Backup procedures

Backup Documentation and
Procedures

Thane Brooker

6 February 2004. Revision: 39

For further help and information regarding this document
telephone 0845 456 9889 or email support@8networks.co.uk

Backup Documentation and Procedures Page 2

Introduction
The information contained here has been compiled from various sources, notably HP, Imation and
Certance. It is presented as a guide and not a policy document, and should be tailored for your
organisation.

Tape Drive Hardware
Your server will be fitted with one of the following drives:

8Gb Travan (4Gb uncompressed)
20Gb Travan (10Gb uncompresses)
24Gb DDS-3 (12Gb uncompressed)
40Gb DDS-4 (20Gb uncompressed)

Please note below the type of drive you have fitted, and the date it was purchased:

Backup Responsibilities
Your server is programmed to automatically backup at a predetermined time. The backup process is
fully automatic and all you need to do is insert the correct tape, check the verify email, and complete
the backup logs.

Please note below the person(s) that receive the verify logs and are responsible for changing tape and
completing the backup log. Please also note the times and days that your backup is due to start:

© Copyright Eight Networks Ltd. Revision 39. 6 February 2004.


Tape Drive Media
You will require enough backup tapes for your chosen backup strategy (see below), plus 1 cleaning
cartridge. You can use any reputable brand of tape, e.g. Imation, Sony, HP, which are widely available
at computer and office stores.

The following table is a list of part numbers for Imation products:

Tape Format Imation Part Number Part Description
8Gb Travan 0-51122-12059-6 Travan NS8 Data Cartridge
20Gb Travan 0-51122-12115-9 Travan NS20 Data Cartridge
Travan Cleaning Cartridge (8Gb 0-51111-45377-3 Travan NS Dry Process Head
or 20Gb) Cleaning Cartridge, provides 30
cleans
24Gb DDS-3 0-51122-11737-4 DDS-3 (DDS-125) 4mm Data
Cartridge
40Gb DDS-4 0-51122-40963-9 DDS-4 (DDS-150) 4mm Data
Cartridge
DDS Cleaning Cartridge (24Gb 0-51111-45382-7 4mm Drive Head Cleaning
or 40Gb) Cartridge, provides 30-50 cleans

Tape Care
You are responsible for the purchase and maintenance of your backup tapes and cleaning cartridges.

• For the best protection, always remove the tape cartridge from the drive when not in use.
Store tapes in their protective cases. Never remove a tape cartridge from the drive when the
drive LED is illuminated or flashing, indicating the tape is moving. Wait for tape motion to stop,
and the drive LED to turn off, before removing the cartridge from the drive.
• For optimum reliability, tape media must be kept free from contamination. Do not expose tape
cartridges to dirt, dust or moisture. Do not open the tape access door on the cartridge or touch
the tape itself.
• Do not expose cartridges to extreme temperature variations. Keep cartridges away from direct
sunlight and heat sources such as radiators or warm air ducts.
• Always allow a tape cartridge to acclimate to its surroundings before using.
• Keep tape cartridges away from sources of electromagnetic fields, such as telephones,
computer monitors, dictation equipment, mechanical or printing calculators, motors, and bulk
erasers.
• Avoid dropping a data cartridge, as this can misalign the internal components used to guide
the tape. If a cartridge has been dropped it may be suitable for a single read use. It should
be marked as such, and not used for further recordings, or should be discarded.
• Tapes should be kept between 5 to 32˚C and between 20 to 60% relative humidity.



Tape Cleaning Procedure - Travan
Travan drives should be cleaned once a week. We recommend the use of a dry cleaning cartridge for
Travan tape drives. Unlike the wet cleaning process, this cartridge does not use any flammable
solvents. The cartridge removes debris from the recording gap in the read/write mechanism as the
cleaning material passes across the head.

1. Insert the cleaning cartridge into the drive.

The entire cleaning operation is controlled by the drive, and occurs when the LED on the front panel of
the drive is flashing. The LED will turn off after about 8 seconds, indicating completion of the cleaning
cycle.

