this out is to find out the hard way or by testing your database

Your backup job is not backing up everything you need

The BMC will back up everything you need for a Blackbaud database to a .BAK file
However, you may not have your Tape backup solution backing up the BMC backups

These are just a few reasons why your backups can fail but these should be enough to show us that testing your backups is necessary for a sound backup Policy.

Now that we have established the need to create backups, let’s discuss some options we have for testing your backups. The best case scenario would be to setup a separate server to test your backups. (This doesn’t necessarily have to be as powerful as your live server. It could even be just an extra workstation you have that doesn’t already have client installations of your Blackbaud products.) In addition to using this server to test your backup, you could also use this to test upgrades to your Blackbaud applications, upgrades to SQL Server and upgrades to other applications. On this test server you would have the same exact versions of your applications so that you know the restore would work on your live server. I would suggest that you run the test restore once a week or once every other week. Restoring a backup on your test server will not only test the integrity of your backup but it will also refresh your test database with new data.

I understand that not everyone has the resources to have a permanent test server. Another option is to use your current Blackbaud Management Console to go through the restore process. However, this process requires that you take your live database down for a period of time because the BMC does not allow for two databases to be attached with the same serial number. In this case, you would need to detach your live database and the reattach the backup that you plan to test to a different folder on this server. Then reverse the steps to reattach the live database. This is not the preferred method of testing because it requires you to take down your live database.

Another option for those without a permanent test server is to setup a Virtual Machine (more to come on VMs in a later post) on your server or workstation using VMWare, which has a few free virtualization solutions, or other virtualization software.

We have mostly been discussing Blackbaud backups through the BMC but these same rules apply to all your backups including your server backups to external media. You can even use similar testing options, such has using a test server or a Virtual Machine, to test any type of backups you have configured.

Remember not to follow the Ron Popeil backup system. When it comes to backups do not “Set it and forget it”. You need to “Set it and test it” (I know not quite as catchy)!

One a side note: Nicholai Burton, author of The Spotlight, has some good ideas for using online storage, in his post, "Because Even the A-Team can't find your lost data," to keep your backups secure and off site.

OK, Now You Are In Charge. Part 1

Daniel Pauley — Mon, 23 Feb 2009 16:00:00 GMT

These are the words that some Blackbaud DBAs first hear when starting their position. You've never heard of Blackbaud, don't know what a "BMC" is, and haven't worked with a database program like this before. "Where do I begin" is the usual first question that gets asked. I'm going to help you answer that question and a few more. We will go over the basic things you need to know and where to find answers to questions you didn't know you had. This will be broken into several segments, as there is a lot to go over.

First off, welcome to Blackbaud. Your job is going to be easier because of the way Blackbaud built the products it sells to users. Second, we need to define some terms. These terms will be used by Blackbaud representatives and staff, so it will make it easier to communicate if we have these terms in common.

BMC or Blackbaud Management Console - The SQL Server User Interface created by Blackbaud where we can attach databases, create backups, and run maintenance on the databases. The Blackbaud Management Console is located on the application server.

Server (Application Server) - This is normally a dedicated machine (computer) that is more powerful that the standard machine used by an employee. When Blackbaud representatives speak about the application server they mean the machine where the Blackbaud Management Console is installed.

Workstation - This is a machine that has a Blackbaud product on it, but does not have the Blackbaud Management Console. This machine accesses a database that is stored on the server. Workstations are normally desktop computers where users do day to day work.

SQL or SQL Server - SQL Server is a Microsoft product used for database management. All current Blackbaud products have a SQL Server version that runs the database. This is the most common database management program for Blackbaud products. It can either be pronounced "S Q L" like the letters, or "sequel" like a movie sequel. Both pronunciations are correct, and most reprentatives familiar with SQL will understand it either way.

Oracle - This is another database management program. Oracle is less commonly used by Blackbaud products, but is still used for some Raiser's Edge databases.

