Number of files: 0 and Kilobytes: 0

[VAV_MOM]

Hello!

I am setting up a backup schedule for Oracle backups using RMAN. Template creation from the client runs successfully without an error. When I manually run the template from the master server, it executes successfully but when I check the reports, I see that number of files backed up is 0 and kilobytes is also 0.

I am using Windows Server 8 and Netbackup 7.6, Any assistence appreciated in advance.

--

Mark

[Nicolai]

Has the backup been executed by RMAN, what does the DBA say ?

By querying the recover catalog he/she should be able to tell if RMAN think the backup has been successful.

If you are on NBU 7.6 consider switching to Netbackup Oracle Intelligent Policies - it very easy to use. And no scripting or template are required anymore. Took me less than 10 minutes to configure it first time.

Best Regards

Nicolai

PS: Please also attach a screen shot of the activity monitor show the jobs associated with the RMAN backup.

[Marianne]

Have you done all other steps? 

Like running oracle_link in the client?

Oracle type policy on the master?

Please create log folders on Oracle client: bpcd bphdb dbclient.

Where does Windows 8 fit in the picture? 
It is only supported as NBU Client for file-level backup.
Not NBU server or Oracle server.

[VAV_MOM]

Backup is executed by RMAN and even Netbackup is able to successfully run backups when the schedule name defined is the default "Default-Application-Backup". This runs the backup as full database backup while we wish to specify Incremental level 0 (for weekly full backup) then Inremental level 1 (for daily backups).

The problem is that schedules with definitions of Incremental 0 and Incremental 1 are "always" reported with Number of files backedup = 0 and 0 kilobytes on the master server.  The "Default-Application-Backup" schedule always returns none-zero values for both number of files and kilobytes but we wish to set up two schedules; one for daily incremental level 1, and one for weekly incremental level 0.

I am a dba and new to Netbackup. I tried "Netbackup Oracle Intelligent Policies" but hit a problem with connecting to the target database. I dropped it since my credidentials were fine but were creating errors with "Netbackup Oracle Intelligent Policies". I'm currently offsite and unable to provide any screen shots.

Kind regards,

Mark

[VAV_MOM]

Thanks Marianne. The Netbackup and configuration was done by a specialist from Netbackup so I think that the necessary steps were followed. It is Windows Server 8 and not Windows 8 (please see my text above).

I think it is NBU Server and it supports backups of Oracle. I am an Oracle DBA and very new to Netbackup. Assisting a client with Oracle RMAN backups on Netbackup. All backups are doing fine from the Oracle database side, and communication between the Oracle Recovery Manager catalog and Netbackup seems to be ok.

Thanks,

Mark

[Marianne · Accepted solution]

The 'parent' job with the automatic backup schedule will always show no data. This is perfectly normal.

The 'Default-Application-Backup' schedule is the one doing actual backups. So, yes, this is where you will see 'number of files' and 'kilobytes'.

You can read up about the different schedule types in NetBackup for Oracle Administrator's Guide  

Most customers create separate policies when different backup schedules are needed for agent backups.

 PS:

Apologies for misreading your post, but I still cannot find any support for 'Windows Server 8' in any of the NBU Compatibility Guides. http://www.symantec.com/docs/TECH59978

[VAV_MOM]

I find it very strange that Netbackup throws errors when user defined schedule names are used. Otherwise one would wonder why this posibility (of defining own schedule names) is provided for in the first place, if it cannot be explicitely used.Could it be a bug? (see below).

I also find strange, the nortion of "The 'parent' job with the automatic backup schedule will always show no data." It could be because I am new to Netbackup and things are not working the way Netbackup supposses they should. To satisfy this situation, I am compelled to define a 1:1:1 relationship between an template, a policy, and schedule, in other words, a policy containg only one schedule (including, of course, the "Default-Application-Backup") and one template. Quite labor intensive but I now understand this concept of 0 number of files and kilobytes 0. See image.

[Will_Restore]

I don't see any errors in your screenshot.  That's the way it works in NetBackup - 0 bytes for the parent task and bytes shown for each UBackup subtask.

Try using the 'Create a Policy' Wizard to setup policy including the required schedules.  Takes just a few seconds; not labor-intensive at all.

[VAV_MOM]

Will, not an error post; that was just confirmation regarding the 0 number of files and 0 kilobyte. Being new to Netbackup, this puzzled us quite a bit. We thought that our templates and policies/schedules/scripts were not okay until Marianne pointed this to me yesterday, and I am incredibly grateful for that. Strange that this info is not readily available in the forums. 

