cron backup with multiple volumes

[laurin1]

Can this be done? My backup works fine with single volumes, but when it runs over, my script emails me the log and it's asking for a new tape. However, it appears to exit right after that.

Here's the script:

#!/bin/sh

echo "$(date) Starting nightly system backup..."
find /rmi/RM5/rm5.dbs -print | backup  -i  -q -v -f /dev/rmt0 > /backup.log 2>&1
ret=$?
echo "$(date) Backup returned $ret and output is: " 
output=`grep ".*" /backup.log`
echo $output

and here's the log that is sent to me (i cut out some of the file list to shorten this):

Sat Sep 23 01:00:01 CDT 2006 Starting nightly system backup...
Sat Sep 23 04:08:30 CDT 2006 Backup returned 2 and output is: 
Backing up to /dev/rmt0. Cluster 51200 bytes (100 blocks). Volume 1 on /dev/rmt0 a 0 /rmi/RM5/rm5.dbs a 71680 /rmi/RM5/rm5.dbs/syscolumns.idx a 126976 /rmi/RM5/rm5.dbs/syscolumns.dat a 32768 /rmi/RM5/rm5.dbs/sysindexes.idx a 19456 
.........
/rmi/RM5/rm5.dbs/s_grp00228.idx a 3072 /rmi/RM5/rm5.dbs/s_grp00228.dat a 16967680 /rmi/RM5/rm5.dbs/note500596.idx a 366820352 /rmi/RM5/rm5.dbs/note500596.dat a 133120 /rmi/RM5/rm5.dbs/c5pay00597.id!
x Mount volume 2 on /dev/rmt0. Press Enter to continue.


*****************************************************************
	cron: The previous message is the standard output
	and standard error of one of the cron commands.

Keith Davis
MCSA, A+, N+, Guru+, Geek+, Child of God++++++
Love and Service

http://www.solidtechservice.com

 

[KenCunningham]

Hi Keith. I'm not entirely sure that this will help, but the AIX backup command supports the -p option to perform compression on files < 2Gb at the time of writing to tape. The man page says:

-p Specifies that the files be packed, or compressed, before they are archived. Only files of less than 2GB are packed.

Note: This option should only be used when backing up files from an inactive filesystem. Modifying a file when a backup is in progress may result in corruption of the backup and an inability to recover the data. When backing
up to a tape device which performs compression, this option can be omitted.

Does your backup still show in a ps listing after such an event? If not, I'm wondering whether the prompt eventually times out and aborts - perhaps someone else knows.

I don't mind people who aren't what they seem. I just wish they'd make their mind up.

Alan Bennett.

 

[p5wizard]

I don't know how backup, when run from cron, reacts these days to this situation. I seem to recall a while ago, backup sees no stdin - so no answer, but the first tape is/was still in the drive, so second volume was written over the same tape, thereby rendering the backup tape useless.

If you can set the drive to a higher density, perhaps that will circumvent the problem? Also, if you have spare disk space, you could make the backup to a file/filesystem, and the next day copy that file to tape and then you'd be able to load a new tape when prompted to do so.

Or invest in a network-backup software+hardware (TSM+tapedrive_library or the like)


HTH,

p5wizard

 

[KenCunningham]

I agree with p5wizard in that you run the risk of overwriting here. Apart from the other options and/or investment suggested, you might also consider carrying out incremental backups using the -Level option of backup, though these can get tricky if databases like Oracle are involved.

I don't mind people who aren't what they seem. I just wish they'd make their mind up.

Alan Bennett.