PURGE OLD SQL BACKUPS

SQL Backup Master can automatically purge (delete) old SQL database backup files from one or more backup destinations.

Automated backup retention management is essential for controlling storage costs and maintaining compliance with data retention policies. SQL Backup Master's purge functionality allows you to define retention rules that automatically delete backup files older than a specified age, ensuring your storage locations don't fill up with outdated backups. You can configure different retention periods for each backup destination, so for example you might keep 30 days of backups locally while retaining 90 days in the cloud for disaster recovery purposes.

The purge feature intelligently handles different backup types, understanding the relationships between full, differential, and transaction log backups to prevent breaking backup chains. You can configure SQL Backup Master to retain a minimum number of full backups regardless of age, or to always keep at least one backup set even if all backups exceed the retention period. This automated cleanup eliminates the manual task of identifying and deleting old backup files, reducing administrative overhead while ensuring you maintain appropriate backup coverage for your recovery needs without wasting storage resources.