Synthetic full backups consolidate the data from the last full backup or synthetic full backup along with any subsequent incremental backups, rather than reading and backup the data directly from the client computer. Often, synthetic full backups are confused with a regular backup job, as the action to initiate such a job is the same as for other backup job types. However, it is not a regular backup job, since it does not retrieve data from the client source. Rather, it uses data that already exists on the backup media. Because synthetic full backups do not back up any data to the client computer, these operations do not place a load on the client computer. Typically, an incremental backup job is scheduled in conjunction with a synthetic full backup job to ensure an effective data backup.

Checking the last synthetic fulls

You can check whether your system has performed a synthetic full backup by following these steps:

1. Log in at https://console1.dasi.rwth-aachen.de. 
2. Select your client.
3. Click on “Jobs” (under the client name).
4. Click on “All.”
5. Filter by clicking on “+Add Filter.” “Filter by”: Operation; Condition: ‘Equals’ and enter “Synthetic Full” in the field.
6. If a regular (approx. every 30 days) synthetic full backup has not been performed, please initiate it as described in the instructions.

Instructions for initiating a synthetic full backup in Commvault

To initiate a synthetic full backup yourself, please proceed as follows:

1. Please log in at https://console1.dasi.rwth-aachen.de.
2. Select “Protect” from the navigation bar (left side of the screen).
3. Select “File Servers” and the corresponding client.
4. Start synthetic full backup: Click on “Backup” for your client in the top right corner.
5. Select backup content: Select “Synthetic Full” and all backup content listed below.
6. Perform backup: Then click on “Backup” to start the process.

Important note: A synthetic full backup can sometimes run for a longer period of time (from a few hours to several days). Depending on the client's configuration, it is possible that the daily incremental backups might not be running. Once the synthetic full backup is complete, these will continue as usual. If this behavior occurs on your system, please contact us so that we can configure the client to run incremental backups even during synthetic backups.