A series of conversations from several days…compacted into one nightmare. Enjoy:

Front line dude: Acme has a drive space issue…can I shrink the log file?

Kevin3NF: Give it a shot (this is SOP for Acme on this drive)

FLD: Didn’t work

Kevin3NF: Give me the ticket, I’ll take a look.

Kevin3NF: Hey ACME developer…you have a 2 day old transaction taking up all your T-log space…

Acme: ok…let me truncate the log

Kevin3NF: WAIT A SECOND!

Acme: Did that help?

Kevin3NF: No. You just invalidated the T-log backup stream and started causing the backup to fail

Acme: Why?

Kevin3NF: Cuz that big open transaction is still there, and SQL Server thinks there is no full backup now.

Kevin3NF: Hello?

Kevin3NF: (Sees pictures of crickets in his Inbox)

Acme: (hours later): go ahead and run a full backup tomorrow afternoon

Kevin3NF: You know you don’t have a valid backup to recover to, right?

Acme: Yes, but we can’t backup now…

(tomorrow afternoon):
Acme: Hey…who told you to run a full backup?!?!?

Kevin3NF: You did…I have the email.

Acme: (complaint to Kevin3NF’s bosses)

Time passes…repeat scenario.

Big transaction, full log file, fill drive, lather, rinse, repeat.

Customer: FAIL. >:(

Acme me owes ME some fries…but I get paid to deal with stuff like this every day 🙂

Kevin3NF