How to: Define a Logical Backup Device for a Disk File (SQL Server Management Studio)

This topic explains how to create a disk backup device.

To define a logical backup device for a disk file

  1. After connecting to the appropriate instance of the Microsoft SQL Server Database Engine, in Object Explorer, click the server name to expand the server tree.

  2. Expand Server Objects, and right-click Backup Devices.

  3. Click New Backup Device. The Backup Device dialog box opens.

  4. Enter a device name.

  5. For the destination, click File and specify the full path of the file.

  6. To define the new device, click OK.

Note

A backup device is a logical device that corresponds to a resource provided by the operating system (the specified physical device). Creating a backup device simply creates a name or alias for the logical device. The initialization of the physical device occurs later, when a backup is written to the backup device.

To back up to this new device, add it to the Back up to: field in the Back up Database (General) dialog box. For more information, see How to: Back Up a Database (SQL Server Management Studio).