[Nicolai]

The job with 0 KB is a control job. Many type of backups in Netbackup consist of a control job and then one or more worker jobs moving data

You may find this blog interesting as a new NBU/dba admin :

http://worldhistory.spaldam.com/index.php?title=How_Oracle_RMAN_interacts_with_NetBackup

[VAV_MOM]

Thanks a lot for the link to the blog, very useful information there. By the way, regarding policies and schedules, how efficient/effective is defining only one policy per schedule per client as opposed to a policy having multiple schedules and clients?

[Marianne]

Most users that I have worked with over the years as well as most 'seasoned' NBU users here on Connect prefer separate policies for different schedules.

It is possible to group them all in one policy.
You will need to create different schedules of type 'Application Backup' and delete the default Default-Application-Backup schedule.

You can then specify the schedule in the script with NB_ORA_SCHED variable, similar to NB_ORA_POLICY and NB_ORA_SERV.

See these examples in the NBU for Oracle manual:

Example 1. Use the send command.....

run {
allocate channel t1 type 'SBT_TAPE';
allocate channel t2 type 'SBT_TAPE';
send 'NB_ORA_POLICY=your_policy, NB_ORA_SERV=your_server';
backup
(database format 'bk_%U_%t');
release channel t1;
release channel t2;
}

Example 2. Use the parms operand to specify the policy and server to use for a
database backup. parms is set with each allocate channel command in the shell
script.
run {
allocate channel t1 DEVICE TYPE 'SBT_TAPE'
PARMS "SBT_LIBRARY=/usr/openv/netbackup/bin/libobk.so
ENV=(NB_ORA_POLICY=your_pol, NB_ORA_SERV=your_server)'
NB_ORA_SERV=your_server)";
allocate channel t2 DEVICE TYPE 'SBT_TAPE'
PARMS "SBT_LIBRARY=/usr/openv/netbackup/bin/libobk.so
ENV=(NB_ORA_POLICY=your_pol, NB_ORA_SERV=your_server)'
NB_ORA_SERV=your_server)";

[VAV_MOM]

I find separate policies for different schedules appealing because, despite their "crowded" effect in the reports window, grouping per policy and schedule gives a better 'bird's view' when reviewing the reports.

I am facing some issues that I find strange. On one hand, when taking template based backup, I specified incremental level 1 but the log shows level 0. Is there a way of correcting this?

============== from template ================
Backup policy name: win-ora-online-tkg-dag
Schedule name: Default-Application-Backup
Server name: netbackupxxx
Client name: oraclexxx
# -----------------------------------------------------------------
# Backup Configuration Section
# -----------------------------------------------------------------
Number of parallel streams: 2
Backup file name format: bk_d%d_u%u_s%s_p%p_t%t
Backup set identifier: TKG Incr Backup DAG
Backup file name format for archived logs:
    arch_u%u_s%s_p%p_t%t
If non-zero, delete archived redo logs after making copies: 1
# -----------------------------------------------------------------
# Backup Objects
# -----------------------------------------------------------------
All archived logs
WHOLE DATABASE

============== from template ================
INF -     TYPE 'SBT_TAPE';
INF - SEND 'NB_ORA_CLIENT=oracle1,NB_ORA_SID=TKG,NB_ORA_POLICY=win-ora-online-tkg-dag,NB_ORA_SERV=netbackup,NB_ORA_SCHED=Default-Application-Backup';
INF - BACKUP
INF -     INCREMENTAL LEVEL=0
INF -     FORMAT 'bk_d%d_u%u_s%s_p%p_t%t'
INF -     TAG 'TKG Incr Backup DAG'
INF -     DATABASE;

Thanks,

Mark

[Marianne]

Options when using templates are very limited.

Why not use the sample scripts on the Oracle server and customize them to the way you want your backups done?

Also consider switching to Netbackup Oracle Intelligent Policies as per Nicolai's advice. 

See: NetBackup 7.6 Feature Briefing - Oracle Intelligent Policies
http://www.symantec.com/docs/TECH211112 

[VAV_MOM]

I had previously tested with a customized script (from the sample script) and the initial "problem" of 0 kilobytes pushed us to move back to templates. Another fact that made us resort to templates is that Netbackup for Oracle documentation recommend templates over scrips. I had tried the Oracle Intelligent Policies but hit a wall when the policy would not connect to the database, and thus, could not take any backups.

I just wanted to point out (someone could benefit from this) that while testing the backup templates, I noticed that the template does not make a distinction between level 0 and level 1 backups. It just uses level 0; well that is my experience. This confused me so ran a manual backup from the master server, based on the same template that was run from the client. The master server ran level 1 as level 1 and not as level 0, as seen in the following RMAN list commands:

I ran this command after successfully taking a backup using a template from the client machine (I defined the backup as Incremental level 1, for daily backups): 

RMAN>LIST BACKUP; 
...

