Document revision date: 19 July 1999
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OpenVMS System Manager's Manual


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10.6 Understanding BACKUP File Formats

On VAX systems, BACKUP saves files and directories from Files--11 Structure Level 1 and 2 disks to disks or magnetic tapes. If necessary, you can use BACKUP to restore the saved files and directories to Files--11 Structure Level 1 and 2 disks.

If a VAX system performs image backup of an Alpha system disk, a restore operation causes the Alpha system to reboot successfully.

On Alpha systems, BACKUP can save files and directories from Files--11 Structure Level 2 or 5 disks to either disks or magnetic tapes. If necessary, you can use BACKUP to restore the saved files and directories to Files--11 Structure Level 2 or 5 disks.

Note

The OpenVMS Alpha operating system does not support the Files--11 Structure Level 1 format.

You cannot back up files on ISO 9660-formatted media, but you can restore save sets stored on ISO 9660-formatted media.

For more information about the Files--11 disk structure, see Section 8.1.1.2. For more information about ISO 9660 devices, see Section 7.2.2.

10.7 Setting Process Quotas for Efficient Backups

You can optimize the efficiency of backups on your system by properly setting the process quotas for the process from which backups will be made (the process from which you enter the BACKUP command or submit your backup command procedure). This is especially important if you are using a streaming tape drive.

How to Perform This Task

To set process quotas for efficient backups, perform the following actions:

  1. Determine which account you want to use for backups. You can use an existing account, or create one solely for backups. For information about creating accounts, see Section 6.6.
  2. Use the Authorize utility (AUTHORIZE) to determine the current quota values for the account you will use for backups. For example, if you are using the SYSTEM account for backups, enter the following commands:


    $ SET DEFAULT SYS$SYSTEM
    $ RUN AUTHORIZE
    UAF> SHOW SYSTEM
    

  3. Using the System Management utility (SYSMAN), determine the value of the system parameters WSMAX and CHANNELCNT, as follows:


    $ RUN SYS$SYSTEM:SYSMAN
    SYSMAN> PARAMETERS SHOW WSMAX
    %SYSMAN-I-USEACTNOD, a USE ACTIVE has been defaulted on node DIEM 
    Node DIEM:   Parameters in use: ACTIVE 
    Parameter Name          Current   Default   Minimum   Maximum Unit  Dynamic 
    --------------          -------   -------   -------   ------- ----  ------- 
    WSMAX                      2600      1024        60    100000 Pages       
    SYSMAN> PARAMETERS SHOW CHANNELCNT
    Parameter Name          Current   Default   Minimum   Maximum Unit  Dynamic 
    --------------          -------   -------   -------   ------- ----  ------- 
    CHANNELCNT                 127       127        21     2047 Channels     
     
    SYSMAN> EXIT
    $ 
    

    In this case, the values for WSMAX and CHANNELCNT, as shown in the column marked Current, are 2600 and 127, respectively. Use these values to help set the correct values for the process quotas.

  4. Use AUTHORIZE to compare the values for the process quotas to the recommended values for efficient backups, as shown in Table 10-4.

    Table 10-4 Recommended Process Quotas for Efficient Backups
    Process Quota Recommended Setting
    WSQUOTA Equal to system parameter WSMAX
    WSEXTENT Equal to WSQUOTA quota
    PGFLQUOTA Equal to or greater than WSEXTENT quota
    FILLM Less than system parameter CHANNELCNT
    DIOLM Either 4096 or three times the value of FILLM quota, whichever is greater
    ASTLM Either 4096, at least 100 greater than DIOLM quota, or three times the value of FILLM quota, whichever is greater
    BIOLM Equal to FILLM
    BYTLM Equal to or greater than the following value: (256*FILLM)+(6*DIOLM)
    ENQLM Greater than FILLM quota

  5. If necessary, change process quotas using the AUTHORIZE command MODIFY. If you change process quotas, you must log out and log in again for the changes to take effect. For information about changing these process quotas, see Section 6.7.2.
    Table 10-5 lists a set of process quota values that are appropriate for many configurations. If your disks are highly fragmented or if your backups will be performed during periods of heavy system use, you should reduce the values shown for WSQUOTA and FILLM.

