Overwrite Protection? Someone please simplify this

[Mian_Rashid_Saj]

Hi,

After reading all the help docs and experimenting with the Media set overwrite protection and the Overwrite Protection levels, my head is buzzing. Here is what i want:

Backup user files: Everyday full snapshots. Next backup should replace this

Prod databases: Everyday full backups.Next backup should replace this

dev databases: Bi-Monthly full backups. Next backup should replace this

Archived files: Huge files come in everyday. Backup should incrementally add the new files to the backup since i will be deleting the old ones to make space.

The bottom line is i dont want prod databases taking up all the tape drives since if ive got today's backup, i dont need yesterday's backup file right? Same with user files, dev databases HOWEVER with archived files i should not lose the old files since i dont have them on disk anymore.

Ive got a Dell Powervault Robotic library with 19 slots.

I'll appreciate some ideas, tips!
Thanks

[Ken_Putnam]

Bearing in mind that in order to append, the backup jobs must write to the same media set, you can create different media sets and create partitions in a library, and separate jobs for each.

Since you have a library, you could, for example, create a job called archive, defined as "Append, Else Overwrite", and set the media set to "Append - Infinite" and OPP to "None - Never Overwrite" (Remember that over time tapes do decay, so just because you backed up data last year doesn't mean that it can be restored next month)

If you will use a different tape for user data each night, you would need 5 tapes for this media set. The set should be Overwrite - 6 days, Append - None

For the Prod datbase Backup, I'd keep at least three copies (as I said, tapes do go bad, and if the backup chokes for whatever reason, the data that was on the tape is no longer retreivable) So Overwrite Protection Period would be 2 days. Append none

Dev Databases, Two sets of tape should be sufficient, OPP of 27 days

If that's as clear as mud, let me know, and I'll try again.

[Mian_Rashid_Saj]

Ken,

Thanks, thats a great reply. I'll try to expand my ideas and connect it with the solution you've chalked out.

Archives - makes perfect sense, however im using 8.6, does it have a partitioning option? i have not seen it anywhere.

User files - This is a little confusing, believe it or not, i read that overwrite protection support doc 5 times and still didnt make sense. I mean, sure what they're saying making perfect sense, however whats happening in the JOB doesnt connect to the doc at all. How do i instruct BE to use a different tape each night? Also Here's the golden question, when you say that OPP is set to 6 days,
does that mean the tape that was used on Day 1 cannot be used AT ALL till 7 days later ?
OR
Does it mean that that the JOB ONLY will not be overwritten until 7 days later (But the remaining space can be used by the next job) ?
P.S: How do i figure out how much space is left on the tape or which jobs are on a particular media?

Prod DBs - How does 2 days in OPP result in 3 copies ?

Clear as...muddy water so far? LoL...I'm getting there!

[Mian_Rashid_Saj]

Still waiting.....

[Ken_Putnam]

> Ken,
>
> Thanks, thats a great reply. I'll try to expand my
> ideas and connect it with the solution you've chalked
> out.
>
> Archives - makes perfect sense, however im using 8.6,
> does it have a partitioning option? i have not seen
> it anywhere.
>

From the devices Tab, right click the library\Create partitions

> User files - This is a little confusing, believe it
> or not, i read that overwrite protection support doc
> 5 times and still didnt make sense. I mean, sure what
> they're saying making perfect sense, however whats
> happening in the JOB doesnt connect to the doc at
> all. How do i instruct BE to use a different tape
> each night? Also Here's the golden question, when you
> say that OPP is set to 6 days,
> does that mean the tape that was used on Day 1 cannot
> be used AT ALL till 7 days later ?
> OR
> Does it mean that that the JOB ONLY will not be
> overwritten until 7 days later (But the remaining
> space can be used by the next job) ?
> P.S: How do i figure out how much space is left on
> the tape or which jobs are on a particular media?

BackupExec will not overwrite a tape that still has OPP left, regardless of the job that tries to overwrite

If you use Hardware Compression, there is no way to tell how much tape is left without calculating actual data written to tape for each job step (Bytes backed up / Compression ration) If yo use Software compression, one of the Reports - the Media Set Report I think will give you a guestimate

>
> Prod DBs - How does 2 days in OPP result in 3 copies
> ?
If your job ends on Monday night, two days protection means that Tues and Wed will not write to that tape

>
> Clear as...muddy water so far? LoL...I'm getting
> there!