Backing up with Microsoft Data Protection Manager 2007 (DPM).

Microsoft Data Protection Manager 2007 (DPM) is the second release of the backup software by Microsoft. DPM is Microsoft’s attempt at grabbing a piece of the bakup software market share which is dominated by Symantec, IBM and others.

I have listed the step by step instructions on how to backup using DPM 2007. To backup any resource you need to create a protection group. Listed below are the steps to do this.

Step 1
Open DPM 2007 Administrator Console

Step 2
Click on Protection Tab

Step 3
Click on Create protection group. This should launch the Create New Protection Group Wizard. Click on next.

Step 4
In the Select Group Members window, click on the server you wish to backup. Select the folders or database you want to backup. Then click on next to continue.

Step 5
In the Select Data Protection Method, enter the Protection group name. I would recommend naming it something that makes sense, such as the name of the server being backed up.

There are two options for the protection method. “I want short-term protection using: Disk or tape” and “I want long-term protection using tape”. In this example select the first option and click on next.

Step 6
In the Specify Short-Term Goals screen, change the retention range to the amount of days you want. you can also specify the synchronication frequency or accept the default of 24 hours. Click on next.

Step 7
DPM 2007 will automatically calculate the optimal disk allocation size, but you can also modify it. Click on next.

Step 8
In the Choose Replica Creation Method window, leave the fault at Automatically – DPM replicates the data across the network. Click on next to continue.

Step 9
You are now presented with the summary, review it and then click on Create Group. Upon successful creation of the group click on close.

You should now see the new Protection Group you just created. The Protection Status will day Replica creation in progress.