WAN backups-moving full backup files

[cameramonkey]

We had a vendor that claimed (with thier software) they could replace our local tapes and move backups offsite across a T1 by doing a D2D backup, moving the full backup files to a NAS box across town, re-pointing the target, and then doing differential backups across the wire daily.  Unfortunately for us they didnt have a mechanism to exempt directories, so it wouldnt work for us (unless we wanted to unnecessarily backup an already replicated 325GB that could disappear without impacting us) 

Anyone know of a way to do this with BE11D?

Can we do this:

1. create local B2d folder on local USB drive

2. do a full backup

3. ship finished backup to the data center

4. copy backup files to new network share

5. create new b2d folder aimed at those backup files

6. do synthetic backups against that original full backup.

If not, can V12 do it?

Or should I just forget it and go back to local users swapping tapes and taking them offsite?

[Ken_Putnam]

Well, a full T1 is only 1.54 mbps  (small b - bits) so I'm not sure you really want to go this way in any case A full T3 is only 45 mbps (bits again)  (that's  0.1925 and  5.625 MBps respectively (large B - Bytes)

Your approach of creating the base with a D2D duplicate, followed by synthetic backups should work (but I'm not a Symanatec employee and have never tried something like this), but in the past people have had problems with the media server and remote agent dropping contact over a WAN link.  When that happens, the backup fails at that point

Not sure what you are referring to with  this statement

unless we wanted to unnecessarily backup an already replicated 325GB that could disappear without impacting us

Once the baseline is created, you run only INCR jobs, so where is the "already replicated" data coming from?

[cameramonkey]

the daily changed files are usually less than 20-50 MB per server. So the nightly backups are manageable over a T1. I pretty much have that pipe to myself from 6p to 6a daily plus weekends. Plus, we would only be doing these backups of the user folders and not things like the system volume, etc.

I would still do periodic system backups locally.

the 325GB is the 25 or so copies of a DFS replicated directory that has administrative install images, drivers, etc. All things that dont need to be backed up at the remote sites. They are already backed up once at the DFS hub anyway, so we dont need to backup those directories again at the spoke nodes.

I know others do it quite well but not within our price point. (like Exagrid with a starting price of $18k per remote office, and I am afraid to ask the cost of the receiving unit in the DC)

I was just exploring our options with technology we already own.

[Ken_Putnam]

OK, thanks for clearing that up

it really is too bad that you can't use a different Selection List for the INCR isn't it?