Re: [Veritas-bu] Adding Linux to NetBackup Environment asaMasterandMedia

I will forward your message to him and let you know what he says...

From: Jeff Lightner [mailto:jlightner AT water DOT com]
Sent: Fri 3/28/2008 6:35 AM
To: Reynolds, Susan K.; Mark.Donaldson AT cexp DOT com
Cc: veritas-bu AT mailman.eng.auburn DOT edu
Subject: RE: [Veritas-bu] Adding Linux to NetBackup Environment asaMasterandMedia Server.

Haven’t done this for tape drives (we do use Qlogic and EMC storage) but their work around doesn’t make sense to me for Linux. Your Linux Admin said essentially he “compiled” the “driver” without persistent binding enabled. If you add another Qlogic HBA it will use the same driver that doesn’t allow persistent binding so you won’t have gained anything. It seems the only way another HBA would help is if it were NOT the same Qlogic (e.g. an Emulex) so that it uses a completely separate driver. The risks there is that two fibre drivers on the same kernel might conflict with each other (then again they might not – Linux does a pretty good of handling multiple SCSI adapters and sees fibre as SCSI – I’ve just not seen multiple fibre drivers on same server).

From: veritas-bu-bounces AT mailman.eng.auburn DOT edu [mailto:veritas-bu-bounces AT mailman.eng.auburn DOT edu] On Behalf Of Reynolds, Susan K.
Sent: Thursday, March 27, 2008 10:35 PM
To: Mark.Donaldson AT cexp DOT com
Cc: veritas-bu AT mailman.eng.auburn DOT edu
Subject: Re: [Veritas-bu] Adding Linux to NetBackup Environment asaMasterandMedia Server.

Here are a couple of links I hope you will find helpful:

http://seer.support.veritas.com/docs/266892.htm

http://seer.entsupport.symantec.com/docs/256261.htm

The Linux Admin is using a Q-Logic card.

WHAT THE VERSITEC PERSON SAID:

Configuring your Q-Logic card for auto device discovery works well for the disk side but persistent binding is necessary for the tape device side.

Check out this technote, http://support.veritas.com/docs/256261. The versions at the end are old but the information still applies.

WHAT LINUX ADMINISTRATOR SAID:

The /etc/hp_qla2x00.conf file does not have the ql2xopts option set, nor does EMC recommend, if I'm reading the correct manual, that persistent is set -

"EMC does not support the persistent binding implementation contained within the QLogic driver. As a result, it is recommended that the driver be compiled and installed without persistent binding enabled. This can be accomplished by using the 'dp' switch with the installation script."

LATER HE ADDED:

I talked with SAN Admin.

His suggestion is that we get additional HBA cards & put the tapes onto
them, and set up persistent binding on a per HBA basis.

This would separate the tapes from the disks.

http://solutions.qlogic.com/KanisaSupportSite/search.do?cmd=displayKC&docTyp
e=kc&externalId=http--downloadqlogiccom-drivers-35826-QLogicLinuxv8xpdf&slic
eId=pdfPage_61&dialogID=18334000&stateId=0%200%2018320177

From: Mark.Donaldson AT cexp DOT com [mailto:Mark.Donaldson AT cexp DOT com]
Sent: Thu 3/27/2008 8:48 AM
To: Reynolds, Susan K.
Cc: veritas-bu AT mailman.eng.auburn DOT edu
Subject: RE: [Veritas-bu] Adding Linux to NetBackup Environment as aMasterandMedia Server.

Hmm. Never thought to check persistent binding. How did you do this in Linux? What brand of HBAs are you using?

-M

From: veritas-bu-bounces AT mailman.eng.auburn DOT edu [mailto:veritas-bu-bounces AT mailman.eng.auburn DOT edu] On Behalf Of Reynolds, Susan K.
Sent: Wednesday, March 26, 2008 6:40 PM
To: rascal; Robin Small
Cc: RANDY K [AG/1000] ZIMMER; veritas-bu AT mailman.eng.auburn DOT edu
Subject: Re: [Veritas-bu] Adding Linux to NetBackup Environment as aMasterandMedia Server.

I'll just caution you to make sure you're using persitent binding. We had a situation on a new Linux media server not configuring device paths for drives. I got a super helpful suggestion from someone in this news group that fixed that problem...but once fixed I was able to see there was a second problem that did not become obvious until after I fixed the first one.

In the second problem several of the drives remained unusable even after the paths were finally able to be configured. The cause was that the admin was not using persistent binding because EMC did not recommend it for the LUNS. Being a production box, the admin did not want to go against EMC and change the current setting.

The solution is that we have to get an additional HBA, put the drives on it and establish persistent binding (which NBU must have) so the Linux media server can use all the drives. Symantec had no clue what the problem was, but we had an immediate answer once we discused the problem with a group called Versitec.

From: veritas-bu-bounces AT mailman.eng.auburn DOT edu on behalf of rascal
Sent: Wed 3/26/2008 12:07 PM
To: Robin Small
Cc: RANDY K [AG/1000] ZIMMER; veritas-bu AT mailman.eng.auburn DOT edu
Subject: Re: [Veritas-bu] Adding Linux to NetBackup Environment as a MasterandMedia Server.

Is there something specific you are looking to get answered or just experiences?

On 3/25/08, Robin Small <Robin.Small AT fresno DOT gov> wrote:

We're running SLES9SP4 (I'd like to get up to 10SP1, but haven't yet)

We had some issues with init scripts starting on 6.0, but with 6.5 it's been addressed.
It's on a Dell 2650 and is using a QLogic 2342 dual channel fiber card.

It's been really solid.

~ Robin

>>> "ZIMMER, RANDY K [AG/1000]" <randy.k.zimmer AT monsanto DOT com> 3/25/2008 6:00 AM >>>
All,

I'm looking for guidance on using Linux in our NetBackup environment.
We are getting ready to update our current infrastructure.  If we go
with Linux we will use the Dell hardware but I need to know from you is
how the systems should be sized, what HBA's do you recommend, what OS,
does it matter if it is RedHat or SLES?  I backup about 300 TB a month
in my production environment running around 1500 jobs per day, with a
lot of it being Oracle backups.  Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

Randy K. Zimmer
Sr. Unix System Administrator
Office: 314-694-3109
Cell:  314-960-0500
rkzimm AT monsanto DOT com

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--
Matthew MCP, MCSA, MCTS, OCA
rascal1981 AT gmail DOT com

Define Trouble:
Why did you apply THAT patch??....

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