Re: How to handle archival runs (again)?

On Wed, Oct 22, 2003 at 05:35:38PM +0200, Toralf Lund wrote:
> Reviewing the amanda config again in conjunction with a tape format 
> update...
> I forget (and list search doesn't return anything conclusive): How do 
> you people recommend handling archival runs? There are two obvious ways:
> 
>   1. Via a special config.
>   2. Using the normal config, but special labels and "amadmin ... no-reuse"
> 
> What are the pros and cons of each of these?
> 
> Note: I know that one argument against 2) is that you normally want 
> different behaviour with regard to incrementals, but that doesn't really 
> apply in my case as there are no incrementals in any case (in the main 
> config; I have a separate one for incrementals as they are written to a 
> different medium.)
> 

I backup only a couple of systems.
But I use separate archive configs.  Note the plural, I use 3.

One archive config is for system DLE's (root, var, usr, ...)
and the second for user data DLE's(ArchSys & ArchUser).
However the config dirs for these two configs only have two
files, amanda.conf and disklist.  Both configs are setup
to use the third config, Archive, for all the common things.
Like the index, logs, changer info, tapelist, ... (they both
use the same tape sequence).

I split them into sys and user for several reasons:
  - Shorten the time to make an archive of one or the other.
    Then I can do an ArchUser this Sunday (no DailySet run
    from Sat -> Sunday) and an ArchSys next weekend.
  - I don't do the sys as often as the user
  - I wanted the ability to do a system backup before things
    like OS upgrades which would have no effect on the user
    data.

-- 
Jon H. LaBadie                  jon AT jgcomp DOT com
 JG Computing
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