ProtecTIER Hot Topics
including the 3.1.4, 3.1.8, and 3.2 announcements
Nancy Roper
nroper@ca.ibm.com
IBM Americas Advanced Technical skills
October 2012
This presentation is stored on IBM Techdocs at the following url:
http://www.ibm.com/support/techdocs/atsmastr.nsf/WebIndex/PRSxxxx
With Thanks to:
Avri Faibish
Michael Hirsch
Dennis Huff
Kosta Mushkin
Vu Tran
Ron Herrmann
Melanie Poling Howie
Anthony Abete
Shay Akirav
David Bhaskaran
© 2012 IBM Corporation
© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
Agenda
 ProtecTIER Software Releases Explained
 Recent Enhancements
– 3.1.4: TSM Parser
– 3.1.8: Reports + Official IBM Development / Test / Support Channels
– 3.2: New Hardware (SM2/DD5) and CIFS FSI
 Assorted Topics
– Call Home
– Technical Advisor Program
– Long Term Stats Report Analysis Tool
– TS7610 Install Videos
– IBM i Data Collection Tool & Enhancements
– Initialize on Expire
 ProtecTIER Support Explained
 Call to Action
– 3.1.11, Call Home, My Notifications
2
© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
ProtecTIER Software
Releases Explained
3
© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
Software Release Naming Conventions
Note: There are a couple of
recent releases that did not
follow the regular release
naming conventions for
various reasons (eg 3.1.8)
Post GA Releases
Typically include
fixes only
GA Release
Typically include
new function
ProtecTIER
Manager
ProtecTIER
Customer
Specific Fixes
x.x.x.x
SupportLine will
provide a special
url to get
customer
specific code
ProtecTIER Fixes
x.x.x
ProtecTIER code
can be
downloaded from
the
Fix Central
website for most
releases
ProtecTIER Code
x.x
Redhat Linux
TS3000
(aka TSSC)
ProtecTIER
Server
Redhat can only be
delivered via CD
due to licensing
agreement. Your
IBM Rep or BP can
order it for you
The ProtecTIER “Release Notes” will tell you the required code levels for
ProtecTIER, ProtecTIER Manager and TS3000
4
© 2012
IBMIBM
Corporation
© 2012
Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
ProtecTIER Software Release Summary
5
GA Date
Release
Key Functions
August 29, 2008
V2.1
(Redhat 5.2)
 Clustered Gateway (DD1)
March 6, 2009
V2.2
 TS7650-AP1 Appliances
 TS7650 Gateway DD3
 TS3500 & LTO3 emulation
September 4, 2009
V2.3
 1-1 Native Replication
May 28, 2010
V2.4.0
(Redhat 5.4)
 Many-to-1 Native Replication (12-1)
 LUN Masking
August 6, 2010
V2.4.1
 TS7610 Appliance
December 3, 2010
V2.5
 OST
 Server Refresh DD4 (TS7650G and AP1)
 8 Gbit Fibre
 TS7610 Call Home
June 3, 2011
V3.1
 Many-to-Many Native Replication (4-way)
 Redhat Linux and Solaris Plug-ins for OST
 10 Gbit Ethernet for OST on TS7650 Gateway & AP1
 SNMP enhancements
 Performance and RAS Improvements
 Software Accessibility Compliance
 Cluster Kit Refresh
© 2012
IBMIBM
Corporation
© 2012
Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
ProtecTIER Software Release Summary
6
GA Date
Release
Key Functions
Oct 26, 2011
V3.1.4
 TSM Parser
Nov 23, 2011
V3.1.8
(Redhat 5.6)
 ProtecTIER moved to standard IBM code / test / support
channels
 Service Report Granularity Enhancements
June 8, 2012
V3.2
 CIFS File System Interface
 TS7620 (SM2) and TS7650 DD5 hardware
© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
ProtecTIER Software Version Compatibility Reference
For New Software Installations
Notes
1. Before enabling replication on DD1, an additional Ethernet card
must be installed on the server. It is recommended to enable
replication before upgrading to 3.1
2. Must provide qualified Emulex HBA card as per Support Matrix
Reminder: “Full” patch required for all new installations
Config/ Version
2.2
2.3
2.4
2.5
3.1
Diligent Generic
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes 2
Yes (only with new cluster kit) 2
TS7650G DD1 VTL
Yes
No
No
No
No
TS7650G DD3 VTL 1
No
Yes
Yes
No
No
TS7650G DD4 VTL
No
No
No
Yes
Yes (only with new cluster kit)
TS7650G DD4 OST
No
No
No
Yes
Yes (only with new cluster kit)
TS7650-AP1 DD3
No
Yes
Yes
No
No
TS7650-AP1 DD4
No
No
No
Yes
Yes (only with new cluster kit)
TS7610 VTL
No
No
Yes (called v2.1)
Yes
Yes
TS7610 OST
No
No
Yes (called v2.1)
Yes
Yes
How to read this chart: Suppose you are re-deploying a
ProtecTIER TS7610 VTL to your remote site and want to
reload it with V3.1. This chart indicates that is possible.
7
Suppose you are re-deploying a ProtecTIER DD3
Gateway VTL and want to reload it with V2.5. This chart
indicates that is not possible. You’ll need to load V2.4,
then do an upgrade to V2.5 (see next chart)
