Re: amanda-2.5.1p3 ignores no-reuse

On Thu, Aug 21, 2008 at 10:26:57AM +0700, Olivier Nicole wrote:
> Hello,
> 
> I am setting up a new Amanda server.
> 
> Using virtual tapes on USB disk, it seems to be fast enough (20 to 40
> MBps) depending on the hardware, the speed of the holding disks,
> etc. Faster than the dump, so no problem.
> 
> 
> The problem is the following:
> 
> I have 3 USB disks for virtual tapes, and only one is connected at a
> given time, so in tapelist I marked the tapes that are not accessible
> with no-reuse. They cannot be used because the disk is not online.
> 
> Despite, the report at the end of a dump mention that amanda will try
> to use these;
> 
>   These dumps were to tape CSIM-set-1-06.
>   The next 5 tapes Amanda expects to use are: 5 new tapes.
>   The next 5 new tapes already labelled are: CSIM-set-1-07, CSIM-set-1-08, 
>   CSIM-set-1-09, CSIM-set-2-01, CSIM-set-2-02.
> 
> The tapes CSIM-set-2-01, CSIM-set-2-02 are on a disk that is not
> online and they are marked no-reuse:
> 
>   0 CSIM-set-2-02 no-reuse
>   0 CSIM-set-2-01 no-reuse
>   0 CSIM-set-1-09 reuse
>   0 CSIM-set-1-08 reuse
>   0 CSIM-set-1-07 reuse
> 
> Is that a feature?
> 

I think you've hit an outlying situation.  One that is so
uncommon that it was not considered during design and coding.

Note that nothing that amanda says in the report are inaccurate.
It expects 5 new (labelled and previously unused) tapes.
Further, it peeks at the tapelist file and notes the next
five that match those criteria, labelled and unused.  I wonder
if the developers ever considered that a newly labelled tape
(one with a 0 for last date used) would also be marked no-reuse.

I realize I'm playing with semantics here, but would it be
wrong to use for the first time a tape marked "no-reuse"?
Maybe not as the first use is not a "reuse".  ;)

Note also that amanda has not actually tried to "use" these
marked tapes.  It is just reporting current conditions.
You may unmark those no-reuse tapes before the next amdump.
Even if you don't, amanda will go further into the tapelist
and online available tapes looking for ones it can use.
Should it not find enough it will enter degraded mode and
backup to the holding disk without taping.

-- 
Jon H. LaBadie                  jon AT jgcomp DOT com
 JG Computing
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