Backing Up a TeleForm System.

 

Backing up servers and workstations is a more complex process than often understood. Simple backup applications such as the Windows built in Backup utility and even commercial utilities such as Symantec (Veritas) standard Backup Exec application are unable to provide as complete a backup solution as often believed. Many users will run a "full" backup and believe that they are covered. In reality all they have is a partial data backup at best, which can’t be restored without a time and resource consuming manual operating system and application re-installation first.

The reason for this is two fold; firstly most backup solutions are unable to backup open files. Even if they could, systems such as TeleForm V8 that rely on multiple file databases such as Pervasive SQL, would require each file of the database to be backed up in its entirety simultaneously to avoid corrupt data. If you imagine a large data file being backed up whilst it is still being written to or a data file being backed up whilst another relational table is being updated you will see that traditional on-line backups can be plagued with corrupt data.

Secondly, even if the backup were complete and not corrupt, restoring it would be a much more complex process than often believed. It is impossible to boot and restore a system from a tape drive alone, so it usually requires a manual operating system and application re-installation before the data can be restored.

So TeleForm can't be backed up?

Not in the traditional nightly backup sense, no. Open files, constantly changing data and complex restorations, not to mention between the backup being started and finishing on a medium sized TeleForm system it may already be 500 images out of date, all contribute to making backup impractical in most cases.

All is not lost though.

TeleForm isn't a storage system. In most well implemented systems the images and data should only be held within TeleForm for a short period between scanning or capture of the form and verification. So although it is not easily possible to backup a TeleForm system, this shouldn't cause much live data to be at risk.

So what should be backed up?

The most important part of any TeleForm system is the form templates. It is imperative that as you activate a form it is also exported to a backup store. Future changes to the forms will require further backups but it is important to get in to the habit of backing up every time a form is modified. This can be done either manually from the Designer or by using the TeleForm migration tool which can bulk export all forms and settings from a system.

It is also essential to backup the exported data and if possible paper or fax original forms should be retained until after the captured copies are verified.  Paper can simple be kept for a period and most fax servers such as ZetaFax can archive all received faxes.

These simple steps should be all that is required to provide a good level of disaster recovery. Restoration will require a manual system re-install, importing the form templates and re-evaluating the images.

So there is no way of backing up TeleForm at all?

There are more complex solutions for backing up TeleForm, but bear in mind that even the most robust and well planned backup will only be backing up the captured forms awaiting verification in addition to our simple suggestion above. So nightly backups are of no use as all the important forms of the day will be lost if there was a disaster late afternoon. This means the only option for a fully recoverable live system is to utilise a mirroring cluster setup. Cardiff refer to this as a High Availability system.

There are three components of a TeleForm system that need to be configured for High Availability:

• TeleForm Database (SQL)
  
• TeleForm File store (Windows file system)
  
• TeleForm License Service
  

TeleForm Enterprise (not Desktop or Workgroup) supports clustered SQL servers and clustered file stores. See below a diagram of how this could be configured to give the best available fault tolerance.

 

Although this form of clustering will give ultimate fault tolerance (even tolerating a complete system loss at either of the sites) it does require planning and considerable additional investment in both hardware and software.  It is worth noting that not all versions of SQL server or Windows Server support clustering in this configuration, so it is important to plan this type on installation from the start.

 

In addition to clustering the SQL and file stores it is also worth noting that if the License Service machine fails there is a two week grace period in which the license service needs to be bound to another machine before the TeleForm clients will fail to start.

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