Other configuration options to consider

You can specify other options in the IBM Storage Protect client system options file dsm.sys.

You can specify other options in the IBM Storage Protect client user options file dsm.opt.

compression

Specify whether the IBM Storage Protect API compresses data before it sends it to the IBM Storage Protect server. You can specify yes or no. The default value is No. The value of the compression option for Data Protection for Oracle is allowed only if the IBM Storage Protect administrator leaves the compression decision to the node. Enabling compression affects performance in three ways:

• Processor usage is higher on the system on which Data Protection for Oracle is running.
• Network bandwidth usage is reduced because fewer bytes are transmitted.
• Storage usage on the IBM Storage Protect server is reduced.

When any of the following conditions exist, you should specify yes:

• The network adapter has a data overload.
• Communications between Data Protection for Oracle and the IBM Storage Protect server are over a low-bandwidth connection.
• There is heavy network traffic.

When any of the following conditions exist, you should specify no:

• The system that is running Data Protection for Oracle has a processor overload. The added processor usage as a result of enabling compression can impact other applications, including the Oracle server.

  You can monitor processor and network resource usage with the Performance Monitor program that is shipped with Windows™.

• You are not constrained by network bandwidth. In this case, you can achieve the best performance by specifying compression no and enabling hardware compaction on the tape drive, which also reduces storage requirements.
• Hardware compression is in use for the media where Data Protection for Oracle data is stored.

After a completed backup operation, view the throughput rate and the compression status for a backup object in the IBM Storage Protect server activity log file. Run the IBM Storage Protect server QUERY ACTLOG command in the IBM Storage Protect server administrative client window. The throughput rate and the compression status are not written to the activity log when activity logging is disabled on the IBM Storage Protect server. See the SET ACTLOGRETENTION command in the IBM Storage Protect Administrator's Reference for complete activity logging information.

You can also determine whether objects were compressed by running the tdposync query command.

deduplication

Specify whether the IBM Storage Protect API deduplicates data before it sends it to the IBM Storage Protect server. You can specify Yes or No. The default value is No. The value of the deduplication option for Data Protection for Oracle applies only if the IBM Storage Protect™ administrator allows client-side data deduplication.

You can determine if objects are deduplicated by running the tdposync query command or by examining the IBM Storage Protect server activity log file.

The deduplication and enablelanfree options are mutually exclusive. Therefore, you must use either one option or the other, but not both options together.

The deduplication and enableclientencryptkey options are also mutually exclusive. Therefore, you must use either one option or the other, but not both options together.

enablelanfree

Specify whether you run backup or restore operations in a LAN-free environment if you are equipped to do so. You can specify yes or no. The default value is no. You can avoid network constraints by shifting the movement of data to a storage area network (SAN). After a completed backup operation, view the LAN-free status for a backup object in the IBM Storage Protect server activity log file. For more information, see the appropriate Storage Agent User's Guide.

The enablelanfree and deduplication options are mutually exclusive. Therefore, you must use either one option or the other, but not both options together.

include

When a management class other than the default management class is defined within an existing policy domain, add an include statement to the client options file that is used by the Oracle node.

You must add an include statement to the dsm.sys file.

You must add an include statement to the dsm.opt file.

This include statement binds the Oracle backup objects to the management class that is defined for managing these objects. The include statement uses the following naming convention:

/FilespaceName//ObjectName

\FilespaceName\orcnt\ObjectName

The FORMAT parameter in the RMAN script can also be used to assist with object naming. For example, if the FORMAT parameters (in the RMAN script) specified the following values for databases and logs:

format 'DB_%u_%p_%c'
format 'LOG_%u_%p_%c'

The include statement in the dsm.sys file, which is used by the Oracle node, would be as follows:

INCLUDE /adsmorc/.../DB* mgmtclassnameforDBs
INCLUDE /adsmorc/.../LOG* mgmtclassnameforLogs

The include statement in the dsm.opt file, which is used by the Oracle node, would be as follows:

INCLUDE \FilespaceName\orcnt\DB* mgmtclassname
INCLUDE \FilespaceName\orcnt\LOG* mgmtclassname

Make sure that the FORMAT parameter specifies a unique name for the backup. If the object name exists on the IBM Storage Protect server, the backup might fail with an RC=8 error that is recorded in the sbtio.log file.

enableclientencryptkey

When enableclientencryptkey is set to yes, Data Protection for Oracle provides 128-bit transparent encryption of Oracle databases during backup and restore processing. One random encryption key is generated per session and is stored on the IBM Storage Protect server with the object in the server database. Although IBM Storage Protect manages the key, a valid database must be available to restore an encrypted object.

Important: The enableclientencryptkey and deduplication options are mutually exclusive because encrypted files cannot be deduplicated. Therefore, you can use only one or the other option, but not both options together.

You can specify the databases that you want encrypted by adding an include statement with the include.encrypt option in the dsm.sys file.

You can specify the databases that you want encrypted by adding an include statement with the include.encrypt option in the client user options file dsm.opt.

For example, to enable transparent encryption, do the following steps:

1. Edit the client system options file, dsm.sys.
2. Edit the client user options file, dsm.opt.
3. Specify enableclientencryptkey yes.
4. Specify encryptiontype AES128, or AES256.
5. Specify the objects to encrypt. This example encrypts all data:

   include.encrypt        /adsmorc/.../*

   include.encrypt        \adsmorc\...\*

Thus, the encryption options would be as follows in this client system options file, dsm.sys:

enableclientencryptkey yes
encryptiontype aes128
include.encrypt        /adsmorc/.../*

Thus, the encryption options would be as follows in this client user options file, dsm.opt:

enableclientencryptkey yes
encryptiontype aes128
include.encrypt        \adsmorc\...\*

See IBM Storage Protect Using the Application Programming Interface for more details about the enableclientencryptkey option.

You can determine whether objects were encrypted by running the tdposync query command.