Old transaction log is reported as missing during recovery

I've done this at least 50 times without issue on various databases, but this
one just doesn't want to play nice.
So I have a SQLServer2K database setup. I've got a home-grown disaster
recovery process in place, so that transactions are taken from one server and
migrated to a backup server every hour. Once it's up and running, the
process is pretty flawless. However, getting it setup can be tricky.
1) Set the recovery model to "Full".
2) Backup your transaction logs
3) Do a full backup
4) Copy the backup to the backup server
5) Restore in to a read only database
Transaction logs can now be backed up on the source database, copied over
and applied to the backup server.
This isn't working this time though. No matter what I've tried, I still get
a message during the restore of the transaction logs such as the following:
"Executed as user: dbo. The log in this backup set begins at LSN
83111000001460600001, which is too late to apply to the database. An earlier
log backup that includes LSN 83075000002839600001 can be restored. [SQLSTATE
42000] (Error 4305) RESTORE LOG is terminating abnormally. [SQLSTATE 42000]
(Error 3013). The step failed."
Given the large gap between the two LSN #'s, I'm assuming that the database
thinks there is a very old transaction I'm missing. However, that is sheer
guesswork on my part.
The source box has been cycled, I've tried turning the recovery back and
forth between Full and Simple. This error is from my latest attempt, when I
swear I've done everything by the book.
Any suggestions of what might be causing this or where I should go from here?
Fred...
SQL lost a log somehow, I often had problems similar to this w/ home grown
log shipping.
Solution mostly relied upon: re-execute full backup, then restore & fire up
log shipping again. Full backup restores should be done nightly if
affordable...
Also - transactional replication ultimately proved the best solution for us,
transactions replicated within seconds, if we ever had to failover to backup,
I am much more confident minimal data would be lost as opposed to hourly log
restores...
Regards,
ChrisB
MCDBA OCP
www.MyDatabaseAdmin.com
"fkutz" wrote:

> I've done this at least 50 times without issue on various databases, but this
> one just doesn't want to play nice.
> So I have a SQLServer2K database setup. I've got a home-grown disaster
> recovery process in place, so that transactions are taken from one server and
> migrated to a backup server every hour. Once it's up and running, the
> process is pretty flawless. However, getting it setup can be tricky.
> 1) Set the recovery model to "Full".
> 2) Backup your transaction logs
> 3) Do a full backup
> 4) Copy the backup to the backup server
> 5) Restore in to a read only database
> Transaction logs can now be backed up on the source database, copied over
> and applied to the backup server.
> This isn't working this time though. No matter what I've tried, I still get
> a message during the restore of the transaction logs such as the following:
> "Executed as user: dbo. The log in this backup set begins at LSN
> 83111000001460600001, which is too late to apply to the database. An earlier
> log backup that includes LSN 83075000002839600001 can be restored. [SQLSTATE
> 42000] (Error 4305) RESTORE LOG is terminating abnormally. [SQLSTATE 42000]
> (Error 3013). The step failed."
> Given the large gap between the two LSN #'s, I'm assuming that the database
> thinks there is a very old transaction I'm missing. However, that is sheer
> guesswork on my part.
> The source box has been cycled, I've tried turning the recovery back and
> forth between Full and Simple. This error is from my latest attempt, when I
> swear I've done everything by the book.
> Any suggestions of what might be causing this or where I should go from here?
> Fred...