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Tape Name Problems


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Hi. I'm using Retrospect v6.1.126 on mac os x 10.4.1. I've recently moved (archived) stuff from our macs to our archive tapes. Now i'm running a daily back up again. The drive is asking for " 3-Backup Set A ". When I insert this tape it's telling me it's " 1-Backup Set A " ?!! Has someone been messing with my tapes! or is there some logic to this?

If I select "proceed" I'm told this tape belongs to another set?

 

Any ideas on how to solve the problem? Can I re-name the tape, for example?

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Thanks,

Yeah, I'm sure they CAN be erased, but was wondering how a tape called 3 backup set A can become "1 backup set A" !?

I gonna have to take a chance and run daily back up set A again. Do you think my erased tape will become 3-Backup Set A then?

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but was wondering how a tape called 3 backup set A can become "1 backup set A" !?

I gonna have to take a chance and run daily back up set A again. Do you think my erased tape will become 3-Backup Set A then?

 


There are two ways this could happen. One is correct, and one is due to a long-standing bug in Retrospect Mac that was fixed years ago in Retrospect Windows but not in Retrospect Mac. I turned in a bug report a couple of years ago under our service contract, but have not seen any progress other than a statement by the EMC/Dantz/Insignia support engineer requesting that I turn in a "feature request" for this bug to be fixed (which, of course, I did, long ago).

 

The correct way: Configure > Devices, move the tape into the drive (using "Devices" menu, if you have an autoloader), click "Erase", and supply the new name. You may be prompted to acknowledge that the old name tape is part of a backup set, and, if you acknowledge, that tape and all of its snapshots will be given the new name and the old snapshots will be forgotten from Retrospect's database.

 

The incorrect way due to a bug: Erase the tape as above, give it whatever name you want. Retrospect will rename the tape if it wants a new member for a backup set. If you have an autoloader with pre-named, pre-erased, barcoded tapes, and one of the tapes has exactly the name that Retrospect needs when looking for a new member of a backup set, Retrospect will ignore the names of the erased barcoded tapes and whimsically choose from all of the erased tapes, renaming whichever one it uses to the name it wants. This bug makes it impossible to have unattended operation of an autoloader, and makes inventory management of barcoded tapes impossible. Grrr. What's the point of having a service contract if bugs are never addressed?

 

Again, this bug was fixed years ago in Retrospect Windows, so the fix has been known for a long time. Abandoned product without maintenance.

 

Russ

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You may be prompted to acknowledge that the old name tape is part of a backup set, and, if you acknowledge, that tape and all of its snapshots will be given the new name and the old snapshots will be forgotten from Retrospect's database.

 


 

I'm not sure I understand what this means. Retrospect does not have a database per se, but instead maintains Catalog files that act as databases for each Backup Set.

 

Furthermore, while Snapshot information can be stored on media Members, there is not a one-to-one relationship between a tape and any specific Snapshot. Snapshots can reference multiple Members, and Members can contain data used by multiple Snapshots.

 

Are you saying that if you erase a tape that is a Member of a known Backup Set, the Catalog will be updated in such a way that the next time a backup is run, files that _had_ been on that tape will, if available, be recopied?

 

That's cool.

 

 

Dave

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Are you saying that if you erase a tape that is a Member of a known Backup Set, the Catalog will be updated in such a way that the next time a backup is run, files that _had_ been on that tape will, if available, be recopied?

 


No, that it will be removed as a destination from scripts.

 

Russ

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Are you saying that if you erase a tape that is a Member of a known Backup Set, the Catalog will be updated in such a way that the next time a backup is run, files that _had_ been on that tape will, if available, be recopied?

 

That's cool.

 

 


Yes, it's lika marking a member as "lost". During the next backup, the files on that member are backed up again. (But don't ask me what happens if you set the member as "found".)

 

Yes, it's really cool.

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Most likely, it's due to something you did that you haven't told us about.

 

 

Dave

 

 

 

I'm sure you're correct, when I get an hour I'll trawl the log...we're novice users (obviously). I've recycled the back up and hope all is fine. Thanks for your replies everyone...

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