Full Server Snapshots rolled out across HSE SQL Servers

The National Database Services Team, in partnership with the Technology Office, are delighted to announce the successful roll out of Full Server Snapshots across the HSE SQL Server estate.

Full server snapshot backups are now in place for all SQL database servers, complementing the existing database level backup strategy.

Prior to the completion of this important initiative, server snapshots only included the primary drive (C:), which meant that in the event of a server failure, only the primary drive was protected, while all other drives remained unprotected. With the successful completion of this project, all drives on the database servers are now fully included in snapshot protection, enabling complete server rebuilds and allowing Database Services to restore full backups and log files far more efficiently.

When new servers are provisioned, an initial backup will be completed before they enter production, followed by regular monthly backups thereafter.

This project represents an important enhancement to both security and operational efficiency, particularly in scenarios requiring a full server rebuild. Its success was made possible through strong collaboration across multiple teams within Technology and Transformation, in particular Tech Ops.