Recover Fully Encrypted Databases

If SAP ASE cannot retrieve the database encryption key during start-up because the master or dual master key is unavailable, SAP ASE ignores the encrypted database.

SAP ASE needs access to the database encryption key to know what to do with fully encrypted databases. The database encryption key itself is also encrypted, and is decrypted by the master key.

To connect to the server after you restart SAP ASE, the password holder for the master or dual master key can set the encryption password:

set encryption passwd for key [dual] master

This allows the master key to decrypt the database encryption key, at which point the database encryption key can bring the fully encrypted database online:

online database encrypted_database_name

Database recovery then occurs as the server comes back online.

You can also set up an automatic recovery; see Starting Adaptive Server in Unattended Start-Up Mode in the Encrypted Columns Users Guide.