[otrs] How to create a Backup Strategy

Hello guys, i have been thinking over a backup strategy for my OTRS system. I should rather call this archive strategy. Now the DB size is now around 600 MB and i dont need the data anymore. but accasionally i do need them for some search purpose.Therefore, i need to archive this thing and keep it accessible cleaning the exisiting database. This would actually help me speed up my system. So can anyone suggest how can this be done, if at all. The live DB should begin from size 0MB and the old data should be somewhere else where it hsould be accessible via the OTRS front end. Thanks in advance for suggestions , if any.. Regards, Sumeet C Jain