Note: The drive LED will remain illuminated if the cartridge has previously completed the maximum
number of 30 cleaning cycles.

Be sure to record the cleaning date on the cartridge label for reference, and to track the number of
cleaning cycles used.

Discard spent cleaning cartridges. DO NOT attempt to reuse or rewind the cleaning cartridge.

Tape Cleaning Procedure – DDS
DDS drives should be cleaned once a week.

To clean the heads:

1. Insert a Cleaning Cartridge. The drive automatically takes the cartridge and cleans the heads.
2. After about 30 seconds, the cartridge will be ejected.
3. Take the cartridge and write the date on it, so that you have a record of how many times the
cartridge has been used. Cartridges can be used about 25 times before they reach the end of
their useful life.

Caution: If the cartridge is ejected after only about 14 seconds, the cartridge has reached the end of
its useful life, and no cleaning has occurred. If this happens, discard the cartridge and use a new
one.

Tape Life – Travan
Avoid using a tape cartridge beyond its life expectancy as specified by the media manufacturer. As a
general rule, you can expect about 2 years of service from a cartridge that is used once each week.



Tape Life - DDS
All DDS-certified media is electronically checked to withstand at least 2,000 passes. Under optimum
environmental conditions (50% relative humidity, 22 degree Celcius), this is equivalent to about 100-150
backup operations. This takes into account that an area of tape may have several passes during a
backup, either because streaming cannot be maintained, or because the backup software package
repeatedly accesses certain areas of tape. A conservative guide is to change tapes once per year.
This will provide the best possible chance of data integrity.

We would recommend replacing tapes after a maximum of two years.

Backup Strategies
It is necessary to tailor your backup strategy according to how frequently your data changes, and how
far back you may need to recover data. It is not just restoration due to hardware failures that you will
need to consider, but accidental deletions and changes that may have gone unnoticed for a period of
time.

Example Backup Strategy 1
Using this strategy it is possible to recover data as follows:

Any day within the last week
Any Monday within the last month
First Monday of each month within the last 6 months

It requires the use of 15 tapes: 4 DAILY, 5 WEEKLY and 6 MONTHLY.

Mark 4 tapes Tue to Fri. These are your DAILY tapes and are inserted on the corresponding
evening. It is recommended these are stored in a fireproof safe on-site, but away from the server.

Mark 5 tapes Week-1 to Week-5. These are your WEEKLY tapes and should be cycled each
Monday. WEEKLY tapes should be taken off-site the following day, and stored in a fireproof safe.

Mark 12 tapes Monthly-1 to Monthly-6. These are you MONTHLY tapes and should be cycled on
the first Monday of each month. These should be stored off site, but in a different location to the
WEEKLY tapes.

For simplicity, a full backup of your data is recorded onto each tape, so tapes do not need to be
restored in sequence.

We would recommend carrying out a tape clean each Monday before inserting that night’s tape.

In addition, before making significant changes to your data (e.g., before performing a major upgrade),
we would recommend using a separate tape to those listed above. The tape should be clearly marked
and stored safely away from the regular backup tapes, and the backup logs modified accordingly.



Example Backup Strategy 2
Using this strategy it is possible to recover data as follows:

Any day within the last two weeks
First Monday of each month within the last year

It requires the use of 25 tapes: 8 DAILY, 5 WEEKLY and 12 MONTHLY.

Mark 8 tapes Tue(1) to Fri(1) and Tue(2) to Fri(2). These are your DAILY tapes and are inserted
on the corresponding evening. On the first week use tapes (1) and on the second week use tapes
(2). It is recommended these are stored in a fireproof safe on-site, but away from the server.

Mark 5 tapes Week-1 to Week-5. These are your WEEKLY tapes and should be cycled each
Monday. WEEKLY tapes should be taken off-site the following day, and stored in a fireproof safe.

