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What platforms are supported with the Client Agent?
Windows NT 4.0/2000 Pro/2000 Server-Advance Server/XP Pro, NetWare 3.2-5, RedHat Linux, Sun Solaris, HP UX, IBM AIX are currently supported.
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What platforms are supported with the Administrator?
Windows NT 4.0/2000 Pro/XP Pro are currently supported.
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What are the startup steps for UbiStor SafeStorSM?
Assuming you already have your account information from your service provider, install the Client Agent on the machine(s) to be backed up. Install the administrator on a Window’s desktop. Connect to the Agent(s). Create a backup task. Finally, either initiate the task immediately or schedule it for later startup.
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Will UbiStor SafeStorSM backup your Windows, NT Registry and Windows 2000 Active Directory?
Yes.
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Will UbiStor SafeStorSM backup your Netware Bindery or NDS?
Yes.
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What are the options for the retention of backups?
UbiStor SafeStorSM allows you to define retention by days and/or by copies for two different storage types. Your storage options are:
- Online storage - Your data will reside on RAID disk at the UbiStor SafeStorSM Storage Server site.
- Archive storage - Your data will be archived for long term storage offline.
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How are open files handled during backups?
UbiStor SafeStorSM can backup open files that are not locked exclusively by the application if the option to do so is selected. However, the resulting backup files may be in an inconsistent state and effectively corrupt and useless for restoration.
Optionally, UbiStor SafeStorSM supports Open File Manager (OFM) from St. Bernard Software and Open Transaction Manager (OTM) from Columbia Data Products, OFM permits all files to be backed up regardless of how they have been locked. This allows UbiStor SafeStorSM to backup email, databases, Intranet applications and all other open files, even if the files are changing during the backup. All critical NT and NetWare server data is protected, as open files are neither skipped nor corrupted during backups. This puts an end to corrupted data and logs of skipped open files.
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How are databases, such as Oracle, Sybase and others, handled?
Databases have special backup requirements. To properly backup a database, you must be able to take a "snapshot in time" of the database. Traditional database backups are done in one of two ways, online backups via special API functions provided by the database vendor or full database exports to tape/disk. A third alternative is to use special device driver software that allows you to bypass locking issues.
Database APIs (Online Backup)
Some database vendors provide special APIs that support the backup of their databases. For example, the Oracle and Sybase database products can do an online backup if the backup software properly interfaces with their backup APIs. Any update transactions that are applied during the backup process are handled specially to avoid inconsistencies in the backup. The database vendors often supply backup software that will backup their databases to temporary files on disk. For 7-day/24-hour operations, it is common to do an online backup to disk and then use a secondary backup program to backup this data to tape.
Database Export (Offline Backup)
For those database vendors that do not provide online backup capabilities, the database must be shut down. Once the database is offline, the data is copied or exported to a temporary file(s). For databases that are not active all the time, it is common for the database to be shut down and exported to disk and then use a secondary backup program to backup the dump file to tape.
NOTE that the dump file is normally significantly smaller than the database because all the empty space is removed and the work areas / temp areas / rollback areas are not backed up. For instance, a 20-30GB database often produces just a 6GB-dump file.
Even though a dump to tape is feasible (using the internal backup of the database vendor), it is not normally done because it holds "locks" on the database too long which can interfere with performance.
Driver Software (Online Backup)
Optionally, UbiStor SafeStorSM supports Open File Manager (OFM) from St. Bernard Software and Open Transaction Manager (OTM) from Columbia Data Products that permits all database systems to be backed up. It also allows UbiStor SafeStorSM to backup email, Intranet applications and all other open files, even if the files are changing during the backup. All NT and NetWare database products are protected, as open databases are neither skipped nor corrupted during backups. This puts an end to corrupted database backups.
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What file types does the Delta algorithm work on?
The Delta algorithm works well on a variety of file types. NOTE that the first backup is always a "master" or "full" backup. Subsequent backups take advantage of the Delta Processing scheme. Files that change very little, such as executable files, require virtually no backup activity. Most data files, especially databases, change relatively little during day-to-day operations and therefore lend themselves nicely to the Delta scheme which analyzes for blocks of the file that have changed since the last backup. It's important to note that in addition Delta Processing data is also compressed reducing the amount of data transmitted even further.
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How do the automatic backup schedules work?
You can schedule backups to run daily, weekly or monthly at any time(s) of the day. Safestor's scheduler is very flexible with a simple user interface. It can accommodate very complex schedules.
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How can you administer multiple backups with SafeStorSM?
Using the UbiStor SafeStorSM Administrator, a single LAN administrator or manager can set up backups on behalf of other users. The managed system has to be running the UbiStor SafeStorSM Client Agent in the background, and the management station running the UbiStor SafeStorSM Administrator connects to the managed system to configure the backup tasks and schedule them remotely.
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Can you run more than one backup at once?
You may run more than one backup at once on the platforms that support separate instances of an executable program. Operating systems such as Windows and UNIX support multiple backups at the same time. NOTE that NetWare can not run multiple backup instances.
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What security is available for your backups?
There are two major security features for UbiStor SafeStorSM backups to a remote UbiStor SafeStorSM Storage Server (SSS). The first is authentication for every user that connects to the SSS requiring three distinct pieces of information. This protects your data from unauthorized access.
