Firebird Backup and Restore with Encrypted Databases in Spring Boot

January 08, 2026

Backing up encrypted Firebird databases ensures your data remains safe and recoverable without losing encryption integrity. Let’s see how to do it step by step with Spring Boot integration.

1. Understand Firebird Encrypted Backups

When encryption is enabled with Transparent Data Encryption (TDE), Firebird stores all database pages encrypted. This means backups must also be handled securely using the same encryption keys.

2. Create Encrypted Backups Using `gbak`

Firebird provides the gbak utility for creating backups. If your database uses encryption, you must specify the keyholder file.
Example command:

gbak -b -keyholder /opt/firebird/keys.conf \
  -user sysdba -password masterkey \
  /data/employee.fdb /backup/employee.fbk

This ensures that encrypted pages are backed up safely.

3. Automate Backup in Spring Boot

You can trigger backups directly from your Spring Boot app using a scheduled task.

@Scheduled(cron = "0 0 2 * * *")
public void backupDatabase() throws IOException {
    ProcessBuilder pb = new ProcessBuilder(
        "gbak", "-b", "-keyholder", "/opt/firebird/keys.conf",
        "/data/employee.fdb", "/backup/employee.fbk"
    );
    pb.start();
}

This performs automatic daily backups without manual effort.

4. Restoring Encrypted Databases

When restoring an encrypted Firebird backup, you must provide the same encryption key used during backup.
Example command:

gbak -c -keyholder /opt/firebird/keys.conf \
  /backup/employee.fbk /data/employee_restored.fdb

Without the correct key, the restore will fail.

5. Store Keys Securely

Never store your encryption key in the source code or backups. Use environment variables or secure vaults like Spring Cloud Vault:

export FIREBIRD_KEY_PATH=/opt/firebird/keys.conf

Then reference it in your Spring Boot configuration.

6. Test Your Restores Regularly

Always verify backups by restoring them in a test environment. Automate this process to ensure your encrypted database can be fully recovered at any time.

7. Combine with Spring Boot Monitoring

You can monitor backup operations using Spring Boot Actuator to check backup status and logs for failures or timing issues.

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