© 2012
IBMIBM
Corporation
© 2012
Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
ProtecTIER Software Version Compatibility Reference
For Software Upgrades
Notes
1. Requires upgrade to Red Hat 5.4
2. Before enabling replication on DD1, an additional Ethernet card must be installed on the server.
It is recommended to enable replication before upgrading to 3.1
3. RAS must be configured on v2.4 before upgrading to v2.5 or v3
4. Must provide qualified Emulex HBA cards as per Support Matrix
5. DD1 with only 4 Ethernet ports will fail to upgrade using v3.1.0.X , use v3.1.1.X or above instead
Config/ Version
8
2.4 1
2.3
2.5
3.1
Diligent Generic
Yes
Yes (must upgrade
from 2.3)
Yes (must upgrade
from 2.4) 4
Yes (must upgrade from
2.4 or 2.5) 4
TS7650G DD1 VTL 2
Yes (must upgrade
from 2.2)
Yes (must upgrade
from 2.3)
Yes (must upgrade
from 2.4)
Yes (must upgrade from
TS7650G DD3 VTL 3
Yes
Yes (must upgrade
from 2.3)
Yes (must upgrade
from 2.4)
Yes (must upgrade from
2.4 or 2.5)
TS7650G DD4 VTL
No
No
Yes
Yes
TS7650G DD4 OST
No
No
Yes
Yes
TS7650 AP1 DD3
Yes
Yes (must upgrade
from 2.3)
Yes (must upgrade
from 2.4)
Yes (must upgrade from
2.4 or 2.5)
TS7650 AP1 DD4
No
No
Yes
Yes
TS7610 VTL
No
Yes (called v2.1)
Yes
Yes (must upgrade from
v2.5)
TS7610 OST
No
Yes (called v2.1)
Yes
Yes (must upgrade from
v2.5)
2.4 or 2.5) 5
© 2012
IBMIBM
Corporation
© 2012
Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
3.1.4 Enhancements
TSM Parser
9
© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
What is a ProtecTIER Parser – The Challenge
• ProtecTIER shines when it finds large “matches” that can be de-dup’d
• Some backup applications insert metadata into the backup stream which
fragments the “matches” and hurts ProtecTIER performance and
deduplication ratios
• Parsers move the metadata to a side file so ProtecTIER can shine again
Backup app metadata
Segment of file 1
Segment of file 2
Day #1 Data to be saved
A
B
C
A
B
C
Day #1 - Data sent to ProtecTIER (with metadata inserted)
A
10
B
C
A
B
C
© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
What is a ProtecTIER Parser – the Challenge (ctd)
On Day #2, there is a small change in the data
On Day #2, the matches that ProtecTIER finds are small and fragmented
Backup app metadata
Mismatches
Segment of file 1
Segment of file 2
Matches
Day #1 Data to be Saved
A
B
C
A
B
C
Day #2 Data to be Saved (with a slight change in the data)
A
A'
B
C
A
B
C
Day #1 Data sent to ProtecTIER (with MetaData Inserted)
A
B
C
A
B
C
Day #2 Data sent to ProtecTIER
A
11
A'
B1
B2
C1
C2
A1
A2
B1
B2
C1
C2
© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
ProtecTIER Parsers – What do they do?
 ProtecTIER Parsers solve this problem by moving the metadata
blocks to a side file (without deduping them), and leaving
ProtecTIER with the customer data that should dedup well
Backup app metadata
Segment of file 1
Segment of file 2
Day #1data
Data to be saved:
Original
A
B
C
A
B
C
Day #1tape
Data
sent toapp
ProtecTIER
Original
image
Backup
metadata (with MetaData inserted):
Segment
of file 1
A
Segment
C of file 2
B
A
B
C
B
C
Original
Day #1data
Data After Parsing
A
B
C
A
B
C
Original tape image
A
12
B
C
A
© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
ProtecTIER Parsers – Current Line-up
Commvault Parser
Available since IBM acquired
ProtecTIER
Legato Parser
TSM Parser
ProtecTIER 2.3.4 / 2.4.1.0
Original Parser for Legato 7.4 / 7.5 / 7.6
(May / June 2010)
ProtecTIER 3.1.4 onwards
(October 2011)
ProtecTIER 2.4.7 / 2.5.5
Adjusted Parser for Legato 7.6.1.6
(August 2011)
ProtecTIER 3.1.9
Enhancement for Legato Parser
(January 2012)
13
Note: At present, these are the only
backup applications that add metadata
and hence the only ones that need parsers
© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
ProtecTIER Parser for TSM
The TSM parser will run on all TSM
saves from 3.1.4 onwards. It does not
have an on/off switch.
– TSM users are encouraged to do
some planning prior to upgrade
Note: ProtecTIER 3.1.10 has a parser
enhancement for small file backups.
Plan to go to this release or newer
TSM Parser
performance
overhead is
3% or less
De-dup ratio will decline initially since none of the data will
match initially
– If your repository is more than 50% full or is growing
quickly, then work with your IBM ProtecTIER contacts to
assess whether there will be enough space during the
ramp-up period
– De-dup ratio will begin to increase as the older data that
is poorly deduped expires off
14
© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
ProtecTIER Parser for TSM – Who will Benefit?
What causes low De-dup Ratios?
• Data with a high change rate
• Fragmented data (aka “Old Data not Factored”)
Some Terminology
“Change Rate”
The usual change rate in the customer
data
System Change Rate
=
Change Rate
“Old Data not Factored”
Fragmented data
• 1-3% of the data on a healthy system
• 10-15% of the data on a fragmented
system
15
+
Old Data Not
Factored
© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
ProtecTIER Parser for TSM – Estimating the benefit
How do you estimate the benefit from the TSM Parser?
The impact to the overall factoring ratio should be
proportionate to:
System Change Rate
-----------------------------Change Rate
Example:
A system with 20% change rate and 25% system change
rate will likely witness a 25% improvement in factoring
(eg only 5% of the data was fragmented)
16
( 20% + 5%)
------------------- = 1.25
20%
© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
ProtecTIER Parser for TSM – Estimating the benefit
Where do you get these figures from?
