Best idea to deal with historic data ( Partitioning? )
We have several huge log tables partitioned by dates, the typical scenario where we just use current month to store data and the rest is queried for support &amp; troubleshooting. We run backups for the whole database, not just single partitions/filegroups as that will imply piecemeal restores later on. And you don't want to be in the middle of the night dealing with piecemeal restores, unless you are really aware of all the steps involved...I'm not. So if in doubt, use partition at will, analyze your scenario to find the best partition function and run a normal backup of the whole database.