The second option is to encrypt the data before transmission to the remote SSS. This protects your data both during transmission over the network and while the data is stored on the remote storage server.
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What is SIDF?
System Independent Data Format (SIDF) is a standard developed by the major players in the LAN and mini backup world to attempt to achieve some data portability across different tape media and systems. Up until the introduction of this standard, it was impossible to share data across different vendors' backup software. It was even difficult within the same vendors' software across different software versions.
UbiStor SafeStorSM uses a format very close to the actual SIDF standard that provides all the portability benefits in a proprietary product.
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Can UbiStor SafeStorSM do local tape Backups?
Yes. In addition to remote electronic vaulting, UbiStor SafeStorSM can backup to local tape drives and local disk.
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What tape drives are supported?
Currently, the only supported tape devices are generic SCSI-2 devices.
Supported devices include all 4mm DAT drives, all 8mm drives (except SCSI-1 drives such as the Exabyte-8200) and all DLT, AIT, LTO and SuperDLT devices. EXCLUDED from this list are many QIC tape drives, including Travan QIC drives. However, some tape drives that are not SCSI-2 or even SCSI at all may function correctly using proper drivers through NT but are not specifically supported.
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What SCSI cards does UbiStor SafeStorSM support?
UbiStor SafeStorSM supports the following SCSI cards:
- Adaptec 2940 series (PCI)
- Adaptec 1542 series (ISA)
- Adaptec 2944 differential (PCI) Symbios SMC810
- Adaptec 2920 (PCI)
- Adaptec 1520 *
- Adaptec 1540 series (ISA)
- Adaptec 1522 *
* These are supported if the PC has less than 16MB running NetWare or Windows 3.1.
In addition, UbiStor SafeStorSM should work well with other PCI SCSI.
The following SCSI is not supported by UbiStor SafeStorSM:
Adaptec 1520 and 1522 if the PC has greater than 16 MB running NetWare or Windows 3.1.
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If you add more disks do you have to re-seed your backup?
Since the Delta mapping is done at the file level and not at the physical disk level, adding more disks is not a problem. It should be noted that the UbiStor SafeStorSM software would not automatically backup this new disk. The user must select the new disk files as part of an existing backup or create a new backup task.
The files that are on this new disk would require seeding (full backup), but this would not apply to the existing backup tasks and the previously backed up files. As long as the drive designation and directory structure remained the same, there would be no impact on the next backup.
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What communication lines does UbiStor SafeStorSM support?
Because UbiStor SafeStorSM is based on TCP/IP, the underlying physical communication method is immaterial. Thus, LAN connection, T1, ISDN, frame relay and analog 28.8kbps, to name a few, are all valid methods for connection between a UbiStor SafeStorSM Client Agent and the UbiStor SafeStorSM vault.
The other advantage of using TCP/IP as the network connection protocol is that newer technology will fit transparently into the UbiStor SafeStorSM architecture.
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Are there any average backup times for remote backups over specific communications lines?
No, there are no "typical" times for communication since there are so many variables involved. The best solution is to run the UbiStor SafeStorSM software in simulated mode which will determine exactly what data needs to be backed up with the Delta scheme and then estimate the transmission time for that data.
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How long will it take to transmit a file?
The time depends upon the type of data you are backing up, the type of line and the amount of change to that datFor the UbiStor SafeStorSM Client Agent, you should try running the program in simulation mode and use the Task Analyze option to get a breakdown of lines and costs of backing up to the UbiStor SafeStorSM vault. For the SafeStor GUI Client, you should try running the program in "simulate" mode and use the "Analyze catalogs" command to get a breakdown of lines and costs of backing up the vault.
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Is your data encrypted as it travels over the network?
Yes. It is automatically set to 128bit AES encryption, no user intervention.
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What do you do if you lose your encryption password?
Your UbiStor SafeStorSM Service Provider cannot help recover a lost password. Passwords are not stored on the vault or included in the data stream in any way. You should have or will put in place an appropriate key management scheme to avoid this situation.
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What if there is corruption in the Agent software?
If the local catalog data were corrupted, it would most likely be detected. Regardless, this would not be a serious problem because it can be recovered from the vault.
The local Delta image files (.dta) that represent each block of data in each backup have standard checksums and sanity checks built in to avoid corruption. However, if for some reason one or more of the delta files were totally unreadable, it would necessitate a re-seeding of the backup (i.e. a new full backup). This would, however, not affect any of the data already at the remote UbiStor SafeStorSM vault.
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What do you do if your system crashes and you need to restore a backup?
There are two possible scenarios that would follow to restore your backups from the UbiStor SafeStorSM vault.
The first would be used to restore everything using network lines. You would install your operating system including all patches and then the UbiStor SafeStorSM Client Agent/Administrator. With the Client Agent, you would then restore your data by using the Recreate option to restore your catalogs from the vault.
The second option would be to request that your backup be sent to tape and have it delivered along with a copy of the UbiStor SafeStorSM Client software. Then, after restoring your operating system and UbiStor SafeStorSM software, you would then recreate the catalogs and restore directly from a UbiStor SafeStorSM compatible local tape drive.
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What is meant by online versus offline restores?
Data restored over the network link is an online restore. Data restored using a delivery service and some form of media is offline. Any restore may be initiated online, but if the quantity of the data is such that the total restore time will be hours and hours, then, you will probably want the data placed on physical media and returned via bonded courier to your site.
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