Backup Central

If one places new barcode labels on recycled tapes that contain
expired data, enable them for writing, import into the jukebox
and perform an inventory, what will Legato do?

Will it detect a written label on the tape? And if so will it
balk at reusing the tape and new label, or just merrily use the
tape as it would a new one? Or does it do something else?

All of the old tapes I've begun recycling are in the Default
pool and it's a royal pain relabeling them for use in other
pools (such as NDMP), which is the norm now.

Solaris 5.8, Legato 6.1.4 if it matters.

- michael

--
Michael Coxe, IT
<mcoxe < at > opsware.com>
work (408) 744-7582
cell (408) 898-7011

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If one places new barcode labels on recycled tapes that contain
expired data, enable them for writing, import into the jukebox
and perform an inventory, what will Legato do?

(Hi, Michael!)
Since the barcode is new, it will not match anything in the media
database. So Networker will load the tape in a drive and verify any
label on it.

After it verifies the label, it will change the barcode associated with
that volume to the one it just read on the volume.

Will it detect a written label on the tape?

Yes.

(By the way, if this wasn't a *new* barcode but an old one, it would
assume the tapes were the old volume. However once it tried to use the
volume, it would verify the label at that time and realize it had the
wrong tape.)

And if so will it balk at reusing the tape and new label, or just
merrily use the tape as it would a new one?

It will recognize it as a regular old tape with a new barcode.

All of the old tapes I've begun recycling are in the Default
pool and it's a royal pain relabeling them for use in other
pools (such as NDMP), which is the norm now.

I'd probably write a script to relabel some of them in bunches.

It is possible (although almost certainly unsupported) to change the
Default pool settings for "Recycle to other pools" to be "yes". Then
you might not need to force recycle them (just have them available and
on-line).

--
Darren Dunham ddunham < at > taos.com
Senior Technical Consultant TAOS http://www.taos.com/
Got some Dr Pepper? San Francisco, CA bay area
< This line left intentionally blank to confuse you. >

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Darren Dunham wrote:
And if so will it balk at reusing the tape and new label, or just
merrily use the tape as it would a new one?

It will recognize it as a regular old tape with a new barcode.

Hi Darren,

I was afraid of that - new labels won't fool Networker :(

All of the old tapes I've begun recycling are in the Default
pool and it's a royal pain relabeling them for use in other
pools (such as NDMP), which is the norm now.

I'd probably write a script to relabel some of them in bunches.

I do that now, but I wanted somthing easier, for use by folks in
satellite offices not as clueful & mindful of Legato quirks, plus
I'm lazy myself. We have like 6000 tapes that were never recycled
due to legal reasons which are now available & saving an ungodly
amount monthly in media costs. I guess there's always big magnets ;>

It is possible (although almost certainly unsupported) to change the
Default pool settings for "Recycle to other pools" to be "yes". Then
you might not need to force recycle them (just have them available and
on-line).

I tried this per instructions posted on this list but Legato ignores
my changes. If I could could get this to work that would be ideal!
As I remember the process...:

shut down legato
backup /nsr/res/nsr.res
edit /nsr/res/nsr.res
- find "Default" pool
- < at > "Recycle to other pools: No;", change "No" to "Yes"
restart Networker
manage pools
- allow desired pools to "Recycle from other pools"

Did I miss a step or ?

- michael

--
Michael Coxe, IT
<mcoxe < at > opsware.com>
work (408) 744-7582
cell (408) 898-7011

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should be sent to stan < at > temple.edu

Hi Michael,

It will recognize it as a regular old tape with a new barcode.

Hi Darren,

I was afraid of that - new labels won't fool Networker :(


Are you using Unix or Windows? Under Unix you could prevent the
recognition (after you've deleted the original barcodes in NetWorker)
by simply clobbering the first 64K on the tape - e.g.:

dd if=/dev/zero of=/dev/rmt/0cbn bs=32k count=2

Cheers,

-Preston.

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Preston de Guise wrote:
Are you using Unix or Windows? Under Unix you could prevent the
recognition (after you've deleted the original barcodes in NetWorker)
by simply clobbering the first 64K on the tape - e.g.:

dd if=/dev/zero of=/dev/rmt/0cbn bs=32k count=2

As original post stated Solaris 5.8 server.
But if I have to do a 'dd' I might as well relabel the tape.

- michael

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I tried this per instructions posted on this list but Legato ignores
my changes. If I could could get this to work that would be ideal!
As I remember the process...:

shut down legato
backup /nsr/res/nsr.res
edit /nsr/res/nsr.res
- find "Default" pool
- < at > "Recycle to other pools: No;", change "No" to "Yes"
restart Networker
manage pools
- allow desired pools to "Recycle from other pools"

Did I miss a step or ?

Yup, that was the technique. Perhaps it no longer works (I haven't
tried it in some time).

I'm assuming that after you restart Networker that the setting appears
correct in nwadmin/nsradmin, but that it's just not having any effect?

