missing image at (BAR) after import

[amoramo]

Hello Support Team,

I recently installed nbu7.6 on my clients windows system. This is because the previous nbu6.0 environment crashed. they have no valid catalog image for recovery, so after the new nbu7.6 installation, we have to import the expired images one after the other.

However, I succeeded in importing (1st and 2nd phase import) most of the media. I even when to BAR to check for the images and they where there. i.e images from nbu6.0 environment. So customer requested we perform some restore of imported images, which we did and it was successful. Only to visit the same system the next, we could not find any previously imported image in BAR.

Please, what could be wrong with the image? actually not everything was restored, only few files were selected for restore.

Thanks in advance,

Felix

[Mark_Solutions]

When you import images they take on the same retention as the original images

So if you imported images that only had a 1 week retention period then after 1 week they will expire - could that be what happened?

[mph999]

Not quite ...

After phase 1, the images have a 1 week retention.

After phase 2, they will have the same retention level as the original images, eg, retention level 5

The problem is, the retention levels can be changed betwen servers, so retention level 5 on the original server could be 3 years, but retention level 5 on the new server, could be 3 days ...

In which case, the images, after phase 2 import would expire after 3 days.

[amoramo]

Thank you Mark,

I believe you, actually I know that after import the images takes the same retention as the original images.

However, does it mean that images already imported, and found at the BAR GUI could just vanish away because retention period has expired. Other expired images imported can still be found on the BAR GUI. Why did this particle image vanish. Could it be because I did restore some of the files and folders shortly after import or what?

The pressure is much on me, customer want to see the imported backup images on BAR GUI.

Thanks in advance,

Felix

[Mark_Solutions]

Good point Martin! Level rather than period!

Felix - if images have expired they shouldnt be available in the BAR GUI any more

[amoramo]

Thanks mph999,

I totally agree with you, but is there any article or publication from Symantec that clearly explain these. I have  repeadly explained this to the customer but he want a prove from Symantec.

Regards,

Felix

[mph999 · Accepted solution]

It's not documented as such as far as I know.  You can send this post to your customer as 'proof from Symantec'.

Running mcontents on the tape reads the 'backup headers', which is what happens during an import.

root@nbmaster00 testdata $ bpmedialist -mcontents -m E01001

media id = E01001, allocated 03/19/2014 02:33, retention level = 5

File number 1
  Backup id = nbmaster00_1395221633
  Creation date = 03/19/2014 02:33
  Expiration date = 06/20/2014 02:33
  Retention level = 5
  Copy number = 1
  Fragment number = 1
  Block size (in bytes) = 262144

We see, part of the information on the tape is the retention level, not a date.

Hence, the only way NBU can find a expiration date for the imported images is to match up the retention level to whatever the retention period is set to on that server.

In this case:

root@nbmaster00 testdata $ bpretlevel

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

... the retention period would be set to 3 months

That is 100% how it works.

Martin