On Fri, 12 Feb 1999, Roger Hohmann wrote:
> In the nearer future I have to migrate a whole server to another
> platform. I expect to start it from scratch and to export and import
> the existing data with another nodename, maybe <hostname>_old, so I
> have access to the old data and the former server can be turned off
> some weeks later.

Can you change the nodename on export/import?  I was looking at that
yesterday, and did not see a way to do it.  I see that you can rename
filespaces, or rather, have the import command select new names, but I dod
not see a way to change the node name.

Also, as far as expiring the data of "retired" nodes, I have a test unix
machine that I run an incremental backup against as the retired node (via
adding a stanza for that node to dsm.sys and dsm.opt), adding includes for
all of the retired node's filespaces, and creating empty mountpoints for
it's filesystems.  It doesn't expire everything, but it does get most of
it.  I then set a timer in our calandar system to delete the node 2 years
after running this special expire backup.

This brings up another issue for me.  These retired nodes, which are being
kept around until their files all expire, tie up valuable licenses.  I
think there should be a way to "upd node nodename status=retired", which
marks all files inactive, so they can age via their management class
rules, and frees up the license.  If you decide to reactivate the node,
then you mark it active again, which activates the license, and you can
run backups/archives again.

Steve (unVMix Systems Programmer/Dude) Roder
(tkssteve AT ubvm.cc.buffalo DOT edu | tkssteve AT acsu.buffalo DOT edu | 
(716)645-3564 ,
   | http://ubvm.cc.buffalo.edu/~tkssteve)