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Veritas NetBackup™ Administrator's Guide, Volume I

Last Published: 2018-09-19

Product(s): NetBackup (8.1.2)

Platform: Linux,UNIX,Windows

Retention Periods properties

Use the Retention Periods properties in the NetBackup Administration Console to define a duration for each retention level. You can select from 0-100 retention levels.

In a policy, the retention period determines how long NetBackup retains the backups or the archives that are created according to the schedule. These properties apply to selected master servers.

Figure: Retention Periods dialog box

By default, NetBackup stores each backup on a volume that already contains backups at the same retention level. However, NetBackup does not check the retention period that is defined for that level. When the retention period for a level is redefined, some backups that share the same volume may have different retention periods.

For example, if the retention level 3 is changed from one month to 6 months, NetBackup stores future level 3 backups on the same volumes. That is, the backups are placed on the volumes with the level 3 backups that have a retention period of one month.

No problem exists if the new and the old retention periods are of similar values. However, before a major change is made to a retention period, suspend the volumes that were previously used for that retention level.

Note:

If a backup or duplicate job is configured with a retention level greater than 25 and the storage unit specified in the policy is managed by a pre-NetBackup 8.0 media server, the backup jobs associated with the policy fail with the following error message:

Retention level <number> is not valid.

As a workaround, you can either upgrade the media server to NetBackup 8.0 or later or set the retention level between 0 and 25 in the policy. Note that the retention period for level 25 is always set to expire immediately and this value cannot be changed.

Note:

In case of a manual import, if a master or media server that runs an earlier version than NetBackup 8.0 imports a backup image created on a NetBackup 8.0 master server and configured with a retention level greater than 24, the import job resets the retention level to 9 (infinite). As a workaround, you can import such backup images from a master or media server that runs NetBackup 8.0 or later.

See Determining retention periods for volumes.

See Suspending or unsuspending volumes.

The Retention Periods dialog box contains the following properties.

Table: Retention Periods dialog box properties

Property	Description
Value	Assigns a number to the retention level setting.
Units	Specifies the units of time for the retention period. The list includes hours as the smallest unit of granularity and the special units, Infinite, and Expires immediately.
Retention Level	The retention level number (0 through 100).
Retention Period	A list of the current definitions for the possible levels of retention. By default, levels 9 through 100 (except level 25) are set to infinite. Retention level 9 cannot be changed and the retention period is always set to infinite. Retention level 25 also cannot be changed and the retention period is always set to expire immediately. See Retention Periods with end dates beyond 2038, excluding Infinity. With the default, there is no difference between a retention level of 12 and a retention level of 20, for example. The Schedule Count column indicates how many schedules currently use each level. If the retention period is changed for a level, it affects all schedules that use that level. The Changes Pending column uses an asterisk (*) to indicate that the period has been changed and not applied. NetBackup does not change the actual configuration until the administrator accepts or applies the changes.
Schedule Count	Lists the number of schedules that use the currently selected retention level.
Schedules using this retention level	Displays a list of the current policy names and schedule names that use the retention level.
Impact Report	Displays a summary of how changes affect existing schedules. The list displays all schedules in which the retention period is shorter than the frequency period.