Trying to figure out methods to repair corrupt sql .bak file?

This guide is for you.

Here at Ibmi Media, as part of our Server Management Services, we regularly help our Customers to fix corrupt sql .bak file.
In this context, we shall look into the steps to repair corrupt sql .bak file.

What causes corruption in a .bak file?

The follow reasons can affect a file and make it corrupt;
i. Unusual system termination or crash, when the database is open.
ii. When the device used for storing the backup file is virus infected.
iii. Bugs in the SQL server.

There are different types of Backup in SQL server, namely;
1. Simple Recovery Model: Full and differential backup
2. Full Recovery model: Full, differential and log backup

How to repair corrupt .bak file in SQL server?

Many database users take regular database backups. However, there are some chances for the database to be down. The unexpected issues include database corruption, server down, or hard disk failure.

So, we want to restore the last full SQL backup to recover the database. But we cannot restore the database backup with the corrupted backup file. In such a situation, we have to restore the backup to retain the data.

If we do not have a healthy database backup in a disaster scenario, we lose data since the previous successful valid backup. However, we can repair the corrupted .bak file.

This can be done by repairing the data (.MDF) file, by using DBCC CHECKDB repair option;

ALTER DATABASE DBName SET SINGLE_USER WITH ROLLBACK IMMEDIATE;

BEGIN TRANSACTION;

DBCC CHECKDB ('DBName', REPAIR_ALLOW_DATA_LOSS);

ALTER DATABASE DBName SET MULTI_USER;

Here, replace "DBName" with the database name.

Also, it may lose some data after executing REPAIR ALLOW DATA LOSS command. However, this restore method is very helpful when there are no backups are available.
In addition, we take a copy of the data file before using any method or tool. And, some repairing tools are also available to recover the corrupt .bak file.

[Need urgent assistance to repair a corrupted database? We are available to help you.]