Complete A Manual Backup of the CopperCube

Description

The CopperCube backup feature allows the user to create a full or partial backup file of the CopperCube. The Backup file can contain only the Configuration of the CopperCube or the Configuration and the archived Data.

CopperCube Firmware 1.69 (1.06)

Contact Technical Support about backing up this firmware version.

CopperCube Firmware 1.11, 1.20

Required Hardware Components

Before going on site, you must be prepared with the following:

  • External USB storage (either flash drive or portable hard drive). In addition, a spare USB storage device is recommended.
  • Laptop, or operator workstation connected to the same network as the CopperCube and web browser installed.

External USB storage technical specifications:

The following are the minimum requirements for USB storage:

  • Minimum size 64GB.
  • Minimum write speed of 50MB/sec The backup will be very large and the time taken can be significant. Using a slow device only makes this process a lot more painful.
  • Formatted with NTFS.

Laptop or operator workstation specifications:

  • Software: A web browser to access the CopperCube graphical user interface

Setup the CopperCube Backup Feature

Follow the procedure below to back up your CopperCube:

  1. Plug the storage device into a USB port of the CopperCube. Make sure this is the only USB device on the CopperCube.
  2. If you are using a laptop, connect your laptop to the diagnostic port (LAN 2) of the CopperCube.
  3. Access the CopperCube graphical user Interface by entering the CopperCube IP address in the address bar of the web browser.
  4. Log on using the CopperCube username and password.
  5. Click Settings and then Backup and Restore.
  6. Click Edit Settings.
  7. Click the Enable / Disable Database Backup to check the option box.
  8. Click to highlight the USB storage device from the backup device list.
    If the USB storage device is not recognized and does not appear on the list, unplug it and try another port. Refresh the page.
  9. Select the type of Backup: Settings Only (Configuration) or Settings and Data (Configuration and Data).
    Caution: Backing up data can create a large file (several GB).
  10. Select how often you want to back up (if you plan to only backup manually the CopperCube, input a date different than the current day).
  11. Click Save.

You are now ready to back up your CopperCube.

Automatic Backup Process for the CopperCube

After you’ve completed the backup setup as described in the previous procedure, the CopperCube will back up according to the schedule you’ve set up.

Manual Backup

After you’ve completed the backup setup as described in the previous procedure, you can back up your CopperCube at any time using the following procedure:

  1. Access the Database Backup and Restore page in the CopperCube user interface
  2. Click Backup Now.
  3. Once the Backup is completed, one pop-up message will appear on the top right-hand side of the page
    – If the message displays a success, you can unplug the storage device.
    – If the message displays an error, please try backing up again.

How Do I Know the Backup Was Successful?

Follow the steps given below to check if the backup was successful:

  1. Connect the Storage Device to your Laptop and try to unzip the backup file.
  2. If you can unzip the file, your backup is successful, otherwise, you will need to use the manual backup process. Other signs of an unsuccessful backup include finding empty folders or incorrect files in the zip file.
  3. If your automatic backup was not successful, try backing up manually.

CopperCube Firmware 1.21 and Later

Required Hardware components

The following equipment is needed before going on-site to perform a backup:

  • Local network storage drive OR external USB storage (either flash drive or portable hard drive). In addition, a spare USB storage device is recommended.
  • Laptop or operator workstation connected to the same network as the CopperCube

Local network storage drive specifications:

The supported network storage format is CIFS (Common Internet File System)

External USB storage technical specifications:

The external USB used must have the following minimum requirements:

  • Minimum size 64GB.
  • Minimum write speed of 50MB/sec The backup will be very large and the time taken can be significant. Using a slow device only makes this process a lot more painful.
  • Formatted with NTFS or EXT2/ EXT3/ EXT4.

Laptop or operator workstation specifications:

Software: a web browser to access the CopperCube graphical user interface.

Set up the CopperCube to Back Up Automatically

To set up CopperCube to back up automatically:

  1. If you are backing up to a USB storage drive, plug the storage device into a USB port of the CopperCube. Make sure this is the only USB device on the CopperCube.
  2. If you are using a laptop, connect your laptop to the diagnostic port (LAN 2) of the CopperCube.
  3. Access the CopperCube graphical user Interface by entering the CopperCube IP address in the address bar of the web browser.
  4. Log on using the CopperCube username and password.
  5. Click Settings and then Backup and Restore.
  6. Make sure the Auto Backup Settings check box is checked. When the box is checked, you should see the “Auto backup is enabled” message beside the box.
  7. Click Edit Settings.
  8. If you are using a USB storage drive, click to highlight the USB storage device from the backup device list.
    If the USB storage device is not recognized and does not appear on the list, unplug it and try another port. Refresh the page.
  9. If you are using a network storage drive, click to highlight “Network Storage” from the backup device list, and click the Network Settings down-arrow to expand the pane.
    • In the Network Path field, enter the network directory path of the storage drive using this format: //host.example.com/volumesharename
    • (Optional) In the Network Username and Password fields, enter the server user name and password.
    • (Optional) In the Security Mode field, select the authentication protocol used by the network storage server.
    • Click Connection Test to save your settings and to test if the network connection made is successful.
  10. Select the type of Backup: Settings Only (Configuration) or Settings and Data (Configuration and Data).
    Caution: Backing up data can create a large file (several GB).
  11. In the backup frequency section, select how often you want to back up and schedule a specific time to back up.
  12. Select the number of backups you want to keep on the backup device. When the number of backups is reached, the oldest backup will be deleted automatically.
    General guideline: The size of the backup data downloaded on the backup device is 1/7 of its original data size.
  13. Click Save.

Complete a Manual Backup

To back up the CopperCube manually:

  1. If you are backing up to a USB storage drive, plug the storage device into a USB port of the CopperCube. Make sure this is the only USB device on the CopperCube.
  2. If you are using a laptop, connect your laptop to the diagnostic port (LAN 2) of the CopperCube.
  3. Access the CopperCube graphical user Interface by entering the CopperCube IP address in the address bar of the web browser.
  4. Log on using the CopperCube username and password.
  5. Click Settings and then Backup and Restore.
  6. Click Manual Backup.
  7. If you are using a USB storage drive, click to highlight the USB storage device from the backup device list.
    If the USB storage device is not recognized and does not appear on the list, unplug it and try another port. Refresh the page.
  8. If you are using a network storage drive, click to highlight “Network Storage” from the backup device list.
    • In the Network Path field, enter the network directory path of the storage drive using this format: //host.example.com/volumesharename
    • (Optional) In the Network Username and Password fields, enter the server user name and password.
    • (Optional) In the Security Mode field, select the authentication protocol used by the network storage server.
    • Click Connection Test to save your settings and to test if the network connection made is successful.
  9. Select the type of Backup: Settings Only (Configuration) or Settings and Data (Configuration and Data).
    Caution: Backing up data can create a large file (several GB).
  10. Click Start.

How Do I Know the Backup Was Successful?

The following steps can be taken to determine if the backup was successful:

  1. Each time the backup runs, a directory is created named 00-50-08-xx-xx-xx_SetData_2016-mm-dd_hhmm. The xx is part of Cube’s MAC address on Ethernet. The mm,dd,hh,mm is a timestamp of when the backup was created.
  2. Inside this directory are 5 files. The one we’re most concerned with is artrends.dump, as this file contains the trend log data from the Cube.
  3. The artrends.dump the file is compressed, so the size of this file is not easily compared to the size of the database in the Cube.
  4. If the results of two backups, that were taken closely together are compared, the size of the artrends.dump file should be about the same between the two files.
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