    Table 10-5 Sample Process Quotas for Efficient Backups
    Process Quota Suggested Value
    WSQUOTA 16384
    WSEXTENT Greater than or equal to WSQUOTA
    PGFLQUOTA 32768
    FILLM 128
    DIOLM 4096
    ASTLM 4096
    BIOLM 128
    BYTLM 65536
    ENQLM 256

Example

The following steps show the commands that you would use to run the Authorize utility and set process quotas for the SYSTEM account (if you plan to run backups from a different account, determine the process quotas for that account):

  1. Determine the current quota values:


    $ SET DEFAULT SYS$SYSTEM
    $ RUN AUTHORIZE
    UAF> SHOW SYSTEM
    Username: SYSTEM                           Owner:  SYSTEM MANAGER 
    Account:  SYSTEM                           UIC:    [1,4] ([SYSTEM]) 
    CLI:      DCL                              Tables: DCLTABLES 
    Default:  SYS$SYSROOT:[SYSMGR] 
                                     . 
                                     . 
                                     . 
    Maxjobs:         0  Fillm:        40  Bytlm:        32768 
    Maxacctjobs:     0  Shrfillm:      0  Pbytlm:           0 
    Maxdetach:       0  BIOlm:        18  JTquota:       1024 
    Prclm:          10  DIOlm:        18  WSdef:          256 
    Prio:            4  ASTlm:        24  WSquo:          512 
    Queprio:         0  TQElm:        20  WSextent:      2048 
    CPU:        (none)  Enqlm:       200  Pgflquo:      20480 
                                     . 
                                     . 
                                     . 
    UAF> EXIT
    %UAF-I-NOMODS, no modifications made to system authorization file 
    %UAF-I-NAFNOMODS, no modifications made to network authorization file 
    %UAF-I-RDBNOMODS, no modifications made to rights database 
    $
    

    In this example, SYSTEM has the following quotas:
    WSQUOTA 512
    WSEXTENT 2048
    PGFLQUOTA 20480
    FILLM 40
    DIOLM 18
    ASTLM 24
    BIOLM 18
    BYTLM 32768
    ENQLM 200

  2. Using the System Management utility (SYSMAN), determine the value of the system parameters WSMAX and CHANNELCNT, as follows:


    $ RUN SYS$SYSTEM:SYSMAN
    SYSMAN> PARAMETERS SHOW WSMAX
    %SYSMAN-I-USEACTNOD, a USE ACTIVE has been defaulted on node DIEM 
    Node DIEM:   Parameters in use: ACTIVE 
    Parameter Name          Current   Default   Minimum   Maximum Unit  Dynamic 
    --------------          -------   -------   -------   ------- ----  ------- 
    WSMAX                      2600      1024        60    100000 Pages       
    SYSMAN> PARAMETERS SHOW CHANNELCNT
    Parameter Name          Current   Default   Minimum   Maximum Unit  Dynamic 
    --------------          -------   -------   -------   ------- ----  ------- 
    CHANNELCNT                 127       127        21     2047 Channels     
     
    SYSMAN> EXIT
    $ 
    

    In this case, the values for WSMAX and CHANNELCNT, as shown in the column marked Current, are 2600 and 127, respectively.

  3. Compare the values for SYSTEM to the values in Table 10-4, and set the appropriate values:


    $ SET DEFAULT SYS$SYSTEM
    $ RUN AUTHORIZE
    UAF> MODIFY SYSTEM/WSQUOTA=2600
    UAF> MODIFY SYSTEM/WSEXTENT=2600
    UAF> MODIFY SYSTEM/DIOLM=4096
    UAF> MODIFY SYSTEM/ASTLM=4096
    UAF> MODIFY SYSTEM/BIOLM=40
    UAF> MODIFY SYSTEM/BYTLM=34816
    UAF> EXIT
    

  4. Log out and then log in again so that these process quotas take effect.

10.8 Using Disks and Tapes

During the course of your backup operations, you will use both disk and tape volumes. The steps you normally perform before using a volume in a backup operation are:

  1. Determine the device name.
  2. Allocate the device.
  3. Initialize the volume (optional).
  4. Mount the device (for disks only; BACKUP mounts tapes automatically).

These tasks are described in Chapter 8. This chapter describes specifically how these tasks relate to BACKUP. Note that all disk operations in this chapter also apply to diskettes.

10.8.1 Understanding Volume Initialization

Initializing a volume completes the following actions:

Caution

Initializing a volume removes links to existing files on the volume, effectively erasing the files. Do not initialize a volume that contains data you want to keep.

10.8.1.1 When to Initialize Volumes

You must initialize a volume for use with BACKUP if any of the following conditions exist:

Table 10-6 show the three ways to initialize a volume.

Table 10-6 Methods of Volume Initialization
Method For More Information
Before a backup operation with the DCL command INITIALIZE Section 8.3
On the BACKUP command line with the /REWIND qualifier (for tapes only) Section 10.8.1.2
On the BACKUP command line with the /INITIALIZE qualifier (for disks only) Section 10.8.1.3

10.8.1.2 Initializing Tapes

Instead of using the INITIALIZE command and then performing a backup operation, you can initialize a tape and perform a backup operation by entering one BACKUP command.

How to Perform This Task

To initialize a tape volume on the BACKUP command line, add the /REWIND and /LABEL qualifiers to the output specifier. The /REWIND qualifier rewinds and initializes the volume. The /LABEL qualifier allows you to specify the volume label.

Magnetic tape volume labels can contain a maximum of six characters. You can use any ANSI "a" character in a magnetic tape volume label. The ANSI "a" characters include numbers, uppercase letters, and any of the following nonalphanumeric characters:

  ! " % ' ( ) * + , _ . / : ; < = > ? 