BS Key  Type LV Size       Device Type Elapsed Time Completion Time
------- ---- -- ---------- ----------- ------------ ---------------
59951   Incr 0  12.50M     SBT_TAPE    00:00:33     19-SEP-14
        BP Key: 59957   Status: AVAILABLE  Compressed: NO  Tag: INCREBACKUPOLJETANK_DAG
        Handle: bk_dOLJETANK_ucepitbc5_s398_p1_t858697093   Media: F:\Data_2\oracle1_1411131503_C1_F1
  List of Datafiles in backup set 59951
  File LV Type Ckp SCN    Ckp Time  Name
  ---- -- ---- ---------- --------- ----
  4    0  Incr 10361894   19-SEP-14 E:\APP\ORACLE_INSTALLER\ORADATA\OLJETANK\FETT_DAT.DBF
  5    0  Incr 10361894   19-SEP-14 E:\APP\ORACLE_INSTALLER\ORADATA\OLJETANK\OLJE_DAT.DBF
  7    0  Incr 10361894   19-SEP-14 E:\APP\ORACLE_INSTALLER\ORADATA\OLJETANK\OLJETANK_IDX.DBF

BS Key  Type LV Size       Device Type Elapsed Time Completion Time
------- ---- -- ---------- ----------- ------------ ---------------
59952   Incr 0  692.50M    SBT_TAPE    00:00:49     19-SEP-14
        BP Key: 59958   Status: AVAILABLE  Compressed: NO  Tag: INCREBACKUPOLJETANK_DAG
        Handle: bk_dOLJETANK_uccpitbc3_s396_p1_t858697091   Media: F:\Data_2\oracle1_1411131501_C1_F1
  List of Datafiles in backup set 59952
  File LV Type Ckp SCN    Ckp Time  Name
  ---- -- ---- ---------- --------- ----
  1    0  Incr 10361892   19-SEP-14 E:\APP\ORACLE_INSTALLER\ORADATA\OLJETANK\SYSTEM01.DBF
  8    0  Incr 10361892   19-SEP-14 E:\APP\ORACLE_INSTALLER\ORADATA\OLJETANK\SDE_DAT.DBF
  9    0  Incr 10361892   19-SEP-14 E:\APP\ORACLE_INSTALLER\ORADATA\OLJETANK\SDE_IDX.DBF

BS Key  Type LV Size       Device Type Elapsed Time Completion Time
------- ---- -- ---------- ----------- ------------ ---------------
59953   Incr 0  1.07G      SBT_TAPE    00:00:56     19-SEP-14
        BP Key: 59959   Status: AVAILABLE  Compressed: NO  Tag: INCREBACKUPOLJETANK_DAG
        Handle: bk_dOLJETANK_ucdpitbc3_s397_p1_t858697091   Media: F:\Data_2\oracle1_1411131502_C1_F1
  List of Datafiles in backup set 59953
  File LV Type Ckp SCN    Ckp Time  Name
  ---- -- ---- ---------- --------- ----
  3    0  Incr 10361893   19-SEP-14 E:\APP\ORACLE_INSTALLER\ORADATA\OLJETANK\UNDOTBS01.DBF
  6    0  Incr 10361893   19-SEP-14 E:\APP\ORACLE_INSTALLER\ORADATA\OLJETANK\OLJETANK_DAT.DBF
  10   0  Incr 10361893   19-SEP-14 E:\APP\ORACLE_INSTALLER\ORADATA\OLJETANK\USERS01.DBF

 RMAN>LIST BACKUP SUMMARY;

59951   B  0  A SBT_TAPE    19-SEP-14       1       1       NO         INCREBACKUPOLJETANK_DAG
59952   B  0  A SBT_TAPE    19-SEP-14       1       1       NO         INCREBACKUPOLJETANK_DAG
59953   B  0  A SBT_TAPE    19-SEP-14       1       1       NO         INCREBACKUPOLJETANK_DAG
59954   B  0  A SBT_TAPE    19-SEP-14       1       1       NO         INCREBACKUPOLJETANK_DAG

I ran the following command after taking a manual backup from the master server (utilizing the same template used at the client):  

RMAN>LIST BACKUP;