Login - This one seems simple, but is one of the most confusing without context. There are typically four Logins that are used with Blackbaud products.

Windows Login - this is a user's login to Windows and the network - this is done before any Blackbaud products are even touched.
<Product> Login - this is the login and password to gain access to a Blackbaud product - like Raiser's Edge or Financial Edge.
Blackbaud Website Login - this is the login a user has to access the Blackbaud website - it is typically not the same as a Product login - it grants access to Knowledgebase, Downloads, Case Central, and FTP.
SQL Login - this one is rarely mentioned, but is also important. This is a SQL account set up to grant users' rights to the SQL Server databases. It is most commonly associated with full versions of SQL running in Windows Only authentication - and only users familiar with SQL are going to make any sense of that last line

DBA or Database Administrator - This is you, the person in charge of maintaining the database and securing backups of the databases. Some DBAs do not actually work in the program and do not have a login for it. I recommend getting a login for the database to test with in case you ever have problems with users logging in and need to have an account to test with.

Admin or Local Admin - This is a Windows defined role that means this Windows User has full control over everything on this computer. If a user is unable to perform a function, like running a report or logging in, Blackbaud will often ask if the user is a Local Admin or have you tested the same issue as a Local Admin to determine if this is a permissions issue. Admin is not a Blackbaud account in a database - but a Windows role.

Domain Admin - This is a Windows defined role that has access to all machines in your Network. This account has Local Admin rights to all machines. Domain Admin is not a Blackbaud account - it is a Windows account on your Network.

Supervisor - A Blackbaud "Super User" account and the default account that comes with all Blackbaud databases. The Supervisor account has full control over the database and can add and remove new users in the database. Typically not a Windows account, but an account used for Blackbaud products.

That completes our list of typical terms you will hear when working with Blackbaud. Next time we will go over how to find your SQL Server Instance, how to find out what Blackbaud products are installed, and how to tell the versions of each product.

Backups and Recovery, Part 1

David Johnson — Tue, 10 Feb 2009 20:13:00 GMT

This past week support received a call in which one of our client’s servers shut down unexpectedly. Shortly after this shutdown users started to receive error messages in the application and couldn’t work anymore. When they went to restore their database through their backup application, they learned that the backup program wasn’t actually backing up their SQL Server database because it was locked by the SQL Server database engine (As long as SQL Server is running it will lock the files so that they cannot be moved or copied). This is not an uncommon scenario, we have received numerous calls from clients in which they are using a third party application, such as Symantec’s Backup Exec, and their database is not being backed up. Sometimes the client catches this early and corrects the issue before the need to restore. In cases such as this one, the client doesn’t catch it until the need to restore their database.

In the above scenario, I see two main issues:

The client is not using Blackbaud’s supported backup method
More importantly, the client was not testing their restore procedures.

As I mentioned, this isn’t the first time this has occurred and I doubt it will be the last. In an effort to help alleviate the frequency of lost databases, I will be posting a series on Backups and Blackbaud Products. In this post, we will discuss our basic backup procedures. In later posts, we will discuss more advanced backup solutions.

In our scenario above, the client was not using a supported backup method. By “supported” I mean, the client was not using the Blackbaud Management Console (BMC) to create their backups. There are alternative backup solutions that will work with our products, such as SQL Server Transaction Log backups or Symantec's Backup Exec. However, the BMC is the only supported method of making backups. The one caveat to this is our higher level products such as NetCommunity or products on the Infinity Platform. We would certainly do our best to help restore a database through a third party application if need be (we never want to see any one lose their data) but we may not have the experience needed with the third party application to help restore properly. This is why we highly recommend using the BMC for backups, especially at organizations that do not have their own IT departments.

Now let’s discuss actually backing up the database. The BMC offers the ability to manually create backups or to schedule backups. A manual backup would be run before you plan on making a big change to the database, such as updating to a new version, running a Global Delete or bulk importing data. Scheduled backups should be run every night through the BMC to protect your data against the unexpected. This can include, your server shutting down unexpectedly (which can cause database corruption), hard drive failures, natural disasters or even theft. These unexpected events can severely impact your organization's productivity and bottom line if you not able to recover from them in a timely fashion.

