Table Level Recovery in SQL Server - Know How to Perform

The problem faced by many SQL users is that no direct method exists to execute a table level recovery in SQL Server. However, as an alternative, users can perform a backup of table level, instead of restoring it, and then get the desired output. Usually, production databases store the important database within them. Therefore, such database users come across with a solution to perform an object level recovery. This is because of the reason that these databases are very large and performing an overall database recovery would imply the investment of much time as well as the efforts of admin.

Hence, the post deals with the workarounds applicable for table level restore in SQL server

Alternative of Backup and Restore Options

Sometimes, admins are confused with the fact that backups are for BCP, where BCP is an acronym for Bulk Copy Plan. This BCP process is not only valid for a complete database recovery, but also on object level recovery. From a business point of view, object level recovery is very important. This is due to the time consumption for entire database recovery.

Solution 1: Restore the Current SQL Database to Any Other Database

Users can also go with this solution to restore a table in a database. This can be performed quickly and easily. The current database can be easily restored to another database and then copy the desired table in this database. So, it is required to either perform a full restoration or any point in the recovery of data and saving it.

The limitation of this approach is it is not possible every time to restore a large database. It is due to lack of time and storage space to store the resulting output. Moreover, this alternative will only exhibit a feature of restoring data. Additionally, foreign keys plus trigger keys should be taken care of by the system admin while restoring table from backup in SQL server.

Solution 2: Take a Snapshot of Database

For restoring a specific table from a large-sized database, another method is to take a database snapshot. If any problem occurs, users are equipped to fix the issues using a snapshot, which was taken previously and it serves as the source of data. The snapshot should be there before any issue arises. In case, when updates are parallel and recurrent on a respective table, the snapshot idea does not hold good. A snapshot should be present of every update and this is to be preserved for future use. This is also an effective method for table level recovery from SQL server.

Solution 3: Use SQL Server View

In this approach, users have to generate a secondary database and then, migrate the table here. The backup of a secondary database will be taken separately. So, at the time when the database is recovered, only minor data are retrieved based on the requirements. Generating a view is the best and simplest way because it facilitates selection of entire table contents. Nevertheless, the table should be renamed or dropped embedded in the original database for the establishment of the view. When the changes take place in the column definition of the table, make sure that the metadata view is also updated accordingly.

Comparing the Above Methods for Table Level Restore in SQL Server

1. Restoring to any other database is the fastest and hassle-free solution for retrieval of table content from any SQL database. But, the problem associated with this method is it requires a large amount of disk space to store the output. Also, users face some issues in managing triggers and foreign keys.
2. The idea of the database snapshot is also a great idea. But, it only works well when the database is not updated frequently. It is because of the reason every time the database is updated, the snapshot has to be captured. Also, it is not a preferred choice when users update the table in parallel.
3. In the view creation method, the table is separated from the rest of the SQL database. But, here metadata property must be updated periodically and the new database should be maintained carefully.

Conclusion

The post deals with some of the methods to perform table level recovery from SQL server. Also, a comparison has been done so that users can choose a particular solution. Every approach has its own merits and demerits. It is recommended to consider both pros and cons and then, choose any method. If the manual solutions seem a little challenging, users can use a third-party tool like SQL Database Recovery. This professional utility does not require much effort and time. Also, the graphical interface is very simple and does not require a large storage space while restoring a table in a database.