The Docker Volume Backup Checklist is a short practical guide for backing up MDriven Docker deployments before stopping, removing, or resetting Docker volumes.
Why this matters[edit source]
When using MDriven's prepared compose files, Docker volumes persist data even if you stop or remove containers. This means your application state (logs, app files and any changes made to it) will remain between restarts. However, resetting or deleting volumes can cause data loss, so it is crucial to create a restore point before making changes. See the MDriven Backup & Restore Guide for full details.
What is persisted[edit source]
MDriven's data architecture separates two databases:
- Admin Database (DatabaseVistaDB.vdb6 or DatabaseCompact.sdf): stores the application data which includes the Model and its metadata, user accounts, roles and access rights.
- User Database: stores the actual business data entered by users. This is either an embedded file-based database (SQL Compact or VistaDB) or an external database server such as MySQL, Microsoft SQL Server, or PostgreSQL.
For external databases, data persistence is handled separately by the database service. For example, in the provided setups the MySQL service maps a local ./mysql-data folder for data persistence. See Configuring Production Databases.
Where the VistaDB admin database lives[edit source]
The admin database DatabaseVistaDB.vdb6 is saved on the host machine folder settings/mdriven-server. The server-core service mounts this VistaDB admin file directly into the container. Because this file is bind-mounted to the host, it is a key item to back up before resetting volumes.
For more on the admin database and VistaDB, see VistaDB.
Checklist and order of operations[edit source]
Before resetting or removing Docker volumes:
- Create a restore point before you upgrade, upload an updated Model, or reset volumes.
- Back up the admin database. You can do this by taking a snapshot: in MDriven Designer, open the Cloud Connection dialog, go to the Admin DB Access and Swap tab, and press "Snapshot Admin DB". You can then download the snapshot to your computer. See Database download and upload.
- Back up the host folder settings/mdriven-server, which holds the DatabaseVistaDB.vdb6 admin file and other server settings.
- Back up any external database data (for example, the ./mysql-data folder) if you are using an external database backend.
- Back up your configuration and override files, such as those in settings/mdriven-turnkey.
- Only after confirming your backups are complete, proceed to stop, remove, or reset the Docker volumes.