MSL6060 (LTO4) NetApp

[Tony Maudar]

We have a requirement to backup servers and a NetApp. We are proposing to use an MSL6060 (LTO-4 1840) with 2 drives and HP e1200-320 4Gb interface card. Can we configure it so that the NetApp connects via fibre direct to a tape drive for backup by DNMP and the servers via the second interface card. Thus each interface card only uses 1 tape drive.

[TTr]

What backup software are you going to use to drive the library and your backup sessions? And from which server? You need somehow to control the robotics device with a server/software. You can split the drives up to the two servers as you are thinking to do, but you can not split or share the robotics device.

For NetApp, I think NDMP is done over the network and not over fiber.

[Tony Maudar]

Thanks..

Proposing to use Veritas Netbackup and have a media server (DL380 G5).

Thus if robotics device cannot be split would it be possible to link MSL6060 with 4Gb fibre port to CISCO 3560G switch (backup network) and pass all backups include ndmp that way?

[TTr]

The master server only controls the robotics. You can split up the tape drives to the other servers as you were thinking initially or you can share then via the SAN. (Not the difference, spliting the drives vs. sharing).

Sharing the drives on the SAN is a more formal approach. You will need media servers licenses for all the servers that will become media servers. I don't know if the NetApp system that you have can connect to a tape drive via the SAN. You will need to check with NEtApp for that. (You need to find out if the FC ports on NetApp can be setup as originators as opposed to targets). If not you can still backup the NetApp over the network using the master server as a NDMP and a tape server. When you check with NetApp be careful they might try to sell you their snapvault solution for SAN based backups.

It 's not going to be easy to keep those LTO4s busy!