How does Cassandra handle data backup and recovery?

To back up and restore data in Cassandra, you can follow these steps in the distributed database system that boasts high availability and fault tolerance.

Data backup:

1. Use the nodetool command line tool to backup data. You can use the nodetool snapshot command to create a data snapshot and save it to a specified directory.
2. Regularly scheduled data backups can be performed to ensure the safety of the data. This can be done automatically using scheduled tasks or scripts.
3. Back up data can be stored on other nodes or external storage systems to prevent single-point failures.

Data recovery:

1. Restore data using the nodetool command line tool. You can use the nodetool restore command to recover data snapshots.
2. Before proceeding with data recovery, it is necessary to stop the write operations on the Cassandra nodes and ensure data consistency across all nodes.
3. After recovering the data, you can use the nodetool repair command to fix any potential data inconsistencies.

In general, backing up and restoring data are crucial operations to ensure the safety and reliability of Cassandra data, requiring careful planning and execution. It is important to choose the appropriate backup and recovery strategies based on actual needs and circumstances, and regularly check and verify the integrity and recoverability of backup data.