Initial Backup
The first backup will take the most time, since all files selected must be backed up. If the customer requires backup of a large capacity, an Initial Backup may be the fastest solution. This feature allows your customer to backup to a local buffer on the DS-Client computer, or to any other buffer location at LAN speed. Then, they will ship that media (e.g. disks) to the DS-System's physical location.
When you receive the Initial Backup media, you will import the data to the DS-System. Once it is imported to the DS-System, your customer can continue performing scheduled and on-demand backups (of incremental changes).
- Note: The Initial Backup service is not a software-only process. It must be coordinated with the DS-Client LAN Administrator.
1. Create the customer/DS-Client account on the DS-System.
2. Have the customer register their DS-Client with the DS-System.
3. Customer creates backup sets flagged for Initial Backup (that will write to a media buffer that can be physically shipped to the DS-System location.
- An Initial Backup buffer must contain backup sets from the same DS-Client.
- Customers can send as many Initial Backup buffers as required.
4. Using DS-Operator, browse through the System Tree and select the DS-Client whose data is in the Initial Backup buffer.
6. The Initial Backup Import screen appears.
- F1 Help: See "Initial Backup Import screen".
7. Enter or browse for the path where the DS-System can read the Initial Backup data.
- For Windows: The path must be in the form "<local_drive>:\initial_backup_dir" or "\\server\share\initial_backup_dir" (for example \\MEDIA\drv$d\buf)
- For UNIX: The path must be in the form "/initial_backup_directory".
- For N+1 DS-Systems: The initial backup is performed by the selected node. Make sure that the initial backup buffer is either directly attached to that node, or is specified as a UNC path (if attached to a different computer) and the selected node has rights to access it.
More information can be found in the Knowledge Base article: "Best Practices: Initial Backup".
8. Click OK. The Select Initial Backup Sets screen appears. All backup sets in the Initial Backup Buffer that can be imported to the DS-System are listed.
- F1 Help: See "Select Initial Backup Sets".
9. In the left-side list (Available Backup Sets), highlight all the backup sets you want to import and click the [>>>] button.
- If you need to input an encryption key, the Initial Backup Meta-data Encryption screen appears.
- Enter or import the encryption key and click OK.
10. Your selection appears in the right-side list (Selected Backup Sets for import).
11. Click OK to proceed with the import. The Initial Backup Import Options screen appears.
- F1 Help: See "Initial Backup Import Options".
- Move: If DS-System can find a storage location on the same volume as the specified path, you will be offered the Move option as an import method. The Move option is faster, but the data will be moved to the one storage location. Therefore the storage distribution will not be balanced after Import.
- Note: Move is only available for unencrypted buffer data. If any meta-data encryption was used, the Move option is disabled.
- If the logical size (available to DS-System in the storage location) is less than the data being moved, a warning appears. There is enough physical space because the move process is just renaming files in the storage location. However, DS-System will not put new files into that storage location if DS-System has no available logical space.
- Copy: The Copy option will automatically balance the import of data among all the storage locations for the customer's Storage Group. However, it will take longer than if using the 'Move' option.
13. Select the Import Options:
- Concurrent import activities: Each import activity represents a different backup set that is processed in parallel.
- Additional threads for each import activity: Number of additional processing threads to run for each import activity.
14. Click Start to begin transferring the initial backup from the Initial Backup buffer (media) to the DS-System. Once successfully completed, those backup sets can run on schedule or on-demand from DS-Client.
- After the import has completed, you should verify the Activity Log. The Event Log for the Import Activity will contain a comparison between the number of files saved by the DS-Client to the Initial Backup Buffer and the number of files the DS-System imported from the buffer. These numbers should match.
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