How to move backup data to selected tapes

[Imran1]

Hi All,

We have backups completed to disk storage, please inform how to move this data to specific tapes. These tapes should not include any other data.

Once diskstaging to those tapes is done, do I need to manually delete images from disk or Netbackup automatically deletes? where is this configured.

Many Thanks,

Imran.

[RiaanBadenhorst · Accepted solution]

Basic disk staging
The basic disk staging method is conducted in the following stages:
■    Stage I Clients are backed up by a policy. The Policy storage selection in the policy indicates a storage unit that has a relocation schedule configured. The schedule is configured in the New or Change Storage unit dialog box by clicking Staging Schedule.
■    Stage II Images are copied from the Stage I disk staging storage unit to the Stage II storage unit. The relocation schedule on the disk staging storage unit determines when the images are copied to the final destination. Having the images on the final destination storage unit frees the space on the disk staging storage unit as needed.
The image continues to exist on both the disk staging storage unit and the final destination storage units until the image expires or until space is needed on the disk staging storage unit.

If you want backups on disk to go to specific tapes you have to place those tapes in a volume pool and specify it along with the storage unit when you create the schedule.

The Windows Admin guide has more details on Basic Disk staging.

[Marianne]

Create a special pool for your special tapes.

Staged data stays on disk until the images expire or until space is needed for more backups.

Disk backups should never be deleted manually - use the Catalog section of the GUI to search and identify images that you no longer need and expire from there.

[Imran1]

Thanks Riaan, Marianne

I shall create new volume pools for specific tapes and move data.

Have gone through basic disk staging in admin guide, our process is setup in 2 ways as mentioned, first to disk and then to tape.
staging schedule is enabled in storage unit properties

Storage unit properties show disk type as basic disk so i think high water mark 98 % is not valid as it does not apply to basic disk staging

Low water mark is 60 %
storage unit size is 2.6 TB and only 590 MB is free

does this mean, disk data not moved to tape?
we can run diskstaging manually to see if there is any data that NBU need writing to tape in job of activity monitor ( is there any other way to check whether all data migrated to tape or not please ? )

Mairanne,
could you please tell what happens if disk backups are deleted manually (will this create problem during restores?)
Also, please inform the steps from GUI catalog screen to expire the images (but before this how to know which one i can expire)

sorry guys, our backup person is not available and backups are failing due to disk storage full errors.

your help is appreciated alot.
thanks,
Imran.
 

[RiaanBadenhorst]

Hi,

The High Water marks is relevant to Basic Disk (staging)

Enter a High water mark value. The high water mark works differently for the BasicDisk disk type. NetBackup assigns new jobs to a BasicDisk disk staging storage unit, eve if it is over the indicated high water mark. For BasicDisk, the high water mark is used to trigger the deletion of images that have been relocated. NetBackup continues to delete images until the disk reaches the low water mark.

Consider lowering the percentage. You might consider lowering it so that the value is 100% - (your nightly backup total as a percentage) i.e. if you consume 10 percent of the disk stu per night, leave 10% free, and change the setting to 90%. Or a little more aggresive would be 80%, at least then you have room to move should some images not have been duplicated.

From the text above you would have noticed that netbackup will start deleting/expiring images once it gets close to the high water mark, and stop once it gets to the low water mark. So you should also make sure these 2 figures are signicant different. No use in starting at 90 and stopping at 80. Let it clean out quite a bit. Maybe until 60%.

It all depends on the size of the backups and the size of the storage, and also how much you'd like to keep around for restore from disk.

Finally, Netbackup won't delete images that are not duplacted to tape, the expiry date prevents that. Only once it knows it has a copy on tape will it expire/delete the ones on tape.

If you want to look for ones you can delete in the GUI (catalog), look for an images, then once you have it, in the search criteria, change the copy to 2. If you find it again, it means there is a copy 1 (disk) and copy 2 (tape). You can then expire copy 1.

[Marianne]

"what happens if disk backups are deleted manually (will this create problem during restores?)"

Yes, it will most definitely create problems during restores. The image database will still know about the disk backups as primary images and will try to restore from them.

Rather use the Catalog section to expire the disk backups.