Backing up a 4100

[meisner]

I have searched and found nothing interresting on backing up a Snap server.

I have a 4100 that is running perfectly now (after a lot of frustration) and I tried to do some backups on it...nothing seems to work reliably. If I use BackupExec or NTbackup, I get general device errors that cause the backup to fail.

I am using two DLT drives on a Windows 2003 Server box. I have tried BackupExec 10d and NTbackup with no success. The info on Veritas' site does not work to get BackupExec to work.

What is everyone else using to perform backups?

Thanks,
Steve

[re3dyb0y]

Hang on, are you meaning backing up to a snap server?

Or backing up the files from it?

[meisner]

Hehe...sorry! I meant backing up the data on the snap server to tape.

[re3dyb0y]

Hmm

I have never attemped to backup network shares, i have backuped to Network shares.


If you had space, you could copy it to the server, and back it up... But that would be pointless, as it would defeat the object of havin the snap


Errm, have you ever tried backing from a share to tape...

I think ive done it from our linux server to the tape drive on the 2k box at work...



Windows Backup = You may as well not bother

[blue68f100]

Sam, does the s2s allow you to go to a tape driveunit or strictly another server?

[re3dyb0y]

He is using Tape Drives in a Server, so it would be the same as copying it tot he server

The old versions of S2S was really SS2SS (snap server to snap server) it seemed, but v2 has windows and linux and such software.


I will have a look for you, but it seems with S2S, it is more for keeping 2 copies of files the same

[meisner]

Originally Posted by re3dyb0y

He is using Tape Drives in a Server, so it would be the same as copying it tot he server

This is what I am doing as well (tape drives on a server) with my W2K3 server. I can copy files no problem, but running backup seems to fail.

Originally Posted by re3dyb0y

I will have a look for you, but it seems with S2S, it is more for keeping 2 copies of files the same

I got the same impression about S2S.

I am about to try Retrospect Backup. I have been seeing some references about using it with a Snap server.

[blue68f100]

It almost acts like a access rights problem. Does the user/maching have admin rights to the server? I'm thing when you login and test with file transfer you have admin rights.

Retrospect is good powerfull program. Used it years ago when I was admin of a group.

[meisner]

Well, I just tried Retrospect a few times and always received the same failure:

File "\\storage\c\Pictures\Camry Mods\Turbo Install\P2230005.JPG": can't read, error -1116 (can't access network volume)

Then the job continued to fail when trying to access any other files in the job with a "permissions denied" error. But this is becuase it lost the connection to the network share...I think.

I am logging into the Snap server with the root username/password. At times, the backup job has up to 52 files open at once.

When it fails, I still see the file it failed on still open on the Snap server.

[jontz]

Just out of curiosity, what is the user name that you are using to log into your 2003 server? Are you loggin in as Admin/Administrator? The only reason that I ask is that I had a HECK of a time getting a snap to talk to one computer, and then I realized that I was logged into the computer as administrator with (password 1), and my snap server also had an account named administrator, with (password 2). When it saw the windows machine with administrator (password 1) it thought I was loggin in with the wrong password and wouldn't talk to the computer. A lot of times server 2003 backups are run as administrator regardless of what you logged in as. Just a thought, probably not a good one, but hey...it was free

[meisner]

Actually the adim/administrator/root password on the 4100 is the same as the one on the W2K3 server for administrator. But I did try specifying the login credentials in Retrospect to connect as root.

[re3dyb0y]

Originally Posted by jontz

Just out of curiosity, what is the user name that you are using to log into your 2003 server? Are you loggin in as Admin/Administrator? The only reason that I ask is that I had a HECK of a time getting a snap to talk to one computer, and then I realized that I was logged into the computer as administrator with (password 1), and my snap server also had an account named administrator, with (password 2). When it saw the windows machine with administrator (password 1) it thought I was loggin in with the wrong password and wouldn't talk to the computer. A lot of times server 2003 backups are run as administrator regardless of what you logged in as. Just a thought, probably not a good one, but hey...it was free

Yeah, i noticed that with my PC accounts and hte snap file accounts i had

Heh

[meisner]

So no one is doing backups to local tape of their SnapServers? I have yet to find some way to backup my SnapServer 4100. You can install an agent on Guardian based servers...but I can't run Guardian on my 4100.

