ACSLS logical Library integration with NetBackup

[krish06]

Hi All,

Can ACSLS logical library (physical library SL8500) be presented to NetBackup? If yes, how to configure the robot in netbckup?

Description of logical library is below:

Any portion of the ACSLS physical library configuration can be presented to SCSI clients as a logical library that can behave as a target device on the SAN. A logical library, in reality, is a defined parcel of a physical SL8500 or SL3000 with specific user-assigned resources including tape drives and volumes. Logical libraries are exposed to client application software by means of a SCSI (fibre-attached) interface.

Logical libraries:

•Are only accessible to clients using the ACSLS SCSI Media Changer Client Interface. They are not available to clients that use the legacy ACSAPI. This interface allows clients to operate logical libraries using an industry-standard mechanism.

The SCSI Media Changer Client Interface:

•Assigns each logical library to one client for exclusive control of its drives and volumes.

•Provides immediate client support for longer volume labels.

•Allows for a single FC client port to access a given logical library over multiple target ports, if desired.

•ACSLS does not allow direct SCSI client access to the backing physical libraries - only the defined logical libraries are accessible.

•Cannot be accessed using the cmd_proc interface.

The cmd_proc interface does not provide access to logical libraries. But the physical resources which have been allocated to logical libraries do remain fully accessible via cmd_proc (although they are not accessible to ACSAPI clients).

Thanks

Krishna

[Mark_Solutions · Accepted solution]

Very much depends on your NetBackup version to ensure that it is supported

See the hardware compatibility lists here:

http://www.symantec.com/business/support/index?page=content&key=15143&channel=TECHNICAL_SOLUTION&bas...

After that, if supported, these should help configure it:

http://www.symantec.com/docs/HOWTO49381

http://www.symantec.com/docs/HOWTO49380

Along with the Admin Guide(s) - again dependant on NetBackup version

[Marianne]

Hi Krishna

In support of Mark's excellent post - advice is a lot easier if we know which OS and NBU version.

For example: Windows media servers requires LibAttach (obtained from Oracle/SUN) to facilitate comms with ACSLS.

Chapter 10 of NBU 7.1 Device Configuration Guide http://www.symantec.com/docs/DOC3656 covers ACSLS robots.

This chapter includes the following topics:
■ About StorageTek ACSLS robots
■ Sample ACSLS configurations
■ Media requests for an ACS robot
■ Configuring ACS drives
■ Configuring shared ACS drives
■ Adding tapes to ACS robots
■ About removing tapes from ACS robots
■ Robot inventory operations on ACS robots
■ Robotic control, communication, and logging
■ ACS robotic test utility
■ Changing your ACS robotic configuration
■ ACS configurations supported
■ Sun StorageTek ACSLS firewall configuration

[Nicolai]

The SL8500 does not have a SCSI interface. It controlled via Ethernet and ACSLS. The SL8500 does have a hardware partition option (licensed seperatly), but the control is under all circumstances still ACSLS.

If you wan't to connect multiple Netbackup domains to a SL8500 you can seperate tapes by using ACSLS volume access control. 

You can find a guide here : http://www.mass.dk/netbackup/guides/61-acsls-volume-access-control.html

[krish06]

Thanks for all your details. As NetBackup communicates to SL8500 usning ACS API via ACSLS server, and recongizes the robot. This method uses ACSLS volume access control mechanism to map drives and tape medias for a particular NBU domain.

My question is, what is the mechnism to map a SL8500 logical partition to NetBackup via ACSLS server? I do have this query to find the best method of netbackup integration with Sl8500 tape library. option 1. using ACS API and volume control mechnaism 2.using logical tape libraries using SCSI Media Changer Client Interface. Both looks functionally same

[Nicolai]

You can't do option 2 with the SL8500 (no SCSI or FC interface). A hard partioned SL8500 require a ACSLS server per partition.

I use ACSLS volume access control and have 4 diffrent backup platform attached to my 2 SL8500. Work great.

[krish06]

Thanks Nicolai,

So SL8500 logical partitioning won't work with NetBackup. Only we need to use ACSLS volume access control for NetBackup. Am I correct?

[krish06]

Thanks Nicolai,

So SL8500 logical partitioning won't work with NetBackup. Only we need to use ACSLS volume access control for NetBackup. Am I correct?

[Marianne]

Misunderstanding..............

Partitioned Library will work, but there's NO NEED!

As per Nicolai's post, partitioned library needs two ACSLS servers.
You can present one or more ACSLS servers to NBU.

If only one NetBackup master (with its media servers) is going to use this robot, there is no need for volume access control.

[krish06]

I'm confused by the following two limitations from http://docs.oracle.com/cd/E21437_01/en/E22027/E22027_02.pdf page 381 of ACSLS user guide.

Logical libraries:

•Are only accessible to clients using the ACSLS SCSI Media Changer Client Interface. They are not available to clients that use the legacy ACSAPI. This interface allows clients to operate logical libraries using an industry-standard mechanism.

 •Cannot be accessed using the cmd_proc interface.

The cmd_proc interface does not provide access to logical libraries. But the physical resources which have been allocated to logical libraries do remain fully accessible via cmd_proc (although they are not accessible to ACSAPI clients).

My query here is, with the above ACSLS limitation of logical tape libraries, how to operate logical libraris using NetBackup. I know NetBackup reconizes ACS API robots but how this logical libraries work with Netbackup. Any procedure would helpif supports.

[Nicolai]

Oracle does have robots with SCSI interfaces, but the SL8500 is not one of them. 

Netbackup and the SL8500 work brilliant. No need to be afraid it's unsupported :)