• Ask Support to send you the ProcessCSV tool
• it’s a Linux executable that will arrive via email or via your PMR
• Move it to a ProtecTIER directory
• via a memory stick or via your network
• Generate the ProtecTIER Service Report for each node (formerly known as the Problem Report)
• See instructions in User Guide
• Place it in the same directory as the Process CSV tool
• Run the ProcessCSV command for each node
• ./processCSV <trace name> compressor.log.1.csv > output.csv
• Replace <trace name> with a name for this trace – it will show inside the CSV
• Replace output.csv with your choice of filename for the CSV file
• Replace “1” with “2” to run the report for node 2 in a clustered ProtecTIER
• Open the CSV and read off the required figures
• They will be on the tab marked ProcessCSV_Node1 or ProcessCSV_Node2
• Choose full day samples of data that include a typical mix of backups vs short windows
17
© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
ProtecTIER Parser for TSM – ProcessCSV Output
People typically use the values in the
“all” line or one of the “daily” lines
18
The system in this example
has very little fragmentation
© 2012
IBMIBM
Corporation
© 2012
Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
3.1.8 Enhancements
IBM Development / Test Process
Service Report Granularity
19
© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
3.1.8 Enhancements
ProtecTIER is now
part of the regular
IBM Development,
Test, Support
Methodology
Email
Notification
of System
Errors and
Warnings
20
Much
Friendlier
Install /
Upgrade
Process –
Menu Driven
OST
Performance
Improvements
© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
3.1.8 Enhancements (ctd)
Delete Multiple
Cartridges at once
from the GUI or CL
even while the
ProtecTIER is
running
Six Variations on the Service
Report are now available to
reduce the amount of data that
needs to be collected for certain
scenarios (see next page for
Details)
21
© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
ProtecTIER Service Report – Subsetted Data
In the past, only the full report was available. The time estimates shown are
from a very large system but they will give an indication of the relative timings
22
Profile Name
Time to
Collect
Report
Size
Time to Upload
@ 500 KB/s
1) Default - Collects all system information reports and all log files
from the either the last 4 days, or a maximum of 10 file entries,
whichever comes first
1hr 40min
477MB
16 min
2) Performance - Used to troubleshoot performance-related
issues
1hr 25min
452MB
15 min
3) Deduplication - Used to troubleshoot deduplication-related
issues
1hr 25min
334MB
11 min
4) Basic - Used when customer has an issue that requires a quick
problem determination
1hr 10min
130MB
5 min
5) Monitoring - Used in cases where Support provides frequent
summaries on the system's health and behavior
1hr 30min
169MB
6 min
6) Full - Collects all system information reports and all log files in
their entirety
3hr
875MB
30 min
7) SystemView - Collect system information required to generate
the system view html output
50 min
218KB
1 min
8) Hardware - Collects system X server hardware report (please
shutdown all ProtecTIER services before collecting this profile)
7 min
533KB
1 min
© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
Generating a Service Report
From the ProtecTIER GUI
From the ProtecTIER Service Menu
The GUI is tied
up while the
report is being
created so many
folks prefer to
request it via the
Service Menu
23
© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
Upgrading to 3.1.8
and Beyond
24
© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
V3.1.8 High Level Upgrade Process
 The following steps outline the high level upgrade sequence– a
customer procedure
 For detailed step-by-step instructions, refer to the appropriate Software
Upgrade Guide (eg 3.1.8)
1. Verify TSSC is at V5.11.5 or higher (upgrade if necessary)
2. Upgrade Red Hat to V5.6
<< You must have the physical licensed CD for this
3. Upgrade ProtecTIER SW to V3.1.8
4. Upgrade ProtecTIER Manager on the TSSC and customer
workstation
Notes:
25
Timing Estimates:
– The procedure can be performed from
any 2.4, 2.5, or 3.1 version
• 2 hours per node if Red Hat is
being upgraded
– Concurrent upgrade is not supported in a
cluster
• 20 minutes per node if Red Hat
has already been upgraded
© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
3.2 Enhancements
TS7620 and TS7650 DD5
CIFS
26
© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
IBM TS7600 ProtecTIER® Deduplication Family
Highest Performance
Largest Capacity
High Availability
High Performance
High Capacity
Flexible Storage
Good Performance
Entry Capacity
Very Low cost
Active-Active Cluster
Up to 2500 MB/sec save
Up to 3200 MB/sec restore
Single Node
Single Node
Up to 150 MB/sec
5.9 TB (5.5 TiB)
useable
27
Single Node
Up to 1600 MB/sec save
Up to 2000 MB/sec restore
Up to 150 MB/sec
1 PB useable
11.8 TB (11 TiB)
useable
1 PB useable
Nominal Space Available = “useable”
space * HyperFactor Ratio
1 TB = decimal TB = 1,000,000,000,000 bytes or 1,000 GB (i.e. 10^12 bytes)
1 TiB = binary TB = 1,099,511,627,776 bytes or 1,024 GiB (i.e. 2^40 bytes)
© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
ProtecTIER Hardware Upgrades – TS7620 and TS7650 DD5
TS7620 Appliance
TS7610 20 Appliance
Refresh: 3959-SM1  3959-SM2
Disk: Replaces 12x 1TB SATA drives
with 12x 2TB NL-SAS
Processor: Replaces the L5410 Intel
Xeon 4-core 2.33 GHz processor with
an Intel Xeon E5645 Westmere 6core 2.4 GHz processor
TS7650 Gateway DD5
3958-DD4  3958-DD5
Processor: 4 x 10-core 2.26
GHz (Intel Xeon E7-4860) /
1066 MHz memory access
130 W
New motherboard
Memory: Replaces 24GB RAM with
48GB RAM
New motherboard
29
© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
Protocols Available
Backup servers
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
TSM
NetBackup
IBM i (BRMS)
CommVault
Legato
etc
etc
VTL / fibre
Node A
Node B
Backup servers
• NetBackup
Backup servers
•
•
•
•
•
TSM (Windows)
NetBackup (Windows)
Backup Exec (Windows)
CommVault (Windows)
Networker (Windows)
• 2 VMware Backup Apps
(coming soon)
OST / IP
Node A
Node B
SMB-CIFS / IP
Node A
Single node only initially
For the detailed list of supported backup applications, platforms and releases, please see the following url:
http://public.dhe.ibm.com/common/ssi/ecm/en/ivl12348usen/IVL12348USEN.PDF
30
© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
Performance by Protocol – TS7650-DD5
Backup servers
Backup servers
Backup servers
VTL / fibre
OST / IP
SMB-CIFS / IP
Node A
Node A
Node A
Single node only initially
DD5
(MB/sec)
Single
Node
Dual
Node
DD5
(MB/sec)
Single
Node
Dual
Node
DD5
(MB/sec)
Single
Node
Dual
Node
Save
1600
2500
Save
1300
2200
Save
875
---
Restore
2000
2800
Restore
1300
2200
Restore
875
---
Single
Stream
150
140
Single
Stream
130
110
Single
Stream
60
---
Replication
1600
1700
Replication
1600
1700
Replication
1600
---
Performance Figures shown are a combination of product specs and measured values.
