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jjimenez2's avatar
jjimenez2
Level 5
5 years ago

Netbackup writing to tapes inquiry

Hello, I am not expert on tapes backup and I would like to  ask if there's a way on below scenario:

I have 10 tapes then I want to full the first 3 tapes before I used the other 7 tapes to write the backup? 

Thank you!

8.1.2
windows server 2012
  • Genericus's avatar
    Genericus
    5 years ago

    Depends on your exact needs - you can create a separate volume pool and limit it to 3 partially full tapes. If you allocate this one backup to that pool, it wil do what oyu need.

    As you write the backups to tape it will only use 3 at a time,so you will fill three and always have multiples of 3 tapes.

    Essentially you are not using the other 7 drives for this backup.

    There are issues with tape usage when creatig too many volumne pools though

     

     

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  • Nicolai's avatar
    Nicolai
    Moderator
    5 years ago

    Hi jjimenez2 

    You can do it, but it is messy, error prone, and Netbackup is not designed for doing that at all. Search this forum and you will see similar answers.

    I recommend to let Netbackup control what tapes get written.

    If it is for eject the nightly backup, then consider to move the entire Netbackup installation to a secure site and to backup "off-prem" immediate.

    • mph999's avatar
      mph999
      Level 6
      5 years ago

      Nicolai is correct, it is possible but messy.

      NBU + associated hardware costs $$$ - tapes are very very cheap.

      NBU is complex these days, but going back to basics all backups went to tape, and NBU was designed to manage tapes and it does this very very well.  Use this feature - get plenty of tapes, throw them at NBU and forget about it, that is what it is designed to do.

      • Genericus's avatar
        Genericus
        Moderator
        5 years ago

        Depends on your exact needs - you can create a separate volume pool and limit it to 3 partially full tapes. If you allocate this one backup to that pool, it wil do what oyu need.

        As you write the backups to tape it will only use 3 at a time,so you will fill three and always have multiples of 3 tapes.

        Essentially you are not using the other 7 drives for this backup.

        There are issues with tape usage when creatig too many volumne pools though

         

         

  • Marianne's avatar
    Marianne
    Level 6
    5 years ago

    jjimenez2 

    Maybe a good idea to read up in NBU Admin Guide I on how NBU chooses media. Topics such as: 

    Table: How NetBackup selects a volume in a robot

    Volume pool properties : Maximum number of partially full media.

    If you have multiple media servers, look at media sharing.

    Other than that, stick to basics such as:
    Avoid creating a lot of Volume pools.
    Avoid too many retention levels.

    All of these topics have also been discussed many times over the years. 
    You can search Google with the following in the beginning of your search: 
    site:vox.veritas.com netbackup <search phrase>

    Long story short: do not make any changes before reading up and understanding the consequences.