Handling bar code changes when migrating to new tape library
We have a Netbackup 7.1 server on AIX 6.1 connected to an IBM TS3310 library. This library reads the last six characters of the barcode so barcodes in the format ‘AA1234L4’ are in Netbackup as ‘1234L4’. This is the way we’ve been running for the last year.
We have been able to attach a Storagetek L700E library to the server and insert some active and expired tapes into the new library. It presents only the first six characters of the bar code to Netbackup (and so far I don’t think there is a way to change that). So when we inventory the robot the tapes get added to Netbackup as ‘AA1234’ (i.e., Netbackup thinks this is a new tape).
When a backup starts at scratch tape ‘AA1234’ gets mounted and Netbackup (apparently) finds the discrepancy between the external barcode and the internal label on the tape. We get the message “incorrect media found in drive index x, expected AA1234, found 1234L4, FREEZING AA1234”.
Unless there is a way to have the Storagetek L700E read the last six characters of the barcode I need to find some way to start moving tapes as they expire over to the new library. I figure once they expire I can delete the 'old' name from Netbackup. But won’t I still have a problem when Netbackup mounts ‘AA1234’ on the new library and sees the tape header still says ‘1234L4’? Is there some way I will have to physically format the tape so Netbackup thinks these are totally new tapes – just like they were newly purchased?