The figures may be adjusted as we gather additional performance data from our early adopters
31
© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
Performance by Protocol – TS7650-DD5
Backup servers
Backup servers
Backup servers
VTL / fibre
OST / IP
SMB-CIFS / IP
Node B
Node A
Node A
Node B
Node A
Single node only initially
DD5
(MB/sec)
Single
Node
Dual
Node
DD5
(MB/sec)
Single
Node
Dual
Node
DD5
(MB/sec)
Single
Node
Dual
Node
Save
1600
2500
Save
1300
2200
Save
875
---
Restore
2000
3200
Restore
1300
2200
Restore
875
---
Single
Stream
150
150
Single
Stream
130
130
Single
Stream
60
---
Replication
1600
2500
Replication
1600
2500
Replication
1600
---
Performance Figures shown are a combination of product specs and measured values.
The figures may be adjusted as we gather additional performance data from our early adopters
32
© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
Performance by Protocol – TS7620
Backup servers
Backup servers
Backup servers
VTL / fibre
OST / IP
SMB-CIFS / IP
Node A
Node A
Single node only
Node A
Single node only
Single node only
TS7620
(MB/sec)
Single
Node
Dual
Node
TS7620
(MB/sec)
Single
Node
Dual
Node
TS7620
(MB/sec)
Single
Node
Dual
Node
Save
145
---
Save
130
---
Save
145
---
Restore
190
---
Restore
170
---
Restore
190
---
Single
Stream
80
---
Single
Stream
tbd
---
Single
Stream
tbd
---
Replication
120
---
Replication
120
---
Replication
120
---
Performance Figures shown are a combination of product specs and measured values.
The figures may be adjusted as we gather additional performance data from our early adopters
33
© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
ProtecTIER Gateway Historical Performance
The TS7650 DD5 Servers announced on June 4, 2012 with ProtecTIER V3.2, provide a
significant performance improvement for both single stream and overall throughput:
Single Node ProtecTIER
34
Dual Node ProtecTIER
Full System
Performance
Backup
Restore
Backup
Restore
DD3, V2,4, VTL
500 MB/s
650 MB/s
1000 MB/s
1200 MB/s
DD4, V2.5, VTL
900 MB/s
1200 MB/s
1500 MB/s1
1600+ MB/s
DD4, V3.1, VTL
1400 MB/s
1610 MB/s
2000 MB/s
2300 MB/s
DD5, V3.2, VTL
1600 MB/s
2000 MB/s
2500 MB/s
3200 MB/s
Single Stream
Performance
Single stream
backup
Single stream
restore
DD3, V2,4, VTL
60 MB/s
90 MB/s
DD4, V2.5, VTL
90 MB/s
110 MB/s
DD4, V3.1 VTL
103 MB/s
126 MB/s
DD5, V3.2, VTL
150 MB/s
150 MB/s
Open Systems Performance on
Latest ProtecTIER Gateway
Hardware and Software with
optimum disk
© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
ProtecTIER CIFS Supported Backup Applications
ProtecTIER CIFS Supported Backup Apps
CIFS = Common
Internet File
System
SMB = Server
Message Block
• Symantec Backup Exec - 2010.0 - Windows 2K8
•
•
•
•
•
•
Symantec NetBackup - 6.5 - Windows 2K3 R2 32 bit
Symantec NetBackup - 7.1 - Windows 2K8 R2
TSM - 5.5 - Windows 2K3 32 bit
TSM - 6.3 - Windows 2K8 R2
CommVault - 9.0 - Windows 2K8
EMC Networker - 7.6 - Windows 2K8 R2
Short Term Wishlist:
They are
synonyms
35
• Quest vRanger
• Veeam / vPower
© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
ProtecTIER CIFS Support
Backup
Clients
Backup
Server #1
Local ProtecTIER
File System #1
Share #2: c:/def
Max Streams per
Repository:
Backup
Server #2
TS7620: 64
File System #2
Share #3: c:/ghi
TS7650-AP1: 128
File System #3
TS7650: 256
36
ProtecTIER File Systems
...
Active
Directory
SAMBA SMB / CIFS
Share #3: c:/ghi
File System #128
Share #3: c:/ghi
Max Per File
System:
256 TB
Nominal Data
1 Million files
Max Per Repository:
• 128 File Systems on TS7650, 4 on TS7620
• 16 Million Files on TS7650, 4 Million on TS7620
Share #1: c:/abc
Workgroup
Directory
© 2012
IBMIBM
Corporation
© 2012
Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
ProtecTIER CIFS Support
Backup
Clients
Backup
Server #1
Local ProtecTIER
File System #1
Share #1: c:/abc
Share #2: c:/def
File System #2
Backup
Server #2
Share #3: c:/ghi
File System #3
37
ProtecTIER File Systems
...
Active
Directory
SAMBA SMB / CIFS
Share #3: c:/ghi
File System #128
Share #3: c:/ghi
Workgroup
Directory
© 2012
IBMIBM
Corporation
© 2012
Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
ProtecTIER CIFS Support
Local ProtecTIER
File System #1
Share #1: c:/abc
Remote ProtecTIER
Remote Destination
Directory (RDD)
Cloned RDD for DR
Testing
(Read Only)
(Read / Write)
Share #2: c:/def
Remote Destination
Directory (RDD)
File System #2
(Read Only)
Share #3: c:/ghi
File System #3
38
ProtecTIER File Systems
...
SAMBA SMB / CIFS
Share #3: c:/ghi
File System #1
File System #128
Share #3: c:/ghi
Workgroup
Directory
Remote Destination
Directory (RDD)
Cloned RDD for DR
Testing
(Read Only)
(Read / Write)
Another ProtecTIER
© 2012
IBMIBM
Corporation
© 2012
Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
CIFS Disaster Recovery
 For DR testing, read-only RDDs can be cloned via the ProtecTIER
GUI to create a writable instance of the filesystems
– Production Replication to the RDD can continue during the DR
test
 During a “real” disaster, the secondary ProtecTIER would take
ownership (read / write) of the RDD during the failover, then hand
ownership back during failback
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© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
ProtecTIER CIFS Replication
 Most customers will likely do 1:1 replication
 However, the following is possible
– Up to 8 CIFs ProtecTIERs can be in the topology (no mixing VTL / OST / CIFs)
– Each policy can replicate to up to 3 other sites … in the diagram,
repository 6 has 2 policies and replicates to 6 sites (3 per policy)
– Cascading is not allowed … in the diagram,
ProtecTIER 2 is receiving replicated
data from ProtecTIER 1 but
replicating DIFFERENT data
(belonging to ProtecTIER 2)
to ProtecTIER 5
1
2
5
7
6
8
3
4
Each color represents a replication policy.
