ADSM-L

Re: Problems with moving tapes OFFSITE

2002-07-19 01:30:58
Subject: Re: Problems with moving tapes OFFSITE
From: "Mark D. Rodriguez" <mark AT MDRCONSULT DOT COM>
Date: Fri, 19 Jul 2002 00:29:03 -0500
Gordon Woodward wrote:

We currently have a problems with our TSM server in regards to ARCHIVE tapes which we 
store offsite. Today while trying to load some new scratch tapes into our Dell PowerVault 
136T Library we got a error back saying the "ANR8314E Library ATL is full".  
Our library can physically hold 72 tapes and we currently have only 52 tapes physically 
loaded. Over the last couple of months we have been conducting monthly ARCHIVE backups of 
our server data, so far 14 tapes have been used for these archives.

If we issue the command QUERY LIBVOLUME only the tapes physically available in 
our Dell PowerVault are listed (52 tapes), but if we QUERY VOLUME the tapes 
which were used for archival purposes are displayed as well (14 tapes). The 
tapes used for archiving data were removed from the library by using the 
command:

CHECKOUT LIBVOLUME ATL [tape_volume_name]

We tried to use the MOVE DRMEDIA command but the required tape volumes were not 
recorded as valid media to use with DRM. I have since tried updating the status 
of the archive tape volumes in question to offsite using the UPDATE VOLUME 
command but get the following error:

ANR2117E UPDATE VOLUME: Access mode for volume 000001L1 cannot be changed to 
"offsite" - volume either does not belong to a copy storage pool or from a 
device class of DEVTYPE=SERVER.
ANR2212I UPDATE VOLUME: No volumes updated.

What do we need to do to remedy this situation? Should we recall back our 
archive tapes from offsite storage and physically reload them back into the 
Library or is there a series of command steps I can enter in to manipulate the 
status of these tapes internally? Also, in the future how can we use DRM to 
checkout the tapes instead of using the CHECKOUT command? The only time I've 
been successfull in using DRM to remove a tape from our library was when I 
performed a manual dbbackup of our database to tape. All other tapes are simply 
ignored when querying the DRM.

Thanks in advance for any help.

Gordon Woodward
Deutsche Bank (Australia)


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Gordon,

You have several different issues here to deal with.  First and foremost
are you licensed to use DRM, it is a separate purchasable product.  If
you are then I highly recommend that you configure it and use it to its
fullest.

Now as far as taking tapes offsite, TSM beleives the only tapes you will
be taking offsite is the tapes from your copypool, i.e. a second copy
(posibly third) of the data and of course your TSM DB's backups.  The
ANR2117E error you are getting is due to you trying to update volumes
that are in a primary storage pool.  I can only deduce from this that
you are definately not using DRM and further it seems that you are not
backing up your primary storage pools (using the ba stg Pri_pool
Copy_pool command).  It is the volumes from the copy pool that you would
then take offsite.  I recommend that you read thru chapter titled
"Protecting the Server" in the TSM Adminstrator's Guide this will give
you a good over view of how copy pools and offsite tape rotations work.
Furthermore, if you are licensed for DRM then read the documents on
that as well.  I hate to be one of those guys that just says "RTFM"
(Read The Fine Manual) but this time I think it will really go a long
way to solving this problem.

Now on the library full problem, it appears that the library inventory
and the TSM "q libv" are out of sync.  I have seen this happen for a
variety of reasons with several different libraries.  It usually stems
from the way tapes are physically and logically checked in and out of
the library.  However, since I am not real familiar with the Dell
library you are referencing I will make some general suggestions. See if
there is a library interface (separate from TSM) that allows you to
check the inventory that the library beleives it has and compare it to
the "q libv" output.  Please keep in mind TSM slot numbers and the
library slot numbers are often different, but usually only by some
offset.  I would then run an "audit library" check the sysntax on this
so that if you have a bar code reader that it uses the bar codes other
wise every tape will be mounted and the label read.  Then I would have
the library itself do an audit.  This is not a TSM command but rather a
library command of the hardware itself.  I am not sure how to do that on
your library but most library will do an inventory if you power cycle
it.  I understand that maybe lengthy and inconvenient so I would look
for a way to do it thru hardware control.  Once this is complete you can
then check the two inventories and they should be in sync.

Now the next step is keeping the library inventory and TSM's inventory
in sync.  Without DRM make sure you are using commands like "move media"
and "q media" for managing you tapes.  These are handy commands and they
can build macros for you that will assist you in checking the tapes in
and out of the library as well as doing some tracking of the tapes.  The
TSM Admin Guide has a pretty good section on "Managing Media in
Automated Library Devices".  If you do have DRM there will be a
different set of commands to use.

I hope this helps.

If you have more questions just keep right on asking, if I can't help
you somebody out here will!

--
Regards,
Regards,
Mark D. Rodriguez
President MDR Consulting, Inc.

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