>Hello all,
>
>i´m running with ADSM-Server 3.1.1.3 and my database grows, and grows, and
>grows,  and my magstar-tapes become more full and full and full ....
>In my POLICIES i defined, that max. 2 Versions of existing files are holded
>(the second one only 30 days) and 1 Version of only files (never expire).
>
>I can´t see with the backup-client, that more than 2 versions are holded.
>it seems to be o.k..
>but i think it can´t be that we need 2,5 Terra-Byte Tapes to backup  ca.
>250 GB Disk-Space.
>
>
>the "expire inventory" runs each 24 hours and say´s, that 30000 to 40000
>objects are examined and deleted.
>It looks good, but tape-utilization grows and grows.
>each day we do "move data" to become some tapes (with reclamation-treshold
>< 70 %) free.
>it seems to work, but in summary we become more and more data.
>
>so i were told to install the Server 3.1.2.13 for NT.
>
>Who knows this version ??? is it a good version ???  my i go in production
>with it ???
>
>
>
>thank you
>
>Sabine Rettenberger
>sabine.rettenberger AT wolf-heiztechnik DOT de


Sabine,

I suspect Your problem is *not* Your server version but the backup of
temporary files combined with Your policies.

Temporary files are created by various applications to store temporary
data, and deleted some time later (when the program terminates, when the
program is started again, when the file reaches some expiry date, ...).

Temporary files will be created with random names in various places
scattered around Your computer hard disk:
 - many programs use the directories pointed to by the "TEMP" and "TMP"
environment variables
 - files marked for deletion might be kept in a special directory until You
tell the computer to actually delete them (with a command like "empty
thrash")
 - web browsers usually create very much "garbage" when they cache data
that the user asked for during a web session: every HTML page and every
image that is contained in them is saved in a file (up to some browser
configurable limits); thus a user browsing a web for a while may produce
many such cache files
 - other applications (e.g. email programs, ...) might still have other
places where they store temporary informations (unread and outgoing mails,
...)

Unless You exclude them, temporary files that are on Your hard disk when
You start Your next backup will be backed up; when they get deleted on Your
hard disk, they will be marked inactive by ADSM, but as You told ADSM to
keep the only version for an unlimited time, they are never removed from
Your backup (and thus they keep to occupy space in the ADSM storage pools
and database); and - as the user keeps to work with his applications that
create new temporary files - You continue adding new temporary files to
Your backup - thus Your growing storage requirements for storage pools and
database.

You might check this - simply open the GUI client on one system, tell hime
to restore (to view the "restore candidates") and tell him to "View active
and inactive files".

In order to stop Your storage requirements from growing, You might do two
things:
 - either exclude *any* places where such temporary files are created from
Your backup for *all Your clients* (the default DSM.OPT file provided with
the ADSM client definitely doesn't cover them all), or
 - reconsider Your policies; we keep the only version of a file for only 90
days, as we think it is reasonable that a user probably won't need to
recover a file he deleted if he doesn't realize it for three months (if he
knows in advance that he might need the file later, archiving the file will
be the better option).

HTH - Alfred

------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dipl.-Ing. Alfred Novacek
Dipl.-Ing. Alfred Novacek
Institute for Data Processing in Business Administrations,
     Economics and Social Sciences
Johannes Kepler University Linz / Austria
E-Mail: Novacek AT idv.uni-linz.ac DOT at
        Novacek AT pop.idv.uni-linz.ac DOT at
WWW: http://www.idv.uni-linz.ac.at