On Fri, 16 Jan 2009, Paul Vinkenoog wrote:

> Hi Tom,
>
> > If you backup a database using nbackup, and the nbackup process dies for
> > some reason, the database gets stuck in backup mode because the 'alter
> > database end backup' statement is never run.
> >
> > How can I determine if a database is in backup mode? If it is, I can
> > execute 'alter database end backup' or use 'nbackup -N' before I start
> > doing the next nbackup.
>
> Look for the presence of the .delta file. I'm not sure if it is created
> right away (I think it is) or upon the first mutation, so to be sure you
> could first make a trivial mutation that you can later reverse.
>
> If you're running 2.1, an even better way is to SELECT MON$BACKUP_STATE
> FROM MON$DATABASE : 0 = normal operation
> 1 = stalled (i.e. locked, main file frozen)
> 2 = merge (busy merging delta in main file)
>
>
> Cheers,
> Paul Vinkenoog
>

Thanks Paul, I am using 2.1 so your query will be perfect.

Cheers
Tom