[re3dyb0y]

Nope (well if there are, they are far and few between)

Most people use them as backups for servers and PC's

And if want tape backups, run them from the local copies

[Phoenix32]

Originally Posted by meisner

So no one is doing backups to local tape of their SnapServers? I have yet to find some way to backup my SnapServer 4100. You can install an agent on Guardian based servers...but I can't run Guardian on my 4100.

Try Dantz Retrospect, it supports the SNAP servers as well as Tape drives. I do not know it will work (SNAP ---> Tape), but it's worth a shot to look at.


Side Note: Wow, that is 3 times I mentioned Dantz today. NO! I do not work for them, nor am I a sales rep. Just a coincidence.

[meisner]

I did try Retrospect, (as I reported in reply #9 above) and received error -1116, can't access network volume. I did see on the Snap web site mention of Retrospect Express and that it should work with a 4100. I found a place on the internet that was selling an OEM version for $10. I will take a chance for that little.

When I get the software, I will post results.

[Phoenix32]

Originally Posted by meisner

I did try Retrospect, (as I reported in reply #9 above) and received error -1116, can't access network volume. I did see on the Snap web site mention of Retrospect Express and that it should work with a 4100. I found a place on the internet that was selling an OEM version for $10. I will take a chance for that little.

When I get the software, I will post results.

My bad, I did not notice you had tried Retrospect already. I know there is info in their knowledge base about using Retrospect to backup to a SNAP and also to backup a SNAP, but I do not know the details. I do remember there were references to which version of Retrospect and so forth, as in some versions work and some don't and the procedures may be different for the different versions that do work. You might go do some digging in their knowledge base. Sadly, their knowledge base is not easy to wade through as I remember it, so bring a cup of coffee and sandwich with you.

[meisner]

Quick update:

- I received Retrospect and was disaspointed since it wouldn't install with the key they sent me. Doesn't matter though since I noticed later that Snap/Adaptec claims support for Retrospect on Macs, not PCs.

- Then I tried using regular Windows Backup on an XP workstation that had enough free disk space. It worked perfectly.

Anyone know of any reasons why backing up a 4100 to a DLT drive on a Windows 2003 Server would not work (with NT Backup or Veritas BackupExec 10) but would work fine on an XP Workstation to a local disk?

Steve

[jontz]

Still sounds like a rights issue to me, although you did say that you checked all that...hmmm...

[blue68f100]

Set up the logs to record login and denials, and see if somthing out of the ordinary show up. I suspect it may be using some ID that you are not aware of. Just like XP is identified by computer name, but uses the name and password the users login as. So you have to have all three.

[meisner]

Well, I went to the config/debug page and entered the 'info log t' command after the backup job failed last night and found the following entries:

08/22/2006 0:13:39 42 D SMB | SMB : Unsupported API command 1
08/22/2006 0:13:43 42 D SMB | SMB : Unsupported API command 1
08/22/2006 0:24:16 42 D NET | INET: sendit: send err 39
08/22/2006 0:24:16 42 D SMB | SMB : write_to_net: m/c=0x7FEC860 errno=39
08/22/2006 0:24:16 42 D SMB | SMB : send_smb only wrote 0 of 193 bytes to 0x7FEC860 (smb_com=0x73, smb_err=0)
08/22/2006 0:24:16 42 D SMB | SMB : closing connection to domain controller SERVER for SERVER


The backup job failed at 12:26 AM. The domain controller is named SERVER.

Is there a better way to get log data?

Thanks guys!!!

Steve

[meisner]

More info...

The snippet of the log reveals some useful info. errno=39 means (according to standard UNIX error codes) a directory is not empty. Not too interesting. But smb_com=0x73 is a command code for session setup. So obviously there is some network problem (probably related specifically to SMB) where a network connection is being closed...causing the "write_to_net" and "send_smb only wrote 0 of 193 bytes" messages.

I just started another backup on SERVER while running the network monitor on the same system. I want to see if there is a network link that is closed by SERVER. There is nothing in the system or application event logs that is related.