Allow normal backups to erase tapes

[kraigyb]

I understand that performing a Recycle backup will erase the first member of a backup set only if the first member is in the drive. This safety has saved me in the past. What I don’t understand is why a normal backup to a set that was started with a recycle backup will not automatically erase additional members of a set. The safety would make sure that members of other backup sets do not get erased. As it is now, after I perform a recycle backup to the first member of a set, I need to manually erase additional members of the set before I can perform normal backups to them. This is both time consuming and a security issue (I can not have non-administrators logging into the server just to manually erase tapes).

 

I have been using Retrospect Server version for over a year and just recently upgraded to Multi-Server 6.5. I am surprised that this feature is still not included – especially with server versions of the program where security and automation are expected.

 

[AmyJ]

If the correct tape is in the drive when requested, Retrospect will automatically erase the media and proceed. If the correct tape is _not_ available, Retrospect will stop and wait for manual intervention. Once the correct tape is inserted (eg: the second member and so on) you'll need only to hit the proceed button.

[kraigyb]

In my case, the recycle backup takes up most of the tape on the first night. Since I do not stay at the office to switch tapes when they fill up, I put the second tape in the drive before I leave. On the third night, I put the third tape in the drive, etc. This way I am assured that I the normal backup job will be complete in the morning instead of finding out that last nights backup stopped 15 minutes into the job because the tape was full.

 

What you described in your reply only works if you sit by the tape drive and watch the screen for the promts. This is not the way a server backup should operate. Most backups are performed when no one is present to swap tapes. An autoloader would resolve this problem, but it is not always an affordable solution.

 

[AmyJ]

You can manually set Retrospect to 'skip to the next member' when changing tapes on nights that you know the backup will span over to the next tape.

 

Go to Configure > Backup Sets > Properties > Options > Action > Skip

When the scheduled backup runs Retrospect will look for the next member in the set and no longer write to the previous member.