Backup Exec 10d won't take scratch media

[DanielW81]

Hi all,

I facing a problem concerning overwriting and appending media in BE 10d. I'm using a Tandberg VXA 172 Autoloader on an Windows 2000 Server. I can read an write media so it's probly not a hardware issue.

I have creadted one media set for alle media. The backup job is configured to take the media from this set. Overwrite protection is set to 4 weeks and appending is always allowed. I have chosen a partial overwrite protection level and to use scratch media before using target media set in the media management .

When I put some media in my media set they are shown as appendable. After I started a backup job be takes a medium and begins writing until it is full. He shold now take the next media in that media set that is labeled as overwritable or appandable. But it won't. It shows me an error message that I have to import new overwriteabe media using the import command although there are appendable catridges in the set. So I tried to move some media to scratch media to make sure that BE will use them. But it won't do that either. Once again I get the same message.

I already installed tha last service pack for BE 10d so what could this be? I used the same settings on my DLT autoloader before. Furthermore we have a working backup with another VXA autoloader at another site.

Please help me, I need a working backup.

Thanks
Daniel

[Robert_Schmidt_]

just a possibility ...

remember that media set tells BE when to use a tape ... AND

library partion lets you tell BE what group of tapes to use.

Is it possible that the tapes in your media set fall into different partitions - AND - the backup job is targetted at one of those partitions?

I designed my media sets and partitions in conjuction so they work together to get the result i want.

Hope this helps

[Stumpr2]

Robert,

I like the icon you chose. us Bobs gotta stick together

[#4]

Hi Robert,

unfortunatelly that's not the reason. I have only one partition for the autoloader. Maybe I should say that it takes media from "imported media" without problems. Furthermore when I set the overwrite protections level to "none" it works too. But I don't want media to be overwritten so this is not an option.

Regards
Daniel

[Hywel_Mallett]

Just to clarify, when a job fills a tape, and continues on to the next media, it can only overwrite a tape, it can't append to it.

[#6]

Yes I know that. But it should take tapes from scratch media, shouldn't it?

[Hywel_Mallett]

You would think so!

Is there media in the scratch set before the job starts? I don't think that should make a difference, but it might.

[#8]

I tried both options:

Starting the job with a tape in the scratch set only would make it display an import message.

With media in scratch set AND in target media set it would make it take a tape from the target set until it is full and then display the import message again.

[MikeCarter]

I am facing the exact same problem. (Backup Exec 10d, Win2003, Exabyte VXA-320 Packetloader 10x1u library)

It prompts me to insert overwritable media even when there is overwritable media in the scratch set.

I have tried both Media Overwrite options in the Media Management settings. I have run an Import command before my job started to import the media, then move it to the scratch set. I have inventoried the library before the job starts. All to no avail.

It only seems to want to take media that is in the set the job is targeted to. If the overwrite period (10 days) has expired, it isn't an issue as it will reuse the media. But if I want to use a tape that is still overwrite protected, I either have to temporarily change the overwrite protection period on  the target media set to zero, or I have to erase the tape, move it to scratch, and them move it back to the media set. Even though it shows as overwrite protected after I move it back to the media set Backup Exec will overwrite it anyway. That is weird.

This causes a real problem when I get new tapes and want to label them prior to use.

I have been searching for an answer to this for a long time. It makes no sense.


Message Edited by MikeCarter on 08-29-2007 09:08 AM