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© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
ProtecTIER CIFS Setup Outline
1. Install ProtecTIER V3.2 and build repository as with any new system
2. Configure network addresses & static routes (similar to OST setup)
3. Set up Authentication mode, and create users (for workgroup mode)
4. Create a CIFS Filesystem with the ProtecTIER GUI
5. Create a share for the filesystem with the ProtecTIER GUI
1. Share can be zoned to “all” Backup hosts or specific IP’s
2. Select the users permitted to access and with what permissions
(read/write)
6. ProtecTIER configuration is complete. Now use the Backup Application
to map the shares and start running saves
All steps are done via the ProtecTIER Manager GUI other than static
routes configuration
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© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
Assorted Topics
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© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
ProtecTIER Call Home
To Confirm that you have Call Home
running, contact your Hardware
Support Group
IBM Support
IBM Total Storage
Systems Console
(aka TS3000)
Error
TSSC
Customer
43
© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
The Technical Advisor Program
Note: this is different from the
“Technical Advocate” program
New ProtecTIER customers will be assigned a Technical Advisor
who will work with them throughout the initial warranty period
• Welcome / Intro Call
• Assist with installation planning / coordination
• Consult on Software Updates
• Monitor PMRs to ensure proper attention and
escalation if necessary
• Advise on product news of interest
to the customer
Service can be continued for a fee once the
initial warranty period ends
Hardware and Software Maintenance are a
pre-requisite
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© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
ProtecTIER Long Term Statistics Report Analysis Tool
•Ask your IBM ProtecTIER contact to get you a copy of the tool. It’s an
XLS file. (He may call it the “Norm St Pierre Tool”)
•Generate the Long Term Statistics Report or the Backup Statistics
Report on your ProtecTIER and save on your hard drive
•Open the Analysis Tool in Excel.
•Follow the directions on the next few pages to pull your report into the
tool and look at the graphs.
45
© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
ProtecTIER Long Term Statistics Report Analysis Tool
New Version of the Tool Recently Available
 Supports two input types
– _all_statistics.csv and
– _backup_stats_report_statistics.csv
 Merges files from 2 nodes of a cluster
 Selecting ‘Summarize Daily’ has no impact on run time
 Allows charts to be created without forcing an Import
 Provides validation checking on Date Range selection
 Allows all data to be imported even if requested data range is a subset
 Data for Summarize Daily is always collected
 Some charts are broken into two charts if Merge Cluster is selected
 Provides ShortcutKeys for frequently used actions
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© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
ProtecTIER Long Term Statistics Report Analysis Tool
Create Long Term Statistics Report
Cartridge Query Tool
Create Service Report
Create Interim System Statistics Report
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© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
ProtecTIER Long Term Statistics Report Analysis Tool
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© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
TS7610 Installation Videos
Come Find us on IBM Storage's YouTube Channel
http://www.youtube.com/ibmstorage
TS7610 Hardware Installation:
How to install IBM System Storage TS7610 ProtecTIER Appliance hardware
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QBGA8UPvxAU&context=C3d13192ADOEgsToPDskIVGbqakvVWyz_H6Ah6hWfb
TS7610 Software Installation:
How to install and configure IBM System Storage TS7610 ProtecTIER Appliance software
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zRbsf38FoV0&context=C38d5552ADOEgsToPDskJnwscv2s5PF74UMxGLwjcM
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© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
Brand New! Tape / ProtecTIER Sizing Report from BRMS
• Excellent for:
• Monitoring / Analyzing ongoing Backup Performance
• Sizing New Tape / ProtecTIER Environments
• Available via the June 2012 BRMS quarterly PTF
June 2012 BRMS PTF
V5R4
SI46335 (Partial Support – see note)
V6R1
SI46339
IBM i 7.1 SI46340
Note: Reports for a V5R4 system must be created
on a V6R1 or IBM i 7.1 system that is in the same
BRMS network. Use the “From System” parameter
• Once the PTF is loaded, BRMS will start
tracking saves: try to apply the PTF several
weeks before you need your first reports
• Backups that run via Control Group
(STRBKUBRM) will have full information
• Backups that run via SAVxxxBRM will be
bundled in the line labelled *NONE. Adjust
the report times to try to isolate each save
• Command details are on the next page
• Use alongside the IBM i ProtecTIER Data
Gathering Spreadsheet available at:
http://www.ibm.com/support/techdocs/atsmastr.nsf/WebIndex/PRS4740
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© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
ProtecTIER / Tape Sizing Report from BRMS – The Command
The first time you run
the report, change the
first parameter to
*CTLGRPSTAT and
take the defaults for
everything else
If there is a *NONE line
at the end of the report,
experiment with the
start/end times to isolate
the individual non-control
group tape activity
If you just want to see
one save, type the
control group name here
If you have a V5R4
system, run the
command from another
system in the BRMS
Network using the “From
System” parameter
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© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
Tape / ProtecTIER Sizing Report from BRMS – Using It
System
Name
Failed
Saves
For a
sizing,
figure out
the typical
start time,
duration,
save size
and speed
of each
save type
52
There have been 3 different tape operations that are not control group saves. Eg SAVxxxBRM, SAVxxx to
a BRMS-enrolled tape, dups of saves that were not done via a control group. Their stats are all bundled in
the first *NONE line for each date, and their volsers are on subsequent lines. Use your knowledge of the
system to re-run the report with various start/end times to try to isolate the data for each operation.
© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
Initialize on Expire Commands
TSM
Define/Update Libr RELABELSCRATCH=yes
BRMS 7.1 or Earlier
• Get the PTF Shown
• Set the appropriate parameters as
described in the PTF coverletter
• Run STRMNTBRM
• Virtual Volumes need to be
mounted in the virtual drives.
