[OpenAFS] AFS backups and TSM

[Christopher D. Clausen]

Joseph H Vilas <jhv@oit.duke.edu> wrote:
> Folks,
>
> We're currently using some (mostly) homebrew scripts to back up our
> cell and write backup data to three DLT drives.  Our cell has about
> 50000 RW volumes and currently uses about 3/4 Tb of disk space.  I
> keep (roughly speaking) daily backups for about a month, and monthly
> backups for at least a year.  Unfortunately, a full takes me a few
> days to complete, which is, um, not optimal.
>
> For several years, the local folks who run a university-wide backup
> system have wanted us to start using TSM (it's been long enough that
> they were originally calling it ADSM).  However, they've not actually
> been able to do it until a couple years ago, and we haven't been able
> until recently.
>
> Now I hear (from this list) that IBM is dropping AFS support from TSM.
> It looks like people on the list are running away from TSM.  However,
> management wrote an IBM rep who claimed that IBM would comtinue
> supporting AFS backups via TSM for several years.  My inclination is
> to disbelieve thee IBM person.  Is that reasonable?
>
> Additionally, it looks as though IBM will not be supporting Linux
> platforms as backup platforms (for running butc/buta), although one
> can of course run the backup elsewhere for a Linux-based fileserver.
>
> Are any of you actually actively making plans to stop using TSM,
> or have any of you already seitched?  If so, what have you switched
> to?

I run the TSM client with buta support that directly backs up files in 
AFS into TSM at the file level.  (I think it requires an AIX machine.) 
I'm going to continue to run this until our TSM server is upgraded to no 
longer support it (hopefully not while I'm still here.)  We started 
using this method about two years ago and I think it works great.  Its 
basically hands off versioning to TSM and I don't have to restore an 
entire volume to recover files from a particular day.

I would recomend TSM if you already have the server infrastructure setup 
and working.

Do note that we are a small cell and only have about 200GB of data 
backed up in TSM right now.

<<CDC
-- 
Christopher D. Clausen
ACM@UIUC SysAdmin