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Restoring LTO4 Tapes from 10d server on version 15 server

dahacker
Level 3

We are migrating from a server that has Backup Exec 10d on it to a server that has version 15 on it.  I ONLY need to be able to recover data from the old tapes on the new server.  I have performed inventories and successful catalog jobs on the new server, but NO recovery servers are made available.

I have also tried transferring the .fn and .img catalog files from the Backup Exec 10d server to the Backup Exec 15 server and restarted the Backup Exec 15 services, but Backup Exec 15 moves the .img files to its incompatible catalog directory.

Is this task possible?

The old server is still functional, but the Windows 2003 OS is EOL.

13 REPLIES 13

Larry_Fine
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I have performed inventories and successful catalog jobs on the new server, but NO recovery servers are made available.

Can you browse those tapes in the storage tape, then right click one and select "restore"?  When the wizard gets to the files and folder selection screen, please make sure you adjust the filter dates so you can see your old backups.

CraigV
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This is going to be a long-winded way of doing this, but you'd have to consider doing the following:

1. Upgrading to BE 12.5 from BE 10d.

2. From BE 12.5, upgrade to BE 2012 with the latest SP.

3. On the new server, install BE 2012 and use the TN below to migrate to this new server from the one one (Should stil be relevant):

https://www.veritas.com/support/en_US/article.TECH129826

4. Once migrated, then upgrade to BE 15 with FP2 and upgrade all your remote agents accordingly.

The differences between BE 10d and BE 15 are probably so great you won't be able to restore the data. THat said, make sure the date range is correct for your restores, and that the catalog jobs ran successfully.

You need to stop the BE services before any upgrade to grab manual copies of the Data & Catalogs folders.

Thanks!

 

dahacker
Level 3

The catalog jobs on the BE 15 server are taged as successful, see the server the backup came, from, sees the number of files, but then when you right click on that tape and select restore, it says no backup sets are available.  So date range doesn't even come into play yet.

Backup Exec 2012 would NOT install on the Windows 2012 server we have, so that is why we already went all the way to BE 15.

I can not find a method to upgrade the 10d catalog format to the BE 15 catalog format.  Is there any way to do this?

CraigV
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No...not without performing an upgrade.

Then you can try upgrading to BE 2010 R3, followed by Backup Exec 2014, and then Backup Exec 15...

Colin_Weaver
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Try recataloging the tapes but turn off the use media based catalogs setting first which should force a rebuild of the catalog file by file - note the catalog job will take longer.

dahacker
Level 3

Great suggestion, Colin.  I'm giving it a try and the catalog job is identifying the files and looks to be moving forward well.  Time is not an issue.  I will report back in two days if a restore from the generated catalogue works.

With the setting, "use media based catalogs" turned off, if the job contains multiple tapes will the recataloging still know to go to the next tape while rebuilding?

Colin_Weaver
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Employee Accredited Certified

I am not in front of a BE server right now to check but there is another setting about following the media sequence which I am not sure is linked to the first setting or separate

 

That said if you catalog both tapes in a sequence separately (where the sequence is not followed automtcailly) it should re-assemble the sequence it would just not automatically ask you for each tape

dahacker
Level 3

OK, the catalog job says it was successful when it scanned an entire tape and found all the files.  Problem is that it did NOT create a catalog and there is no way to restore it.

It is kind of ridiculous that it can read the tape, see the files and there is no way to restore the data on the BE 15 system.  WHAT AM I MISSING?

 

Only BE 15 works on the new server, so I am stuck with that version.  IF I upgrade the old BE 10d server to 12.5, will I be able to THEN migrate the catalogs over to the BE 15 system?  I really don't care about anything other than being able to restore data from hundreds of tapes that we have been archiving over the last seven years.

dahacker
Level 3

OK, the original server is now BE 11d.  The catalogs don't appear to be migrated to an 11d format.  They were actually moved out of the Symantec directory into a Veritas based catalog directory and kept in the 10d format, so the catalogs still can't be imported into BE 15.

pkh
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Have you tried cataloging the tapes in BE 11d

dahacker
Level 3

pkh,

It really isn't a reasonable option to re-catalog all of the tapes in BE 11d since there are hundreds of tapes.  Plus, it looks like a full re-catalog would take a minimum 2 hours per LTO4 tape.

Anyway, I have upgraded the old server to 12d now and it still is maintaining the catalogs in the old 10d format.  i.e. .fn and .img formats.  So still no motion forward and I'm hesitant to upgrade the old server to BE 2012 since I don't even know if BE 2012 will be able to read the BE 10d tapes.

dahacker
Level 3

All attempts to get BE 15 to read (catalog or restore) BE 10d created tapes failed.  We ended up formating the Windows 2012 server, installing Windows 2008 R2 server, and installing BE 2012.

Just to close the loop on this.  Some facts for the future:

- BE 15 can not read the catalogs off of BE 10d created tapes, and it CAN NOT restore data off of BE 10d created tapes.  This is regardless of the TAPE format.

- BE 2012 will NOT install on a Windows 2012 Server.

- BE 2012 CAN read the catalogs off of BE 10d created LTO3 and LTO4 tapes and restore from them.  There are some nuances.  The inventory of the tape must be performed TWICE before attempting a catalog of the tape.  If the inventory is NOT performed TWICE, then the catalog operation will fail.

CraigV
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BE 2012 never installed on Windows Server 2012 and was never supported even if someone was able to do so. BE 2014 could install on Windows Server 2012 and 2012 R2 as a media server.

Thanks!