Veritas NetBackup™ for NDMP Administrator's Guide

Last Published:
Product(s): NetBackup (8.1.1)
  1. Introduction to NetBackup for NDMP
    1. About NetBackup for NDMP
      1.  
        NetBackup for NDMP features
      2.  
        NetBackup for NDMP terminology
    2.  
      About Network Data Management Protocol (NDMP)
    3. Types of NDMP backup
      1.  
        NDMP local backup
      2.  
        NDMP three-way backup
      3.  
        Backup to Media Manager storage units (remote NDMP)
    4.  
      About NDMP policies in NetBackup
    5.  
      About NetBackup storage units
    6. About assigning tape drives to different hosts
      1.  
        About robotics control
    7.  
      About the NDMP backup process
    8.  
      About the NDMP restore process
    9.  
      About Direct Access Recovery (DAR)
    10.  
      Snapshot Client assistance
    11.  
      About NDMP multiplexing
    12.  
      About NDMP support for Replication Director
    13.  
      Limitations of Replication Director with NDMP
    14.  
      About NDMP support for NetApp clustered Data ONTAP (cDOT)
  2. Installation Notes for NetBackup for NDMP
    1.  
      NetBackup for NDMP installation prerequisites
    2.  
      About existing NetApp cDOT configurations before you upgrade
  3. Configuring NDMP backup to NDMP-attached devices
    1.  
      About configuring NDMP-attached devices
    2.  
      Authorizing NetBackup access to a NAS (NDMP) host
    3.  
      About access for three-way backups and remote NDMP
    4. About Media and Device Management configuration
      1.  
        Adding a robot directly attached to an NDMP host
      2.  
        Adding a tape drive
      3.  
        Checking the device configuration
    5.  
      Using the Device Configuration Wizard to configure an NDMP filer
    6.  
      About adding volumes
    7.  
      About verifying NDMP password and robot connection
    8.  
      Adding NDMP storage units
    9. About creating an NDMP policy
      1.  
        Attributes tab options for an NDMP policy
      2.  
        Schedules tab options for an NDMP policy with Accelerator for NDMP enabled
      3.  
        Clients tab options for an NDMP policy
      4. Backup selection options for an NDMP policy
        1.  
          Wildcard characters in backup selections for an NDMP policy
        2.  
          ALL_FILESYSTEMS and VOLUME_EXCLUDE_LIST directives
      5.  
        About environment variables in the backup selections list
      6.  
        About appropriate host selection for NetApp cDOT backup policies
      7.  
        About backup types in a schedule for an NDMP policy
    10. About enabling or disabling DAR
      1.  
        Disabling DAR for file and directory restores
      2.  
        Disabling DAR for directory restores only
    11.  
      Configuring NetBackup for NDMP in a clustered environment
  4. Configuring NDMP backup to NetBackup media servers (remote NDMP)
    1.  
      About remote NDMP
    2.  
      Configuring NDMP backup to Media Manager storage units
  5. Configuring NDMP DirectCopy
    1. About NDMP DirectCopy
      1.  
        Prerequisites for using NDMP DirectCopy
      2.  
        NDMP DirectCopy with VTL
      3.  
        NDMP DirectCopy without VTL
    2.  
      Configuring NDMP DirectCopy
    3. Using NDMP DirectCopy to duplicate a backup image
      1. Requirements to use NDMP DirectCopy for image duplication
        1.  
          NetBackup policy type for image duplication
      2.  
        Initiating NDMP DirectCopy with the NetBackup Administration Console
  6. Accelerator for NDMP
    1.  
      About NetBackup Accelerator for NDMP
    2. About the track log for Accelerator for NDMP
      1.  
        How to redirect track logs for Accelerator for NDMP
    3.  
      Accelerator messages in the NDMP backup job details log
    4.  
      NetBackup logs for Accelerator for NDMP
  7. Remote NDMP and disk devices
    1.  
      About remote NDMP and disk devices
    2.  
      Configuring remote NDMP
  8. Using the Shared Storage Option (SSO)
    1.  
      About the Shared Storage Option (SSO) with NetBackup for NDMP
    2.  
      Setting up SSO with NetBackup for NDMP
    3.  
      Using the NetBackup Device Configuration Wizard for NDMP hosts
  9. Backup and restore procedures
    1.  
      About NDMP backups and restores
    2.  
      Performing a manual backup with an NDMP policy
    3.  
      Performing an NDMP restore from the server
  10. Troubleshooting
    1. About NetBackup for NDMP logs
      1.  
        Viewing NetBackup for NDMP logs
      2.  
        NDMP backup levels
    2.  
      General NetBackup for NDMP operating notes and restrictions
    3. NetBackup for NDMP troubleshooting suggestions
      1.  
        Troubleshooting NDMP media and devices on Windows
      2.  
        Troubleshooting NDMP media and devices on UNIX
      3.  
        Troubleshooting NDMP DirectCopy
      4.  
        Troubleshooting Direct Access Recovery (DAR) with NetBackup for NDMP
    4. About robot tests
      1.  
        TL8 robot test example for Windows
      2.  
        TLD robot test example for UNIX
      3.  
        TLH robot test example for UNIX
  11. Using NetBackup for NDMP scripts
    1.  
      About the NetBackup for NDMP scripts
    2.  
      ndmp_start_notify script (UNIX)
    3.  
      ndmp_start_notify.cmd script (Microsoft Windows)
    4.  
      ndmp_end_notify script (UNIX)
    5.  
      ndmp_end_notify.cmd script (Microsoft Windows)
    6.  
      ndmp_start_path_notify script (UNIX)
    7.  
      ndmp_start_path_notify.cmd script (Microsoft Windows)
    8.  
      ndmp_end_path_notify script (UNIX)
    9.  
      ndmp_end_path_notify.cmd script (Microsoft Windows)
    10.  
      ndmp_moving_path_notify script (UNIX)
    11.  
      ndmp_moving_path_notify.cmd script (Microsoft Windows)

About NetBackup Accelerator for NDMP

Note:

Currently only NetApp filers and Isilon filers are supported with the NetBackup Accelerator for NDMP option. (See the NetBackup Master Compatibility List for the most recent list of supported versions of each NAS vendor.)

