New Retrospec user looking for Multi Server Assistance

[Gump0r]

Hey! I'm pretty excited about using Retrospec Multi Server 7.5, but was hoping that some of the more advanced and skilled users in here might be able to help point me in the right direction and get the right foot forward in my new setup.

 

I need assistance in understanding how to do some of the simple things I used to do in Backup Exec for Windows under Retrospec instead.

 

Here is my ideal scenario, or at least what I would like to achieve and be 100% comfortable with...

 

• Backup Server w/ Retrospec 7.5

• Exabyte 1U VXA-320 Autoloader with 6 VXA tapes in it

• 5 Servers I wish to backup.

 

Now under my old system (with an older backup device) I had it running a 1 month backup. Each Monday it would do a full. The rest of the week it was doing differential backups. The tapes would last me for about a month. After that however, the Overwrite protection would lapse on the tapes and I could recycle the original ones. I had 10 tapes roughly so once I got to tape 10 and it was full, I would put tape 1 in and start over. This would allow me to retain 1 month of backups which was all I needed.

 

Under the new hardware and storage needs I expect to get about 5 months of backup. My goal would be to get the same type of setup.

 

I have the 6 tapes. I would like to fill them up and then have the autoloader be able to re-use Tape1 after 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6 have filled up. Essentially I would like to retain 5 months of backup data which would loop over itself indefinately.

 

Feasible? I'm looking for suggestions on how to achieve this and do it, and not looking for lectures on data security and telling me I should have multiple tape sets taken from the location nightly etc.

 

Any help would be much much appreciated. I don't quite understand the difference between Normal and Recycle and in Backup Exec we simply had 'Append Time' and 'Overwrite Protection' so you could say a tape is able to be appended to for a week, after that it has to move to a new tape where there is space and append time available. It wouldn't overwrite data if the data was still under the overwrite protection period either.

 

Anyways, thanks in advance. I'm excited about Retrospec.

 

- Neil