53
BRMS Future Releases
• This will become a parameter
on the media class
June 4, 2012 BRMS PTF
V5R4M0 SI46335
V6R1M0 SI46339
IBM i 7.1 SI46340
© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
IBM i / ProtecTIER Enhancement PTFs
 DUPMEDBRM Compaction PTF (June 2010)
 Remote Dups – moving tapes marked for dup (2011)
 BRMS Parallel Save Performance (July 2011)
 ProtecTIER Initialize on Expiry (June 2012)
 PRTRPTBRM Report (June 2012)
(see previous page)
(see previous section of this pitch)
 15,000 Slot Library PTF (July 2012)
See Appendix for Details and PTF #’s
54
© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
Helpful Websites for IBM i and ProtecTIER:
List of ProtecTIER and Tape Resources for IBM i
Customers:
Partners:
IBMers:
http://www.ibm.com/support/techdocs/atsmastr.nsf/WebIndex/PRS4956
http://www-03.ibm.com/partnerworld/partnerinfo/src/atsmastr.nsf/WebIndex/PRS5021
http://w3.ibm.com/support/techdocs/atsmastr.nsf/WebIndex/PRS5021
IBM i Tape & ProtecTIER Wiki
BRMS Wiki
www.ibm.com/developerworks/ibmi/media
www.ibm.com/developerworks/ibmi/brms
55
© 2012 ©
IBM
Corporation
2012
IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
Helpful Websites for IBM i and ProtecTIER:
List of ProtecTIER and Tape Resources for IBM i
Customers:
Partners:
IBMers:
http://www.ibm.com/support/techdocs/atsmastr.nsf/WebIndex/PRS4956
http://www-03.ibm.com/partnerworld/partnerinfo/src/atsmastr.nsf/WebIndex/PRS5021
http://w3.ibm.com/support/techdocs/atsmastr.nsf/WebIndex/PRS5021
IBM i Tape & ProtecTIER Wiki
BRMS Wiki
www.ibm.com/developerworks/ibmi/media
www.ibm.com/developerworks/ibmi/brms
• ProtecTIER Releases tested on IBM i
• BRMS Release Enhancements
• Native and VIOS/NPIV Tape
Attachment Support information
• BRMS “Enhancement PTFs”
• Save / Restore / Tape related PTF
Information (eg Large Library PTF)
• Group PTF Information
• etc
• New BRMS “Enterprise” Function
• BRMS Course Dates
• BRMS Group PTF #’s / dates
• Save / Restore Group PTF #’s / Dates
• Troubleshooting Docs –
DMPBRM , QTADMPDV
• etc
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© 2012 IBM Corporation
© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
ProtecTIER Support
Explained
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© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
How do I get support?
Telephone IBM Support
1-800-ibm-serv
Ask for software support if you’re unsure whether
the problem is hardware or software
Use the IBM Support Portal
www.ibm.com/support
• My Notifications for product notices
• Flashes/Alerts for important Information
• Fix Central for code downloads, release notes
• Software PMR Review/Update
• Publications and Redbooks
One Stop Shopping for all your Support Needs!
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© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
IBM Support Portal
Setup
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© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
Customizing your IBM Support Portal
Go to
www.ibm.com/support
Wait for the white box
to pop up
In the left column, click
a radio button to say
how you want to select
your products of
interest
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© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
Customizing your IBM Support Portal
Choose the products
from the left side that
interest you (ProtecTIER
of course!)
On the right side, choose
the tab that you would
like the Support Portal to
open at
Click Continue
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© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
Creating a Userid for your IBM Support Portal
(Aside)
At some point while you
are poking around on the
IBM Support Portal, you
will hit a function that you
need to sign on for
If you don’t already have
an IBM Support userid,
then you can create one
by clicking “Register
Here”
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© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
Creating a userid for your IBM Support Portal
Create your IBM Support
userid if you don’t have
one already
Note for IBMers: this
userid is different from
your IBM Intranet ID, but
the passwords from the 2
IDs can be synchronized
(End of the Aside)
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© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
IBM Support Portal
My Notifications
64
© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
IBM Support Portal – My Notifications
Review your main
Support Portal Page
While you’re here, set up
your “My Notifications”
and other electronic
support services
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© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
IBM Support Portal – My Notifications
You will arrive
automatically on the
2nd tab of the
Electronic Support
Menu
Scroll down, or click
on the links for each
of the 4 options
Sign up for this
This doesn’t include ProtecTIER
This shows you the withdrawn releases
This takes you back to the main tabs to sign up
You’ll see a
description of the
function, plus a link
to sign up for it
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© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
IBM Support Portal – My Notifications - Sample
This is an example of the
email option for “My
Notifications”
In this particular case, we
are announcing the
availability of 3.1.10 for
download and install.
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© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
IBM Support Portal
Support Lifecycle
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© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
IBM Support Portal – Support Lifecycle Example
Check this section to
see the GA dates and
end of support dates
for the ProtecTIER
Software
69
© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
IBM Support Portal
Flashes and Alerts
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© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
IBM Support Portal – Flashes and Alerts
Return to the IBM Support
Portal Home Page
Look at the “Flashes and
Alerts” Section
The products on your
interest list are shown
there. Expand each to
see the related Flashes
and Alerts
This same option is on the
first 4 tabs of the Support
Portal
71
IBMers, Business Partners, and Customers
will see different views of the Flashes / Alerts
© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
IBM Support Portal – Flashes and Alerts
Here is a sample
Flash (Alert)
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© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
IBM Support Portal
Fix Central and Release Notes
73
© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
IBM Support Portal – Fix Central – What is it?
What Information Can you find on Fix Central?
 What’s fixed in a release? Where’s the list of fixes by release?
 What are the prerequisites for a Release? What are the prereqs for V3.1.8?
– What release of RedHat is needed for a release of ProtecTIER?
 Are there any new features in the release that I’m interested in?
 Any additional documentation available?
 Are there any restrictions and known issues for the release that I want to install?
 Any compatibility issues?
 Where do I find the code that I need?
Where do I find Fix Central?
