Networker

Re: [Networker] 7.4.5 nsrck hangs

2009-09-04 18:51:14
Subject: Re: [Networker] 7.4.5 nsrck hangs
From: Francis Swasey <Frank.Swasey AT UVM DOT EDU>
To: NETWORKER AT LISTSERV.TEMPLE DOT EDU
Date: Fri, 4 Sep 2009 18:45:31 -0400
On 9/4/09 5:10 PM, Roberta Gold wrote:
When I remove a client, I also move the client index to a different directory. Once my advertised retention time is up, I remove any remaining media index entries for those clients from the volumes that are onsite. The only remaining entries will be for the DR volumes that are offsite. I wish NetWorker had a "NUKE CLIENT" option in the NMC that would totally cleanup after a client.

Yes, I wish that as well. I had seen a post here describing using nsrmm to delete the client index when deleting a client. So, I also have removed the /nsr/index directories for these clients that are causing nsrck to get stuck.


I guess it is the "nsrim -X", which kicks off a "nsrck -X" at the end, that hangs. Issuing a "nsrck -X" from the command line only picks up the defined clients ...

Yes, if you do a "ps -aef" and look at the nsrck -X that is hung, it has a horrendous long list of clients that nsrim has asked it to check. That list seems (now) to include many of these old clients that were deleted but still have savesets on the DR tapes that (in my case) are in the vault for seven years before I get to take out my EMC frustrations and destroy the media.


Working with EMC support is very frustrating. Triple that when you tell them you aren't allowed to do "webex" ...

Yes, it is very frustrating. It takes many phone calls and sometimes multiple escalations to the duty manager before a human ever returns a phone call.


So I guess I will just go through and create the dead clients ...




At 3:36 PM -0500 9/4/09, Tim Mooney wrote:
In regard to: Re: [Networker] 7.4.5 nsrck hangs, Roberta Gold said (at...:

Does EMC intend to fix this? Or is this considered bad house-keeping on our part?

NetWorker has allowed old client indexes to be kept around since the early
days of the product.  If they're going to change the behavior now, you
would think that it would warrant a mention in the release notes.

Also, when you delete a client, NetWorker doesn't delete the client file
index -- it doesn't even prompt you to delete it.  It just leaves it.  If
that's bad practice, you would think the GUI would prompt you to delete
it.

I really want to keep information on our DR tapes in our media index ...

I could be misunderstanding what's going on, but isn't it the client file
index that nsrck is hanging on, though?  There's no reason why you can't
keep the media information in the media index -- it's the actual saveset
contents in the client file index that's triggering the issue.

If you have index savesets for your older, deleted clients on tape
somewhere, then it should be trivial to pull them back if you ever need
them. You should be able to safely remove the client file index directories
for old clients that are no longer defined.

Should I still open a case with EMC to express my displeasure for
turning what should have continued to be ignorable warnings to something
requiring immediate attention?

Depends on what your frustration level is.  As Francis said in an earlier
email, lately it seems to be a real fight just to get EMC to acknowledge
that something even is a problem.  Then the fight to get a fix begins.

Tim
--
Tim Mooney Tim.Mooney AT ndsu DOT edu Enterprise Computing & Infrastructure 701-231-1076 (Voice)
Room 242-J6, IACC Building                             701-231-8541 (Fax)
North Dakota State University, Fargo, ND 58105-5164

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--
Frank Swasey                    | http://www.uvm.edu/~fcs
Sr Systems Administrator        | Always remember: You are UNIQUE,
University of Vermont           |    just like everyone else.
  "I am not young enough to know everything." - Oscar Wilde (1854-1900)

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