make tape recovery

[Simon Li]

I am new in using HP-UX, and I have some questions about the utility "make_tape_recovery". Please help me to know more about this tools. Thank you.

1. If "make_tape_recovery" will span to multiple tapes without any option if there is not enough space for one tape?

2. If I include all the volume groups of a server, does it means I can totally recover the server without any lost of data and configuration?

3. Does the backup tape created from "make_tape_recovery" is bootable and capable to restore all the data without crash? I just wonder if I perform the backup when the server is up, how can it recovers all the system files, that some of them should be locked, updated and some are temporary files when the system is up?

[Robert-Jan Goossens]

Hi,

-1- Yes

-2- Yes, but ignite is disigned as a OS recovery tool not a backup tool for data.

-3- Yes, the make_tape_recovery (recovery tool) is started at boot time ( reboot server, interupt boot process and boot from tape instead of boot from disk) You can not boot from tape in init state 3.

HTH,
Robert-Jan

[V.Tamilvanan · Accepted solution]

Hi,


1. Yes. If the first tape media is full it will prompt for the next media.

2. All the flat files which are taken backup can be retreived without any problem.For active files like database files you need to have separate database backup in order to maintain the integrity.

3. Yes it is bootable and can restore without any crash when you try to recover from the same model of system. Whatever files can be taken backup used by tar will be backed up when you are using make_tape_recover.

Normally make_tape_recovery is meant for creating bootable media and take the backup of vg00. You can use fbackup for other data FS backup.

Ex.

#make_tape_recovery -x inc_entire=vg00 -Iv -a /dev/rmt/0mn

HTH.

[Simon Li]

Thanks for the information.

For question 3, what if the system do if it is trying to backup (tar) a file and is being deleted in the middle of the process? Does error comes out, and will the backup process terminate or pause?

[V.Tamilvanan]

Hi,
You just get a warning at the end of the archive completion. No need to worry.