Via the IBM Support Portal
or
www.ibm.com/support/fixcentral/
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© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
IBM Support Portal – Fix Central
Now go to the
Downloads Tab
Your products of interest
are shown in the
“Downloads and Fixes”
Section
Expand each product
Click on the product that
you’d like to look at on
Fix Central
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© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
IBM Support Portal – Fix Central
If desired, narrow the
search to selected
releases in the left
sidebar
In the right panel, you will
see the various code
packages that are
available and the link to
the release notes for
each
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© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
IBM Support Portal – Fix Central
Choose your
download
options
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© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
IBM Support Portal - Fix Central
Release Notes
ProtecTIER Code:
•Plug-in for OST
•PT Manager GUI code
•PT Manager Server Code
Release Notes
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© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
IBM Support Portal – Sample Release Notes
Read through
the release
notes and other
documentation
several days
before your
upgrade
Call support
with any
questions
Notice that 3.1.8 had a Red Hat Upgrade (code level 5U6). Red Hat upgrades must be
delivered on CD due to the Red Hat licensing agreement. Order them via your IBM rep or
Business Partner. 3.1.9 can’t be installed until the Red Hat upgrade is performed
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© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
IBM Support Portal
Online Service Requests
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© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
IBM Support Portal - Online Service Requests
You can review and
update Software
PMRs online.
Hardware PMRs are
not available via this
service
You need to selfregister for this
service by giving
either:
• Your Customer #
• Your machine type
and Serial #
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© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
IBM Support Portal
Publications and Redbooks
82
© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
IBM Support Portal – Publications and Redbooks
ProtecTIER
publications and
Redbooks are easily
accessible via the IBM
Support Portal
83
© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
Call to Action
 Upgrade to 3.1.12 or 3.2 or the latest release
 Ensure Call Home is Running
 Ensure you are signed up for My Notifications / Flashes
 Consider getting a Technical Advisor
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© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
Recap
 ProtecTIER Software Releases Explained
 Recent Enhancements
– 3.1.4: TSM Parser
– 3.1.8: Reports + Official IBM Development / Test / Support Channels
– 3.2: New Hardware (SM2/DD5) and CIFS FSI
 Assorted Topics
– Call Home
– Technical Advisor Program
– Long Term Stats Report Analysis Tool
– TS7610 Install Videos
– IBM i Data Collection Tool & Enhancements
– Initialize on Expire
 ProtecTIER Support Explained
 Call to Action
– 3.2, Call Home, My Notifications
85
© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
Session Evaluations
 ibmtechu.com/vp
Prizes will be
drawn from
Evals
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© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
Hindi
Hebrew
Simplified
Chinese
Russian
Gracias
Thank You Obrigado
Spanish
English
Brazilian Portuguese
Arabic
Dan ke
Grazie
German
Italian
Korean
M erci
French
Japanese
Tamil
Traditional Chinese
87
Thai
© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
Appendix
Other IBM i specific Information for ProtecTIER
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© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
BRMS DUPMEDBRM Compaction PTF
TS7650
Virtual Tape Saves
are not compacted
so take 3x as much
virtual media (gained
back with dedup)
With the PTF,
DUPMEDBRM can
request compaction
so uses less media
TS3500
With PTF
89
 Part of June 2010 BRMS PTF
 V5R4: SI38733
 IBM i 6.1: SI38739
 IBM i 7.1: SI38740
IBM i
Before the PTF,
dups used the
same compaction
parameter as the
source volume, so
more physical
media was needed
 Exposes the COMPACT parameter so
you can compact the physical volumes
when you dup from ProtecTIER
Before PTF
This PTF has been
around since June
2010 – most shops
likely have it already,
but may need to turn
it on
 Behavior:
 V5R4: control via Data Area
 Q1ADUPCOMP in QTEMP can be
set to *FROMFILE, *YES, *NO
 IBM i 6.1 / 7.1
 COMPACT(*YES) is available
 help text via web
 For new IBM i 6.1 auto-dup
feature, need to change command
default on DUPMEDBRM to *DEV
 Future releases:
 COMPACT(*YES) will be available
with regular help text
© 2012
IBMIBM
Corporation
© 2012
Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
BRMS DUPMEDBRM Compaction PTF - Ctd
When you run a save to ProtecTIER, if you leave the compaction parameter at *DEV, then
IBM i knows you're sending the save to a virtual library and knows NOT to do compaction,
since we want ProtecTIER to find the dups first and THEN run the LZ1 algorithm to do the
compaction. When you do DUPMEDBRM you DO want to have compaction on the physical
tape. However, prior to the PTF, the DUPMEDBRM command did not "expose" the
compaction parameter ... it just assumed that you wanted the same compaction setting as
you'd used for the original save. So in our case on IBM i, the physical tape dup took 3 times
as long and 3 times as much media since it didn't get 3:1 compaction that is typical on IBM i
This PTF fixes the problem by letting you set the compaction parameter on the dup. You
want to set it to *YES or *DEV. From V6R1 onwards, the PTF lets you actually see the
compaction parameter so you can set it. At V5R4 you have to control it via a data area.
The details of the PTF are shown on the next page
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BRMS DUPMEDBRM Compaction PTF – Ctd
Details are on the BRMS Wiki
 www.ibm.com/developerworks/ibmi/brms
 In the left sidebar, choose “Devices”, “Virtual Tape libraries”, “ProtecTIER”, then choose this item from the list in the main
panel
QTEMP/Q1ADUPCOMP
 In V5R4, the COMPACT parameter on the DUPTAP command is being externalized via a data area in BRMS.
This data area(QTEMP/Q1ADUPCOMP) is of length 9.
 This would yield current behavior. (or if NO data area):
CRTDTAARA DTAARA(QTEMP/Q1ADUPCOMP) TYPE(*CHAR) LEN(9) VALUE('*FROMFILE')
 This would yield a *YES behavior (which is wanted on the TS7650 to physical 3584 tape)
CRTDTAARA DTAARA(QTEMP/Q1ADUPCOMP) TYPE(*CHAR) LEN(9) VALUE('*YES')
 This would yield a *NO behavior if needed:
CRTDTAARA DTAARA(QTEMP/Q1ADUPCOMP) TYPE(*CHAR) LEN(9) VALUE('*NO')
 This will only apply to the job that the DUPMEDBRM(s) is being run in, if the DUPMEDBRM is done in batch. The creating
of the data area must be done in the batch job also.
 In V6R1 and above, the COMPACT parameter has been added to the DUPMEDBRM command.
 Notes:
– 1. The auto duplication feature available from V6R1 onwards will not directly support the new parameter on the media policy
as not all the parameters are being put on this feature. However, by changing the DUPMEDBRM command default to *DEV for
the Compact parameter, the behavior can be acquired.
– 2.
