Backup Database
The BACKUP DATABASE command is used in SQL Server to create a full back up of an existing SQL database.
The following SQL statement creates a full back up of the existing database "testDB" to the D disk:
Example
BACKUP DATABASE testDB
TO DISK = 'D:\backups\testDB.bak';Tip
Always back up the database to a different drive than the actual database. If you get a disk crash, you will not lose your backup file along with the database.
A differential back up only backs up the parts of the database that have changed since the last full database backup.
The following SQL statement creates a differential back up of the database "testDB":
Example
BACKUP DATABASE testDB
TO DISK = 'D:\backups\testDB.bak'
WITH
DIFFERENTIAL;Tip
A differential back up reduces the back up time (since only the changes are backed up).