BS Key  Type LV Size       Device Type Elapsed Time Completion Time
------- ---- -- ---------- ----------- ------------ ---------------
60348   Incr 1  7.25M      SBT_TAPE    00:00:33     19-SEP-14
        BP Key: 60354   Status: AVAILABLE  Compressed: NO  Tag: INCREBACKUPOLJETANK_DAG
        Handle: bk_dOLJETANK_uclpitcun_s405_p1_t858698711   Media: F:\Data_2\oracle1_1411133118_C1_F1
  List of Datafiles in backup set 60348
  File LV Type Ckp SCN    Ckp Time  Name
  ---- -- ---- ---------- --------- ----
  2    1  Incr 10364107   19-SEP-14 E:\APP\ORACLE_INSTALLER\ORADATA\OLJETANK\SYSAUX01.DBF

BS Key  Type LV Size       Device Type Elapsed Time Completion Time
------- ---- -- ---------- ----------- ------------ ---------------
60349   Incr 1  256.00K    SBT_TAPE    00:00:32     19-SEP-14
        BP Key: 60355   Status: AVAILABLE  Compressed: NO  Tag: INCREBACKUPOLJETANK_DAG
        Handle: bk_dOLJETANK_ucopitcuq_s408_p1_t858698714   Media: F:\Data_2\oracle1_1411133123_C1_F1
  List of Datafiles in backup set 60349
  File LV Type Ckp SCN    Ckp Time  Name
  ---- -- ---- ---------- --------- ----
  4    1  Incr 10364112   19-SEP-14 E:\APP\ORACLE_INSTALLER\ORADATA\OLJETANK\FETT_DAT.DBF
  5    1  Incr 10364112   19-SEP-14 E:\APP\ORACLE_INSTALLER\ORADATA\OLJETANK\OLJE_DAT.DBF
  7    1  Incr 10364112   19-SEP-14 E:\APP\ORACLE_INSTALLER\ORADATA\OLJETANK\OLJETANK_IDX.DBF

BS Key  Type LV Size       Device Type Elapsed Time Completion Time
------- ---- -- ---------- ----------- ------------ ---------------
60350   Incr 1  512.00K    SBT_TAPE    00:00:36     19-SEP-14
        BP Key: 60356   Status: AVAILABLE  Compressed: NO  Tag: INCREBACKUPOLJETANK_DAG
        Handle: bk_dOLJETANK_ucmpitcun_s406_p1_t858698711   Media: F:\Data_2\oracle1_1411133122_C1_F1
  List of Datafiles in backup set 60350
  File LV Type Ckp SCN    Ckp Time  Name
  ---- -- ---- ---------- --------- ----
  1    1  Incr 10364110   19-SEP-14 E:\APP\ORACLE_INSTALLER\ORADATA\OLJETANK\SYSTEM01.DBF
  8    1  Incr 10364110   19-SEP-14 E:\APP\ORACLE_INSTALLER\ORADATA\OLJETANK\SDE_DAT.DBF
  9    1  Incr 10364110   19-SEP-14 E:\APP\ORACLE_INSTALLER\ORADATA\OLJETANK\SDE_IDX.DBF

BS Key  Type LV Size       Device Type Elapsed Time Completion Time
------- ---- -- ---------- ----------- ------------ ---------------
60351   Incr 1  1.75M      SBT_TAPE    00:00:33     19-SEP-14
        BP Key: 60357   Status: AVAILABLE  Compressed: NO  Tag: INCREBACKUPOLJETANK_DAG
        Handle: bk_dOLJETANK_ucnpitcuq_s407_p1_t858698714   Media: F:\Data_2\oracle1_1411133124_C1_F1
  List of Datafiles in backup set 60351
  File LV Type Ckp SCN    Ckp Time  Name
  ---- -- ---- ---------- --------- ----
  3    1  Incr 10364111   19-SEP-14 E:\APP\ORACLE_INSTALLER\ORADATA\OLJETANK\UNDOTBS01.DBF
  6    1  Incr 10364111   19-SEP-14 E:\APP\ORACLE_INSTALLER\ORADATA\OLJETANK\OLJETANK_DAT.DBF
  10   1  Incr 10364111   19-SEP-14 E:\APP\ORACLE_INSTALLER\ORADATA\OLJETANK\USERS01.DBF

RMAN>LIST BACKUP SUMMARY;

60348   B  1  A SBT_TAPE    19-SEP-14       1       1       NO         INCREBACKUPOLJETANK_DAG
60349   B  1  A SBT_TAPE    19-SEP-14       1       1       NO         INCREBACKUPOLJETANK_DAG
60350   B  1  A SBT_TAPE    19-SEP-14       1       1       NO         INCREBACKUPOLJETANK_DAG
60351   B  1  A SBT_TAPE    19-SEP-14       1       1       NO         INCREBACKUPOLJETANK_DAG

Now that we have ascertained this and the other netbackup issues that puzzed us, we will delve into scripts and intelligent policies when and as time permits.

Thank you Marianne and Nicolai for your positive and useful contributions.

--

Mark