Mark 12 tapes Jan, Feb, Mar, etc.,. These are you MONTHLY tapes and should be used on the first
Monday of each month. These should be stored off site, but in a different location to the WEEKLY
tapes.

For simplicity, a full backup of your data is recorded onto each tape, so tapes do not need to be
restored in sequence.

We would recommend carrying out a tape clean each Monday before inserting that night’s tape.

In addition, before making significant changes to your data (e.g., before performing a major upgrade),
we would recommend using a separate tape to those listed above. The tape should be clearly marked
and stored safely away from the regular backup tapes, and the backup logs modified accordingly.

Sample Backup Documentation
If is important to keep backup logs. This will help choose the correct tape to restore from, will help
identify damaged tapes, and may be required by any governing body your organisation belongs to.
Below is a sample backup document.



Backup Documentation for Springfield Nuclear
Requirements
We will require data to be recovered from the following time periods:

Any day within the last week
First Monday of each month within the last 6 months

Strategy
Our network is used Monday to Friday; therefore 5 backups will be performed each week, on Monday
night to Friday night.

We will use 4 DAILY, 5 WEEKLY and 6 MONTHLY tapes marked as follows:

Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Weekly 1
Weekly 2
Weekly 3
Weekly 4
Weekly 5
Monthly 1
Monthly 2
Monthly 3
Monthly 4
Monthly 5
Monthly 6

On the first Monday of each month the next Monthly tape in sequence is to be inserted. On the
remaining Mondays the next Weekly tape in sequence is to be inserted.

The correct Daily tape is to be inserted on Tuesday to Friday.

A full backup will be made to each tape so tapes do not need to be stored in sequence.

Cleaning
We will insert a cleaning cartridge each Monday before inserting the correct backup tape. The cleaning
cartridge will be marked accordingly.

Tape Replacement
A tape will be replaced after 100 uses, if it fails to verify more than three times, or if it is thought to
have been damaged (e.g. dropped).
In this case the tape will be removed from the sequenced and archived for a period of 2 years. It will
be labelled accordingly. A new tape will be inserted into the sequence, and will be marked with the
date of first use.



Backup Log
Our backup log will show the tape inserted, successful verify, and drive cleaning. Any remarks, e.g.
tape replacements, will also be noted, along with the physical location of off-site tapes. Backup Logs
will be archived for a period of 24 months in accordance with IAEA requirements.

Backup Responsibilities
The primary person responsible for maintaining the log and changing the tape is Waylon Smithers.
The secondary person responsible is Homer Simpson.
The log will be checked and signed at the end of each month by Monty Burns.

Approval
The backup procedures have been reviewed and approved by Monty Burns on 25th December 2003.



January 2004 Backup Log – Springfield Nuclear
Date Tape Inserted Verify OK Drive Cleaned Remarks
Mon 5 Monthly 1 Yes Yes Taken to Smithers’
Tue 6 Tuesday Yes
Wed 7 Wednesday Yes
Thr 8 Thursday No
Fri 9 Friday Yes
Mon 12 Weekly 1 Yes Yes Taken to Homer’s
Tue 13 Tuesday Yes
Wed 14 Wednesday Yes
Thr 15 Thursday No Spoke to Support,
recommended to
replace this tape.
This tape marked
faulty and stored in
filing cabinet.
Fri 16 Friday Yes
Tue 20 Tuesday Yes
Wed 21 Tuesday Yes Homer Forgot to
change tape
Thr 22 Tuesday Yes Homer Forgot to
change tape
Fri 23 Friday Yes
Tue 27 Tuesday Yes
Wed 28 Wednesday Yes
Thr 29 Thursday Yes
Fri 30 Friday Yes

Checked and Signed: Monty Burns

February 2004 Backup Log – Springfield Nuclear
Date Tape Inserted Verify OK Drive Cleaned Remarks
Mon 2 Monthly 2 Yes Yes Taken to Smithers’
Tue 3 Tuesday Yes
Wed 4 Wednesday Yes


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