Backup and Restore Azure Analysis Services

This article explains how to back up and restore Azure Analysis Services databases. Backups are essential for disaster recovery, data migration, and creating development or test environments.

Note: Azure Analysis Services automatically takes backups of your databases. These automatic backups are retained for a configurable period and can be used for point-in-time restores. This document focuses on manual backup and restore operations using tools like SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS) or PowerShell.

Manual Backup

You can manually back up an Azure Analysis Services database to a blob container in Azure Storage.

Using SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS)

  1. Connect to your Azure Analysis Services server in SSMS.
  2. Right-click on the database you want to back up and select Backup.
  3. In the Backup Database dialog, configure the following:
    • Backup type: Select Full.
    • Backup destination: Choose URL.
    • Blob container: Provide the URL to your Azure Blob Storage container. You'll need to have a storage account and container already created.
    • Credentials: If prompted, provide the necessary credentials for accessing the blob container (e.g., Shared Access Signature (SAS) token or account key).
  4. Click OK to start the backup process.

Using PowerShell

You can use the Azure PowerShell module for Analysis Services to perform backups.

# Connect to Azure Analysis Services
Connect-AzAnalysisServicesServer -Server "your-server-name.asazure.windows.net"

# Define backup parameters
$backupPath = "https://yourstorageaccount.blob.core.windows.net/backupcontainer/MyDatabase_FullBackup.abf"
$databaseName = "YourDatabaseName"

# Perform the full backup
Backup-AzAnalysisServicesDatabase -Server "your-server-name.asazure.windows.net" -Database $databaseName -BackupBlobStoragePath $backupPath -StorageAccountName "yourstorageaccount" -StorageContainerName "backupcontainer" -Verbose

Manual Restore

You can restore a backed-up database from a blob container to your Azure Analysis Services server.

Using SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS)

  1. Connect to your Azure Analysis Services server in SSMS.
  2. Right-click on the Databases node and select Restore.
  3. In the Restore Database dialog:
    • Source: Select Device.
    • Backup location: Choose URL.
    • Select backup file: Browse to or enter the path to your backup file in the blob container.
    • Destination database: Enter a name for the restored database. You can restore to a new database or overwrite an existing one (use with caution).
  4. Click OK to start the restore process.

Using PowerShell

# Connect to Azure Analysis Services
Connect-AzAnalysisServicesServer -Server "your-server-name.asazure.windows.net"

# Define restore parameters
$backupPath = "https://yourstorageaccount.blob.core.windows.net/backupcontainer/MyDatabase_FullBackup.abf"
$databaseName = "YourDatabaseName" # Database to restore FROM
$restoreDatabaseName = "RestoredDatabaseName" # Database to restore TO

# Perform the full restore
Restore-AzAnalysisServicesDatabase -Server "your-server-name.asazure.windows.net" -Database $databaseName -RestoreBlobStoragePath $backupPath -TargetDatabase $restoreDatabaseName -StorageAccountName "yourstorageaccount" -StorageContainerName "backupcontainer" -Verbose
Tip: For restoring to an existing database, you might need to detach the existing database first or use the -Overwrite parameter with caution.

Automated Backups

Azure Analysis Services provides automated backup capabilities. You can configure the frequency and retention of these backups through the Azure portal or programmatically.

Azure Portal Configuration

  1. Navigate to your Azure Analysis Services server in the Azure portal.
  2. Under Settings, click on Backups.
  3. Configure the backup frequency (e.g., daily) and the retention period (e.g., 7 days).
  4. Specify the Azure Storage account and blob container where the backups will be stored.

These automated backups are crucial for ensuring that you have recovery points available even if manual backups are missed or fail.

Considerations