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not sure if I want Backup Exec

cheyguy2308
Level 2

I am new to this product and am still using an older version that we didn't know we purchased.  I'm trying to see if it fits for what I need.  I want a Grandfather, father, son approach and need a daily incremental, weekly full(retain for THREE weeks) and monthly full (retain for THREE months).  I saw the built-in template for this and all I did was modify the destination to my custom folders.  Because I am under a huge time constraint, all I want to do right now is backup to disk folder.  My questions are(also, if it matters I have a mix of 2003 and 2008 servers that I am wanting to share an 11TB NAS):

1) how are the media sets treated for backing up to folder/NAS?  I think I am supposed to choose append/no overwrite but more importantly, will my file grow in size or will it be a number of separate backup files in the same directory?

2) am I looking at limitations with backing up 15 or more servers to one huge amount of space on a NAS? Can multiple backups take place to the same location (just different folders)?

3) and is there any way to change the retention of the media to a custom time rather than the 1 or 4 weeks?  Again, I only want to keep my fulls for 3 cycles(3 weekly fridays and 3 monthlys)

4) will this version get me what I need and will I need a license for each server I want to backup?

Thanks in advance for your help!

4 REPLIES 4

teiva-boy
Level 6

BackupExec can do everything you need it to do and more.  It can work with a grandfather/father/son scheme, you can assign different retentions for each policy (it can overwrite or append)  This is all governed by the media sets and their respective overwrite protection periods.

It doesn't matter if it's 1 server or 1000, BackupExec when designed correctly can handle this.  Each server is licensed with with an agent or application agent, not to mention a few other misc things like tape drive licenses if using a library.

Using a NAS as a storage target is perfectly acceptable as well, it's called Backup 2 Disk Folders in BackupExec.

 

That said, if using BackupExec 10d, don't bother.  You should be using BackupExec 2010 R3 or newer.  10d is not worth the time and effort.  Since BackupExec 11 in 2003 or so, there have been significant changes in the product.  10d and older are archaic.

cheyguy2308
Level 2

I know of the backup-to-disk folder and that's what I'm currently testing, however, I'm still not clear if I can set custom retention or do I have to go with 1/4 weeks?  

Also, what will my end-result backup file(s) look like for the incremental?  Will it always be one file that gets changed or a series of files that I can choose which one to restore if needed?  I've tried one incremental already and it was only one file over the span of a few days, but I didn't change too many options with it.  

 

I think you've just sold me in the upgrading question, though.

 

thanks again!

Ken_Putnam
Level 6

1)  All disk based jobs should be Overwriter only.  Never use append.  This is because when you append, the OPP date for the BKF file (and all others in an "append family") is reset when the job finishes

2)  Certainly.  But you would also need to look at the limitation on the NAS itself.  ie can you team twpo or more NICs for additional throughput How efficient is the NAS file system?  Can it handle writing to multiple folders (or even the same folder) well at all?

3)  Use separtate media sets for different retentions.  If you want to keep media for three months, use an OPP of 90days  and 20 days to keep for three weeks)

4)  For one media server (where the backups actually run) an three remote servers, you would need one base license and three RAWS (Remote Access  for Windows Systems) serials

If you also backup a database, you would need one serial per database server (the RAWS is included with the SQL/Exchange/Oracle/Notes serial) 

pkh
Moderator
Moderator
   VIP    Certified

I would suggest that you familiarise yourself with the Admin Guide which can be found in the BE installation directory.  Most of your questions are answered in the Data Management section of the Admin Guide.