--
Darren Dunham ddunham < at > taos.com
Senior Technical Consultant TAOS http://www.taos.com/
Got some Dr Pepper? San Francisco, CA bay area
< This line left intentionally blank to confuse you. >

Note: To sign off this list, send a "signoff networker" command via email
to listserv < at > listserv.temple.edu or visit the list's Web site at
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should be sent to stan < at > temple.edu

Hmm, don't forget to change the other pools "recycle tapes from other pools" to yes.

/ Mats

-----Original Message-----
From: Legato NetWorker discussion [mailto:NETWORKER < at > LISTSERV.TEMPLE.EDU] On Behalf Of Darren Dunham
Sent: den 2 mars 2005 16:47
To: NETWORKER < at > LISTSERV.TEMPLE.EDU
Subject: Re: [Networker] New barcocded labels on recycled tapes - what does Legato do?

I tried this per instructions posted on this list but Legato ignores
my changes. If I could could get this to work that would be ideal!
As I remember the process...:

shut down legato
backup /nsr/res/nsr.res
edit /nsr/res/nsr.res
- find "Default" pool
- < at > "Recycle to other pools: No;", change "No" to "Yes"
restart Networker
manage pools
- allow desired pools to "Recycle from other pools"

Did I miss a step or ?

Yup, that was the technique. Perhaps it no longer works (I haven't tried it in some time).

I'm assuming that after you restart Networker that the setting appears correct in nwadmin/nsradmin, but that it's just not having any effect?

--
Darren Dunham ddunham < at > taos.com
Senior Technical Consultant TAOS http://www.taos.com/
Got some Dr Pepper? San Francisco, CA bay area
< This line left intentionally blank to confuse you. >


Note: To sign off this list, send a "signoff networker" command via email
to listserv < at > listserv.temple.edu or visit the list's Web site at
http://listserv.temple.edu/archives/networker.html where you can
should be sent to stan < at > temple.edu

Mats.Oberg wrote:
Hmm, don't forget to change the other pools "recycle tapes from other pools" to yes.

Yes, as I stated under manage pools.

Darren Dunham wrote

I tried this per instructions posted on this list but Legato ignores
my changes. If I could could get this to work that would be ideal!
As I remember the process...:

shut down legato
backup /nsr/res/nsr.res
edit /nsr/res/nsr.res
- find "Default" pool
- < at > "Recycle to other pools: No;", change "No" to "Yes"
restart Networker
manage pools
- allow desired pools to "Recycle from other pools"

Did I miss a step or ?

Yup, that was the technique. Perhaps it no longer works (I haven't tried it in some time).
I'm assuming that after you restart Networker that the setting appears correct in nwadmin/nsradmin, but that it's just not having any effect?

Yes, all changes show via all interfaces (nsradmin & the GUI ones):
- Default pool: Recycle to other pools: [Yes] No ;
- NDMP Pool: Recycle from other pools: [Yes] No ;
- Finance Pool: Recycle from other pools: [Yes] No ;
...etc...

I'll try this: make sure there are only recyclable Default pool tapes in the
jukebox and fire off a few non-Default pool backups and see what happens.

- michael

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Following up:

Yesterday I loaded the jukebox with *only* recyclable Default pool tapes.
Low & behold, Legato recycled those tapes to other pools (4 active pools
besides Default, incl. NDMP pool) & all backups ran sucessfully.

Happy, but wonder why it didn't work before? Enterprise level software
has a life of its own sometimes...

- michael

I wrote:
Darren Dunham wrote

I tried this per instructions posted on this list but Legato ignores
my changes. If I could could get this to work that would be ideal!
As I remember the process...:

shut down legato
backup /nsr/res/nsr.res
edit /nsr/res/nsr.res
- find "Default" pool
- < at > "Recycle to other pools: No;", change "No" to "Yes"
restart Networker
manage pools
- allow desired pools to "Recycle from other pools"

Did I miss a step or ?


Yup, that was the technique. Perhaps it no longer works (I haven't
tried it in some time).
I'm assuming that after you restart Networker that the setting appears
correct in nwadmin/nsradmin, but that it's just not having any effect?


Yes, all changes show via all interfaces (nsradmin & the GUI ones):
- Default pool: Recycle to other pools: [Yes] No ;
- NDMP Pool: Recycle from other pools: [Yes] No ;
- Finance Pool: Recycle from other pools: [Yes] No ;
...etc...

I'll try this: make sure there are only recyclable Default pool tapes in
the jukebox and fire off a few non-Default pool backups and see what happens.

Note: To sign off this list, send a "signoff networker" command via email
to listserv < at > listserv.temple.edu or visit the list's Web site at
http://listserv.temple.edu/archives/networker.html where you can
should be sent to stan < at > temple.edu

I believe that legato will only relabel a tape into another pool only when
there is no available space on any of the tapes (including ones in use) in
the pool that you want to label a tape to. At least I have seen this
happen on legato 6.1.3 several backups required tapes from poolA and there
were spare tapes in poolB that could be relabeled to poolA but nothing
happened until 2 tapes from poolA currently being written too were
completely filled up. This behaviour stopped me from using a policy of
putting all new tapes into a scratch pool to be reassigned by legato to
other pools that needed them. On less complex setups this behaviour might
not be seen as it requiers multiple savesets want a pool at the same time.

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