Media scanning issue

This is a known problem and the workaround is to inventory, rather than scan, the tapes.  You can select the Inventory after Import option during your import, so that you do not have to do a separate inventory after the import.  See this document

http://www.symantec.com/docs/TECH205392

Hello Ed,

As far as I understand, when Inventory operation is performed, Backup Exec will read the tape labels. 
However, when Scan is used, Backup Exec will read the Barcode labels.

If your tape drive has barcodes, then perform Initialize and Scan operation. 

In other words, a scan only gets the barcode from the tape, it does not tell Backup Exec what is actually on the tape hence you need to inventory them at the time you change tapes. Inventory allows Backup Exec to know what is on the tapes i.e. if they could be overwritten, appendable or details about their Media Sets etc.

In other words, a scan only gets the barcode from the tape, it does not tell Backup Exec what is actually on the tape

This is not true.  When barcode labels are used, a scan is equivalent to an inventory.  Both tells BE what tapes are present in the library.  Scan is more efficient than inventory.

I am using BE 2010 and a tape library, and I NEVER do an inventory.  I always to a scan.

Thanks both for your answers.

sidd3009, if this a "feature" of backup exec or is it as pkh suggests a known issues and you are just describing the work around?

I have used a good number of backup softwares and Backup Exec is the first one that you have to inventory the tapes even though there is a barcode scanner.  Backup Exec has a database with all the media in it, so surly a barcode scan on it's own should be enough for Backup Exec to match a tape with what it has in it's own database.  I can look at the database table and see the tapes there, with the correct barcode lable and correct media pool and renention date, why can't Backup Exec?

If you genuinly do have to inventory tapes and Backup Exec is ment to work like that it is very very poor in comparison to similar products in the market, even our 8 year old NetVault software (which we reitired and replaced with Backup Exec) handled tape management comnsiderably better than Backup Exec.

This problem only affects BE 2012.  Earlier versions of BE does not have this problem.

Ed: If your Robotic Library does have a barcode scanner then the Technote( http://www.symantec.com/docs/TECH205392 ) provided by pkh is a valid one. 

Backup Exec 2012 does have issues associated to running a Scan for barcode enabled devices.

The good news is, the issue would be fixed in the Service Pack 3 release of Backup Exec 2012(it has been tested with Service Pack 3). The tentative release date of Service Pack 3 would be the end-start of November-December.  

So why don't they fix it???  It's nearly 2014!!!

Thanks sidd3009, we must have been cross posting.  That is very good news!

Ed.

This is ultimately what we want to do.  The other question is why is there no "Import and Scan" option, like there is "Import and Inventory".  Once this is working we will want to do and import, then we will have to remember to go back and do a scan separately.

Ed.