When scheduling backups in the BMC the backups must be created on a local hard drive. If you were to experience a server crash or a hard drive failure a local backup is not going to help you restore your database since it may be deleted or corrupted during the failure. For this reason, we recommend that you store your backups on an external media such as a tape drive or a network storage solution. To move the files externally you will need to either move the files manually or choose a third party Backup solution. When using a third party backup solution you would set the application to create a backup of the folder where the BMC backup files are created. Make sure the scheduled time for the third party backup provides sufficient time for the BMC to finish backing up all databases. For example, if you have the BMC scheduled to backup at 10:00 PM, start the third party backup at 11:00 PM. For most databases 30 minutes to 1 hour should be sufficient but this can vary depending on the size of your database. Using this method you will successfully backup your Blackbaud database to an external device without running into issues of locked files, as in the scenario above.

Once you have moved these files to the external media the next step to having a complete backup policy is to move the database files to a secure offsite location as often as possible. In the case of a natural disaster such as a flood or fire, it is possible for your external devices to be destroyed. Having an offsite backup reduces the risk of losing your entire database in a case such as this. Since natural disasters are much less common than a hard drive crash or an operating system failure, you don’t need to move the files offsite every day. How often you move these offsite depends on your business needs. Ask yourself, "How much work are you willing to lose in such a disaster?" For example, if the cost of moving your backups offsite daily exceeds the cost of reentering a week of data then you should be okay moving a weekly copy of your backup offsite. Once you have moved your database offsite you almost have a complete backup policy.

Testing your backups regularly is just as important has creating your backups (What good is a backup if you cannot restore it?). This will help accomplish two things. First, it will verify that your backups are being created successfully. Second, it will verify that you know how to restore your backups in a timely fashion. In my next post we will discuss the importance of testing backups and different methods to setup a testing environment.

In the meantime, if you are interested in learning more about backups here is some recommended reading:

Blackbaud Backup Procedures

Microsoft Backup Overview

Importance of Database Backups and Recovery Plan

Welcome to Inside the Edge!

David Johnson — Thu, 05 Feb 2009 19:51:00 GMT

Hello and welcome to Inside the Edge, the blog geared to IT professionals and Database Administrators (DBAs) that work with Blackbaud Products. My name is David and I will be one of the contributing authors to this blog. There will also be other contributors from our Advanced Support Teams, who work with you everyday to help you troubleshoot complex installation or technical issues. In this blog, we will cover a wide range of topics to help you better you understand the technical workings of Blackbaud Products. This will help you to efficiently troubleshoot and manage your Blackbaud systems.

A few of the items we plan to discuss are:

Troubleshooting techniques and Utilities
Tips and Tricks for the Blackbaud DBA
Installation Tips and Tricks
Interesting Tech News
Tips for the "Accidental DBA" (we will discuss this term in a later post)
Virtual Machines

This is not a comprehensive list by any means, if there is anything you would like to see feel free to contact me or post it in the comments.

To get started I would like to point you to one of my favorite sites for troubleshooting utilities, SysInternals. SysInternals is a site created by Mark Russinovich that initially was independent of Microsoft. However, Mark knew as much or more about the Microsoft Operating System than did Microsoft. So they decided to bring him on board and bought his web site. Mark has a great blog that discusses his techniques for troubleshooting various issues in Windows. All the utilities from SysInternals are free to use and very helpful.

If I could suggest one utility for you to familiarize yourself with, it would be Process Monitor. It is an easy to use utility that will display what resources are being accessed during any process. We will go over how to use it in a later post.

I would also like to encourage you to leave comments so that we can make this blog as interactive as possible. I want you to become as much a part of this blog as me and my fellow contributors.

With that I welcome you again to our blog! I hope that you enjoy the posting and learn a little something new.