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TGIF I have run into a problem with how long stuff can be safely stored on a tape.When we backed up on diskettes, we could go 10 years and reuse what was on that diskette, and it was fine. Because occasionally data lost, I found that if I had 2 sets of diskettes used for saves, the data was good for 10 years. Tapes do not seem to hold the data reliably as long as diskettes. They also seem more vulnerable to stuff going wrong, tape getting tangled.
There is also the issue of evolving technology. Every few years we replace the computer. It comes with a new and improved tape drive which cannot read the tapes we been using for the last X years. So tapes can be used for backups, not for storage off-line, between computers. CD Rom seems to be readable across upgraded boxes, but individual CD not hold as much stuff as a tape.
There are various backup systems available for AS/400 that go beyond the standard stuff in OS/400 ... check out BMRS in the IBM Information Center. I do not have it where I work, but I understand it is very sophisticated, including managing a tape library for you where the tapes are identified as to what got backed up on what days, from what computers, if you using a mass backup on weekends, and only what got changed since last backup on weeknites, and you can have a system for when is Ok to use some tape again. So it remembers volume id used ... you need into something that was backed up 4 weeks ago ... it tells you which volume-id to get.
I do not know if it also helps you manage off site rotation, and which tapes are encrypted.
Do you remember going back to the S/36 when backups were made on Diskette Magazines? The computer processed one diskette at a time, then after each one was put back in the magazine, the magazine moved sideways a notch on a track, then the next diskette in the magazine was selected. By this means you could stick in up to 20 diskettes at a time, the backup would process all 20, then you replace them with another 20.
Well similar architecture exists for backing up on CD Rom. It is called a Juke Box. It comes in different model sizes with respect to how many CD Rom the thing can handle. The architecture is a bit different, where the Magazine physically moved, the Juke Box does not, in actual fact some arms reach out and pull out the next CD Rom to be processed, in the same way that records might be pulled out to be played on the Juke Box that this is named after.
An AS/400/iSeries typically has a tape drive built in for the purpose of backing up everything that is on THAT box. However, you can deliberately get a backup system with the capacity for much more than THAT box, so that it can backup stuff for OTHER boxes.
For example, designate like a "partition" or object on the AS/400 that the AS/400 thinks of as being stuff that is not 400 compliant, a mirror if you will of what is on some other kind of system, that is to be included in the AS/400 backups, while to PCs connected to this it is THEIR "M" drive for "Mainframe" or whatever (the way PC users label the AS/400) ... so the individual PCs back themselves up, not to tape drive on individual PC, but to the "M" drive that is shared by all PCs, then the AS/400 backs up everything that is on the "M" drive. I have used that approach, but do not like it because as far as the AS/400 is concerned, the "M" drive is a single object ... it can restore the whole thing, we not have granularity on addressing only where the problem is, like recovering parts of a normal AS/400 backup. There are advantages here by having a standard backup method for what on all PCs in company network.
If you have sufficient disk space, you can designate one AS/400 to be handling the backups. You give it a high caliber backup system. The other computers in the network can save to disk files (check out *SAVF) and can do this in like 5 minutes using a check pointing system, so there is minimal disruption to their operations, then the backup AS/400 copies those backup disk files to tape or whatever, and when done, no longer needs the *SAVF files ... so it might take 5 minutes to get the *SAVF, then the AS/400 that created it goes on about its business, while the backup might take 2 hours to get that to tape, then is ready for *SAVF from another computer in the network.
Good Morning The company that I work for has a large tape backup system for various Windows systems that are installed. I was asked if there was a similar system available for the AS400. We are a managed services company and there are multiple AS400 located at our facility. All these systems are on different networks. They would like to install one large tape backup system that all AS400 can access in order to reduce the different type of tapes and cost is a factor also. Is this a good idea? Is it possible? Where would I look to find a tape system? I appreciate all comments. Thanks in Advance Dave Willenborg FNTS Omaha, Nebraska -- No virus found in this outgoing message. Checked by AVG Free Edition. Version: 7.1.362 / Virus Database: 267.12.8/165 - Release Date: 11/9/2005 -- This is the Midrange Systems Technical Discussion (MIDRANGE-L) mailing list To post a message email: MIDRANGE-L@xxxxxxxxxxxx To subscribe, unsubscribe, or change list options, visit: http://lists.midrange.com/mailman/listinfo/midrange-l or email: MIDRANGE-L-request@xxxxxxxxxxxx Before posting, please take a moment to review the archives at http://archive.midrange.com/midrange-l.
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