invalid value for Retention Period and Expiration date

[righthanded]

HI,

I am using Netbackup 7.5.0.6. My master/EMM server is installed on AIX. I am having issue with auditor where I have got invalid value when generating Tape Lists Report.

Some of the Media with retention of 2 years, let say Allocation date is 11 March 2014 and the expiration date is 29 September 2015. It is less than 2 years.

Some of the Media will have 'infinity' value for Retention period.

Kindly assist.

[Marianne]

What exactly is Invalid about expiration date? 

Is your retention level supposed to be 2 years?

If so, you firstly need to have a look at Global Retention levels and ensure that there is indeed a 2 year retention level as available option.

Next, carefully check all policy schedules that should have 2 year retention and ensure they are set correctly.

For backups already written with incorrect retention, you can adjust expiration date with bpexpdate.

Either fixed date:
bpexpdate -m <media-id> -d 03/11/2016

or recalculate retention:
bpexpdate -recalculate -m <media-id> -ret <ret-level>

[righthanded]

Hi Marriane,

It invlove numbers of media.

Some of the Expiration date is invalid because it shows infinity.

I have checked the policy for the content inside the media. But i dont know how to look at Global Retention.

[Marianne · Accepted solution]

See Host Properties -> Master (Select Master server) -> Retention Periods.
(NBU Admin Guide I: http://www.symantec.com/docs/DOC5157 - Chapter 3)

Or
bpretlevel -U

These seem to be the defaults (note - no retention level for 2 years):

Retention  Retention  Equivalent
  Level     Period       Days
--------- ----------- ----------
    0     1 week         7        
    1     2 weeks        14       
    2     3 weeks        21       
    3     1 month        31       
    4     2 months       62       
    5     3 months       93       
    6     6 months       186      
    7     9 months       279      
    8     1 year         365      
    9     infinity   
   10     infinity   
   11     infinity   
   12     infinity   
   13     infinity   
   14     infinity   
   15     infinity   
   16     infinity   
   17     infinity   
   18     infinity   
   19     infinity   
   20     infinity   
   21     infinity   
   22     infinity   
   23     infinity   
   24     infinity        

Levels 10 - 24 can be changed/customized.

So, if you do not already have a customized value for 2 year retention, change one of the levels for 10 - 24.

Then, check your schedules and ensure that all schedules that are meant to have 2 year retention have this new customized number selected.
This will ensure that new backups are done with correct retention level.

For backups already done, use bpexpdate as per my advice above.