cancel
Showing results for 
Search instead for 
Did you mean: 

Choose multiple Linux servers in Standard backup selections list

MBowman
Level 2

I am working on revising/consolidating some of our NetBackup policies.  I would like to have a handful of our high-priority Linux systems in one policy, however each server has a different selection list.  For example, Server1 only needs /d01/app backed up, but Server2 needs /d02/app.  As I browse the servers in the New >> Browse window, I can pick which directory I want backed up, and the server name is shown in the selection list as "Server1:/d01/app" and "Server2:/d02/app."  When that policy runs, it generates failure messages stating that "Server1:/d02/app" was not found (because it doesn't exist).  Backups complete of the selected directory.

Is there a way in the backup selections list to specify the intended directories per server?  Once I choose the intended directory on the server, the selection list just shows the directory name ("/d01/app") and seems like it looses its relationship back to the specific server.  I have tried the NEW_STREAM directive, hoping it would help, but alas, it has not.

Is there some special syntax I need to use to specify each server and its intended directory within the selection list, or do I need to stick with an individual policy per server?

1 ACCEPTED SOLUTION

Accepted Solutions

RonCaplinger
Level 6

NetBackup policies specify the attributes for all clients in the policy to use, so no, you cannot specify have multiple clients in a policy and specify different backup selection lists for each.  The policy attributes are the same for ALL clients in that policy.  You will have to use a separate policy for each client unless the backup parameters are the same for all.  That's the purpose of policy based backups.

View solution in original post

3 REPLIES 3

RonCaplinger
Level 6

NetBackup policies specify the attributes for all clients in the policy to use, so no, you cannot specify have multiple clients in a policy and specify different backup selection lists for each.  The policy attributes are the same for ALL clients in that policy.  You will have to use a separate policy for each client unless the backup parameters are the same for all.  That's the purpose of policy based backups.

RonCaplinger
Level 6

After a little more thinking, there *is* a convoluted way to achieve what you are trying to do, or kinda do this.  I'm only bringing it up because someone else probably has tried this. So long as the ONLY thing you want backed up on the servers is the paths you specified above:

  1. Create a single policy with all of the attributes you want the clients to share, and in the backup selection list, use the ALL_LOCAL_DRIVES directive instead of specifying any specific paths. 
  2. Create an exclude_list on each client that specifies just an asterisk (I think).  This will exclude everything from being backed up.
  3. Create an include_list on each client the specifies JUST the path you actually want backed up on that one client.

The net result is you have one policy that falsely indicates you want to back up everything on it, but the client's properties exclude everything on the client, but there is an override for a specific path that will get backed up.

If you end up wanting to back up everything else on the client, you will have to create and maintain  exclude/include lists for each specific policy the client is used in.  If you have multiple, policy-specific exclude lists, keep in mind that they are not cumulative or combined when the client is being backed up, so you would have to manually maintain the same list of paths in every exclude list on the client, which just means it would be easier to create a separate policy for each client an specifying what you really want backed up there).

MBowman
Level 2

Yes, we thought about that, but it is quite the convoluted way just to backup one or two directories.  We will stick with a single policy per server.

Thanks for the input.