Begin by logging into your SQL Server through the Management Studio program.
After you are logged in, expand the "Databases" tree and find the database you'd like to backup in this list. Right click the database and select "Tasks"
In Tasks, select "Back Up..." from the list of options. A new window will appear.
This window, titled "Back Up Database" defaults to the appropriate choices for source, backup set, etc; The only thing you need to do is to tell it where to back up the database. If there is a path under the "Source" area, select it and hit the "Remove" button. When the box is clear, click on "Add". A small window will appear.
In this destination window, input a location you will be able to find the file with ease, such as the root of your Data storage hard-disk. The name of the backup does not matter (test, dummy, or "backup" are fine examples), but make sure to put a ".bak" at the end. Press OK when you have done this. The window will go away.
You will now see the location listed under the "Destination" box. Press "OK" at the bottom of the screen to back up your database. This may take a while if it is a large database. You may run this process with users attached to the database without error, though they may experience considerable network slow-down.
You will see a confirmation window appear when the process completes. From here, you must compress the backup file (into a .zip, .rar, or .7z file) before FTPing it to the Aeries support team.