If you use any nonalphanumeric characters, you must enclose the volume label with quotation marks.

Label your magnetic tapes according to the data contained on the tapes. The following table presents some suggestions for labeling tapes:
Label Type of Backup Expiration Date
DLY101 Daily, group 1, volume number 1 Expires in 7 days
DLY102 Daily, group 1, volume number 2 Expires in 7 days
WKY101 Weekly, group 1, volume number 1 Expires in 4 weeks
WKY201 Weekly, group 2, volume number 1 Expires in 4 weeks
MTH101 Monthly, group 1, volume number 1 Expires in 12 months
YRY101 Yearly, group 1, volume number 1 Expires in 5 years

Note that:

Example


$ BACKUP [ACCOUNTS.JUNE] MUA0:JUNE.BCK/REWIND/LABEL=MTH101

10.8.1.3 Initializing Disks

Instead of using the INITIALIZE command and then performing a backup operation, you can initialize a disk and perform a backup operation by entering one BACKUP command.

How to Perform This Task

The two ways to initialize a disk during a backup operation are:

Examples

  1. The following command shows how to initialize a disk on the BACKUP command line:


    $ BACKUP/IMAGE DUA1: DUA2:
    

    This command initializes DUA2: using the volume-initialization data from DUA1. BACKUP then copies the contents of DUA1: to DUA2:, effectively erasing any existing files on DUA2. Note that the files on DUA2: are stored contiguously, eliminating disk fragmentation.

  2. The following command shows how to preserve volume-initialization data on the output disk during an image copy:


    $ BACKUP/IMAGE DUA1: DUA2:/NOINITIALIZE
    

    This command causes BACKUP to initialize DUA2:, preserving the initialization data on that volume. BACKUP then copies the contents of DUA1: to DUA2:, effectively erasing any existing files on DUA2.

  3. These commands cause BACKUP to initialize DJA2:, effectively erasing any existing files:


    $ MOUNT/FOREIGN DJA2:
    %MOUNT-I-MOUNTED, USER1 mounted on _DJA2:
    $ BACKUP/IMAGE DUA1: DJA2:DAILY.SAV/INITIALIZE
    

    BACKUP then creates an image backup of DUA1: in the sequential disk save set DUA2:[000000]DAILY.SAV. If the save set exceeds the available disk space, BACKUP prompts for another volume. BACKUP initializes the new volume and extends the save set in the master file directory ([000000]) of the new volume. (For more information about save sets, see Section 10.5. For more information about the /INITIALIZE qualifier, refer to the OpenVMS System Management Utilities Reference Manual.)

10.8.2 Mounting a Volume

Mounting a volume makes it available to the system. BACKUP automatically mounts tapes when you use them for a backup operation. Most disks on your system are mounted at system startup. This section describes how to explicitly mount volumes.

If you are planning to write a save set to a disk, decide whether the save set will be written in standard Files--11 format or in sequential-disk format:

How to Perform This Task

  1. Enter the SHOW DEVICES command in the following format to check whether the device is already mounted:

    SHOW DEVICES device-name 
    

  2. Enter the MOUNT command in the following format:

    MOUNT [/FOREIGN] device-name [volume-label] [logical-name] 
    


    where:
    device-name is the name of the drive that holds the volume you want to mount.
    volume-label is the alphanumeric identification you assigned to the volume with the INITIALIZE command. For disk volumes, labels can have a maximum of 12 characters; for magnetic tape volumes, labels can have a maximum of 6 characters. You do not need to add this parameter if you are mounting the volume with the /FOREIGN qualifier.
    logical-name is an optional 1- to 255-character alphanumeric specification that you want to associate with the volume.

Example


$ SHOW DEVICE MU
Device                  Device           Error    Volume         Free  Trans Mnt 
 Name                   Status           Count     Label        Blocks Count Cnt 
DAD$MUA6:               Online               0 
MOM$MUA6:               Online               0 
FRED$MUA6:              Online               0
$ MOUNT/FOREIGN FRED$MUA6: TEST DRIVE1
%MOUNT-I-MOUNTED, TEST mounted on _FRED$MUA6:

This command mounts the tape in FRED$MUA6: and assigns it the logical name DRIVE1.

10.8.3 Dismounting a Volume

BACKUP does not dismount the last volume of a backup operation (unless you use the /RELEASE_TAPE qualifier). When you finish using a volume, you should dismount it.

How to Perform This Task

Enter the DISMOUNT command in the following format:

DISMOUNT  device-name 

Example

The following command dismounts a tape in drive MUB6:


$ DISMOUNT MUB6:

This command dismounts and unloads the tape in MUB6. After you dismount and unload the volume, you can remove it from the drive. To dismount the tape but not unload it, enter the following command:


$ DISMOUNT/NOUNLOAD MUB6:


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