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PTFs SI38733 (V5R4M0) or SI38739 (V6R1M0) or SI38740(V7R1M0) or their superseding PTFs are required.
© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
BRMS Support for Remote Dups to Physical
 When BRMS writes a save, you can mark the tape for later duplication
– Normally, BRMS does not allow you to move the tape offsite until it has been duplicated since this doesn’t make sense in
a physical tape world
– In the ProtecTIER world, if you are making physical tapes at your remote site prior to duplication, you want to be able
“move” the tapes (eg do a ProtecTIER “visibility switch”) prior to replication. This PTF allows that function
The following PTFs or their superseding PTFs are required:
V5R4M0
IBM i 6.1
IBM i 7.1
SI42923
SI42924
SI42925
 For details, see the BRMS Wiki
– www.ibm.com/developerworks/ibmi/brms
– In the left sidebar, choose “Devices”, “Virtual Tape libraries”, “ProtecTIER”,
then choose this item from the list in the main panel
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BRMS Support for Remote Dups to Physical - ctd
This function is turned on via a data area in current releases (up to and including IBM i 7.1), and will be
added as an official BRMS command in future releases
•To override a move policy to allow movement when a volume is marked for duplication:
CALL QBRM/Q1AOLD PARM('MOVMRKDUP ' '*SET ' 'move policy’ ‘Y’)
•To remove the override for a move policy that allows movement when a volume is marked for duplication:
CALL QBRM/Q1AOLD PARM('MOVMRKDUP ' '*SET ' 'move policy’ ‘N’)
•To display all overrides for move policies that allow movement
when a volume is marked for duplication:
CALL QBRM/Q1AOLD PARM('MOVMRKDUP ' '*DISPLAY ')
•To remove all overrides for move policies that allow movement
when a volume is marked for duplication:
CALL QBRM/Q1AOLD PARM('MOVMRKDUP ' '*CLEAR’)
Note: In releases IBM i 7.1 and earlier, there will be no
synchronization of this behavior to other systems in
the BRMS network. Each system wishing to use this
new function will need to run the commands above. In
releases following IBM i 7.1, this restriction will be
removed
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BRMS Parallel Save OPTBLK PTF
 Many ProtecTIER customers use BRMS parallel saves to increase the
throughput of their backups
 BRMS Parallel Saves (both parallel-parallel and parallel-serial) have been
using small blocks (32K) since the function was introduced in V4R4
 The June 2011 BRMS PTF switches them to use large blocks (256K
approx). This can improve parallel save performance dramatically, since it
requires much less CPU to run the backup
– SI42923 (R540)
– SI42924 (R610)
– SI42925 (7.1)
 Customers who have tried parallel
saves in the past and found them
not helpful, should go back and
retry once they apply the PTF
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© 2012 IBM Corporation
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BRMS Initialize on Expiry function
 By default, the ProtecTIER Virtual tapes are not cleaned up when they expire – the data is
held on them until the virtual volume is re-written. This means that:
– A lot of ProtecTIER space is tied up with data that is really expired. If there is a large
scratch pool, this amount can be excessive
– ProtecTIER de-dup ratios look really good since ProtecTIER doesn’t know these copies
are expired
– ProtecTIER cleanup will happen during the backup window when the expired tape is
overwritten, which may impact backup performance
 From V5R4 onwards, BRMS can ask ProtecTIER to scratch the virtual media when it expires,
specifically when the STREXPBRM command runs to expire the tape in BRMS. This is
typically run during daily BRMS Maintenance.
– Note: the expiry process requires the virtual media to be mounted in a virtual drive
– This allows the user to control when the ProtecTIER cleanup is done
Virtual
Tapes
The following PTFs or their superseding PTFs are required:
V5R4M0
IBM i 6.1
IBM i 7.1
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SI45327
SI45326
SI45325
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Systems & Technology Group, Storage
BRMS Initialize on Expiry function - ctd
This function is turned on via a data area in current releases (up to and including IBM i 7.1), and will be
added as an official BRMS command in future releases
To turn on this option to initialize on expiration during STRMNTBRM:
CALL QBRM/Q1AOLD PARM('INZONEXP ' '*SET ' 'media class' 'Y')
To turn off this option to initialize on expiration during STRMNTBRM:
CALL QBRM/Q1AOLD PARM('INZONEXP ' '*SET ' 'media class' 'N')
To display all media classes that have this option turned on:
CALL QBRM/Q1AOLD PARM('INZONEXP ' '*DISPLAY ')
To remove all media classes that have this option turned on:
CALL QBRM/Q1AOLD PARM('INZONEXP ' '*CLEAR ')
Virtual
Tapes
Note: In releases IBM i 7.1 and earlier, there will be no
synchronization of this behavior to other systems in the BRMS
network. Each system wishing to use this new function will need
to run the commands above. In releases following IBM i 7.1, this
restriction will be removed
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Systems & Technology Group, Storage
BRMS PRTRPTBRM *CTRLGRPSTAT
• This report is very helpful for analyzing your backup environment and sizing
Tape or ProtecTIER
• See details earlier in this presentation
June 2012 BRMS PTF
V5R4
SI46335 (Partial Support – see note)
V6R1
SI46339
IBM i 7.1 SI46340
Note: Reports for a V5R4 system must be created
on a V6R1 or IBM i 7.1 system that is in the same
BRMS network. Use the “From System” parameter
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Systems & Technology Group, Storage
IBM i 15,000 Slot Library Enhancement
 Tapes can be stored in many places in a tape library, collectively called “Storage elements”:
–
–
–
–
Slots
Convenience IO station
Tape Drives
Library Robotic Grippers
 Historically, IBM i allowed up to 5,000 storage elements in a library or library partition
– With physical tape, this was plenty for most customers, since most cartridges were stored
offsite
– With virtual tape, every virtual cartridge needs a slot, whether the main copy is at the home site
or the replicated site. Hence 5,000 storage elements was restrictive
– Once the max was reached, a new tape library, tape library partition or VTL was needed
 This restriction is lifted by the following July 2012 IBM i PTFs
that increase the max library size to 15,000 storage elements:
– IBM i 6.1.1:
– IBM i 7.1.0
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MF50093, MF55406
MF55409
© 2012 IBM Corporation
Systems & Technology Group, Storage
Special Notices
(The fine print!)
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© 2012 IBM Corporation