ADSM-L

Virtualnodename issue concerning Windows and AIX

2002-05-15 11:08:00
Subject: Virtualnodename issue concerning Windows and AIX
From: "Ilja G. Coolen" <ilja.coolen AT ABP DOT NL>
Date: Wed, 15 May 2002 17:08:14 +0200
Hello there,

We stumbled onto the following problem, the hard way i may add.

We have a mixed environment using AIX, Windows NT/2K and Sun Solaris.
The Sun and NT boxes all run a very recent TSM client level.
Some AIX boxes are running TSM client code by now as well, but most of the
aren't on AIX 4.3.3 yet, so we can't upgrade them all.

Our TSM server runs on AIX 4.3.3.x at level 4.2.1.9.

Here comes the problem.
One of our DBA's connected to TSM server using a windows tsm client,
pretending to be a certain AIX node. Due to the optionsettings, the
AUTOFSRENAME action kicked in, updating the FS information on that AIX box.

The q node showed the following.

tsm: ABPTSM1>q node rs6sv090*



Node Name                     Platform     Policy Domain      Days Since
Days Since     Locked?
                                           Name               Last Acce-
Password
                                                                      ss
Set
-------------------------     --------     --------------     ----------
----------     -------
----------     -------
RS6SV090                      AIX          DOMRS_TST                  <1
RS6SV090                      AIX          DOMRS_TST                  <1
<1       No
RS6SV090Z                     WinNT        DOMRS_TST                   1
182       No


The *Z node is the renamed version, so we could continue the backups to the
original node name, being rs6sv090.
As you can see, the *Z AIX box is shown as a NT box. Huh?!

When connecting the original node from the AIX command line, we are told
that the client is down-level, so we cannot connect.
No backups or restores are possible using the original node. No backups or
restores are possible from any AIX node, no mather which client code we run.

To make the original data available, we exported the *Z data, and imported
it into the original nodename, without updating the client information using
the replacedefs=no option during the import. This took a while though.

I think it's not such a good functionality, that we can use a windows tsm
client to connect as an AIX box, rendering the AIX data unavailable.
To me, this feels like a BUG.

I'm working on the following questions:
Did any of you run into such a problem too?
Does anyone know of a way to prevent someone from performing the connect
like this?
Is this problem known to Tivoli? If yes, what is being done on this issue?

Any comment is appreciated.


kind regards.



Ilja G. Coolen




ABP / USZO
CIS / BS / TB / Storage Management
Telefoon: +31(0)45  579 7938
Fax: +31(0)45  579 3990
Email: ilja.coolen AT abp DOT nl
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