A system and method for safe and effective backup and restore of parallel server databases stored in data storage systems. Parallel server databases allow multiple nodes in MPP (Massively Parallel Processor) or SMP (Symmetric Multi-Processor) systems to simultaneously access a database. Each node is running an instance (thread) which provides access to the database. The present invention allows for online or offline backup to be performed from any node in the system, with proper access to all control files and logs, both archived and online, whether the files are stored in raw partitions in the data storage system, or local on certain nodes. Two different types of external restore supported: complete external restore and partial external restore. In a complete external restore, all spaces will be restored to the most recent checkpoint that was generated while creating an external backup. If users lose only a portion of the data (which is more typically the case), a partial external restore may be performed.