ibm tape library with backup exec 2012

[dirkdigs29]

i have an ibm tape library with 44 tapes in it. i have backup exec 2012.

i want to know what is the simplest way to label the tapes.

i wil be swapping out tapes from libraray and transferring offsite. how will i know which tapes to remove . i need a simple way of labelling the tapes, would barcodes work in for us? how would i enable this? i have run an inventory on al lthe tapes but it does not seem to show any barcode inforamtion.

[Kiran_Bandi]

Using barcodes is easy and effective solution, if your library has a barcode reader enabled in it.

how will i know which tapes to remove

To take out the tapes immediately following a job, you can use export job. If you want to take out all the tapes used within a period of time, then you can make use of BE reports (Recently written media report). 

[dirkdigs29]

my tape library (ibm ts3200) says a barcode reader is a feature.

i was able to find a setting that say barcode length reported to host and the value is = 8

where in backup exec 2012 do i enable to barcode lables?

[Larry_Fine]

re: where in backup exec 2012 do i enable to barcode lables?

if your library has an enabled bar code reader and your tapes have bar codes, then BE will show the bar code labels in the barcode or "media label" columns (when in the slot view).

I suggest configuring your library to report the entire bar code, including the generation characters at the end, such as L3, L4, L5.  This makes it much easier to deal with mixed generations of media & drives, now or in the future.  BE will write the bar code label to the tape the next time that media is overwritten.

Your inventory job log should look something like this:

Slot	Barcode	Media Label	Status	Device
1			empty
2	DPU041L3	DPU041L3		Tape drive 001
3			empty
4	DPU002L4	DPU002L4		Tape drive 002

If the bar code reader was disabled in your library when BE discovered it, you may need to delete the library from BE and restart BE services to get it rediscovered correctly.

[pkh]

You might want to read my article below to get yourself started with barcode labels.

https://www-secure.symantec.com/connect/articles/using-barcode-labels-why-and-how

[dirkdigs29]

all the docs are showing for backup exec 2010. what are the steps for BE2012 and using barcode labels ?

[Larry_Fine]

reading bar codes is basically automatic.  It hasn't changed between BE 2010 and BE 2012.

Using bar code rules has changed between versions, but you haven't mentioned if you want to do that.

[dirkdigs29]

if it is automatic then why when i got to storage > slots , is the barcode label field blank? i want to populate this field?

[CraigV]

...if you run a Scan job on the library from within BE does it do anything? Are you using the Symantec drivers for the drive?

[dirkdigs29]

sorry i do not see "scan job" can you show me a screenshot of what you are referring to?

[pkh]

Does your tapes have barcode labels?  These are labels which you stick to your tapes and they have barcodes on them.  If you don't have barcode labels then the barcode label field will not be populated, you can read my article below on how to implement them.

https://www-secure.symantec.com/connect/articles/preparing-install-or-upgrade-be-2012

[Larry_Fine]

go to the "storage" tab, click on your library, then either click on "scan" in the top bar or right click and select "scan".  Then double click on your library to go see the job and r3eview the log.  Please post the results here, in .mht format.

[dirkdigs29]

see attached

[Larry_Fine]

Your scan job shows media labels assigned by BE, but no bar code labels.

Slot	Barcode	Media Label	Status	Device
1		LTO000001
2		LTO000002
3		LTO000003
4		LTO000006
5		LTO000004
6		LTO000005

Can you see the bar code lablels in your IBM TS3200 web interface?

You should see something like this:

Slot #	Attn	Status	In Drive	Label	Media Loads	Comment
9		Full, Gen. 4		000073L4	447	Not Encrypted
10		Empty		------------
11		Full, Gen. 4		000033L4	896	Not Encrypted

Your tapes do physically have bar code labels on them, correct?

So your tapes looks something like this? http://www.dabware.com.au/images/thumbs/0000396_300.jpg

[dirkdigs29]

no they don't. they are IBM tapes . is this something that is ordered from IBM ?

Also can I just go by using media label. will this ever change?

[Larry_Fine]

bar code labels can be ordered from multiple sources, probably including IBM.

yes, you can run BE without bar code labels, but things are much easier if you use bar code labels.  Since you TS3200 supports them, now is the best time to build your system around them.  PKH have given some good links, including a nice article he wrote: https://www-secure.symantec.com/connect/articles/using-barcode-labels-why-and-how

The media label of a non barcoded tape can change if BE can not read the media or if you run a label job on the tape.  So, basically they don't change often, but they COULD change.  When bar codes are used, your bar code label and your media label will match once that tape is overwritten.