This question is for anyone doing 'alter tablespace' style
backups for Oracle databases.

Does anyone set up specific management classes for the files that
get backed up during this process?

I'm wondering, in particular, about the collocation of these
files and the retention period for storing them. For instance, we
did a restore last Friday and the one aspect of the restore that
took the longest was waiting for the multiple mounts while
restoring the archived redo log files. Should I set up a storage
pool for my Oracle backups and turn collocation on?

Also, by default archived files are retained for 365 days. If I'm
archiving the database on a nightly basis, I don't think I need
to keep every copy of it for a full year. Maybe one month, to
ensure a reasonable point-in-time in case there are corruptions
in the database.

Any pointers or suggestions in this area are welcome.

Thanks. -- Tom

BTW I will be attending the Oracle backup seminar to explore the
alternatives of SQL Backtrack and OBACKUP.

"If I could dot the 'i' in a Michigan     Thomas A. La Porte
 game and the good lord came to take me   Archivist, Feature Animation
 the next day ... at least I could        DreamWorks SKG
 die happy." - Beano Cook, ESPN           <tlaporte AT anim.dreamworks DOT com>