For NetApp filers, Accelerator for NDMP supports only the DUMP format. Consult your NetApp documentation for specific details about its DUMP format.

NetBackup's Accelerator option makes NDMP backups for NetApp and Isilon filers run faster than normal NDMP backups. NetBackup Accelerator increases the speed of full backups by using the filer's change detection techniques to identify the modifications that occurred since the last backup. After an initial full backup that protects all data from the filer, NetBackup Accelerator backs up only the changed data from the filer to the media server. The media server combines the changed data with any previous backup images to create a new full backup image; if a file or portion of a file is already in storage and has not been changed, the media server uses the copy in storage rather than reading it from the filer to complete the backup image. The end result is a faster NetBackup NDMP backup.

Note:

For NetApp filers, you can expect to see Accelerator optimization in both full backups (regular and forced rescan) and incremental backups. For Isilon filers, you can expect to see Accelerator optimization only in full backups (regular - not forced rescan).

Accelerator for NDMP has the following advantages:

  • Supports all NetBackup NDMP features, such as replication, DAR restores, and multiplexing.

  • Creates a compact backup stream that uses less network bandwidth between the filer and NetBackup servers.

  • Reduces the I/O and CPU overhead on the media server.

To configure Accelerator for NDMP, select the Use Accelerator check box that is found on the NDMP policy Attributes tab. No change to the filer is required.

Note:

For Isilon filers only, note the following behaviors with environmental variables:

With Isilon filers, if you set the HIST environment variable in a NetBackup NDMP backup policy with Accelerator enabled, you may specify only the value D (that is, SET HIST=D). D specifies a directory/node file history format. If you specify any other value for the HIST variable, NetBackup generates a message that asks you to change the value to D. If you do not use a HIST variable in the policy, the backup should complete successfully.

If you change any of the variables in a NetBackup NDMP backup policy with Accelerator enabled, the Accelerator optimization will be 0% until you run a second full backup with the same variables. When the policy's variables change, a new baseline image is created with the first full backup. You will see Accelerator optimization only after the second full backup with the same variables.

More information about environmental variables in NDMP policies is available:

See About environment variables in the backup selections list.

Note:

If you include the smtape environment variable for NetApp filers in an NDMP backup policy, no optimization is seen with Accelerator for NDMP enabled. The smtape environment variable always backs up an entire volume as if it is a full backup of a single file. Consult your NetApp filer documentation for specific details about smtape. More information about smtape in a NetBackup backup policy is available in the NetApp section of NetBackup for NDMP NAS Appliance Information.

If your NDMP policies include combinations of filers from NetApp, Isilon, and filers from other vendors, only the NetApp and Isilon filers use the Accelerator option. Messages in the job details identify which filers use the Accelerator option and when the option is used. More information about these job detail messages is available:

See Accelerator messages in the NDMP backup job details log.

Note:

Unlike non-accelerated NDMP backups, accelerated NDMP backups do not use NDMP dump levels 0-9 to determine changed files. Instead, BASE_DATE and DUMP_DATE are used to determine changed files. BASE_DATE provides the timestamp of the most recent full or incremental backup. DUMP_DATE provides the timestamp of the currently running backup. Only the data that has changed between the BASE_DATE and the DUMP_DATE is backed up when Accelerator for NDMP is enabled.

Dump level messages from the filer continue to be included in the job detail log. However, the message please ignore references to LEVEL in future messages also appears in the job details as a reminder that dump levels are not used with Accelerator for NDMP.

How Accelerator works with NDMP backups:

  • First full backup with Accelerator

    The first full NDMP backup job with the Accelerator option enabled is similar to a normal full backup. It may run slightly longer than a non-Accelerator backup. It backs up all of the data from the filer, provides a baseline backup image, and creates an initial track log.

    Note:

    If you first enable Accelerator when the next scheduled backup is an incremental backup, NetBackup does not automatically trigger a full backup image, as is the case with NetBackup Accelerator for non-NDMP policies. With Accelerator for NDMP, incremental backups continue to run as scheduled. An initial track log is also created after the Use Accelerator option is enabled, and with NetApp filers, you should see faster incremental backups. The next full backup runs only when it is scheduled.

  • Incremental backups with Accelerator

    Subsequent incremental backup jobs back up only the data that changed since the last backup job.

  • Next full backups with Accelerator

    Subsequent full backup jobs back up only the data that changed since the last backup job. The track log is used to determine what data can be included from previous backups, including the previous full backup and all of the incremental backups that follow it. NetBackup then creates a full backup image that includes all of the filer's data.

  • Forced rescan full backups with Accelerator

    The Accelerator forced rescan option provides a safety net by establishing a new baseline for the next Accelerator backup. When you include this option, which is found on the policy's Schedules tab, all the data on the filer is backed up. This backup is similar to the first full backup with Accelerator; it provides a new baseline for the backups that follow. If you set up a weekly full backup schedule with the Use Accelerator option, you can supplement the policy with another schedule that enables Accelerator forced rescan. You can set the schedule to run every 6 months or whenever it is appropriate for your environment. With NetApp filers, expect backups with Accelerator forced rescan to run slightly longer than accelerated full backups. With Isilon filers, backups with Accelerator forced rescan may run as longer as a first full backup with Accelerator. More information about these options is available:

More information about Accelerator for NDMP is available: