Configuration for copying or archiving data to IBM Storage Protect

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If you are planning to copy or archive IBM Storage® Protect Plus data to an IBM Storage Protect server, there are three possible configurations. Choosing which one to configure depends on which scenario applies to your data protection needs. For each scenario, there are steps that are required in both the IBM Storage Protect Plus and IBM Storage Protect server environments to complete the setup.

Tasks for configuring IBM Storage Protect

You must configure the IBM Storage Protect server to communicate with the IBM Storage Protect Plus server, and to enable process requests for backup and restore operations. The Amazon Simple Storage Service (S3) protocol enables communication between the two servers.

User scenario Purpose Steps
Copying to standard object storage when you are running daily or less frequent copies to standard object storage. Copy data to standard object storage. In the first copy operation, a full backup copy is created. Subsequent copies are incremental. Copying data to standard object storage is useful if you want relatively fast backup and recovery times and do not require the longer-term protection, cost, and security benefits that are provided by tape storage. To copy data to standard object storage to the IBM Storage Protect server, you must create a cloud-container or directory-container storage pool, and set up the object agent component of IBM Storage Protect™. Adding the object agent is a mandatory step. In addition to setting up the required storage pool, follow steps 2-4 listed, here.
Copying to tape when you are creating a weekly or less frequent full-copy of your data to tape storage.
Important: Archiving data to tape cannot be run more frequently than once a week. Recovery time objectives (RTO) should be considered when recovering data from archive copies in your disaster recovery action plan. Therefore, for disaster recovery, recovering from archive data should only be used as a last resort.
 When you copy data to tape, a full copy of the data is created at the time of the copy process. Copying data to tape provides extra security benefits. By storing tape volumes at a secure, offsite location that is not connected to the internet, you can help to protect your data from online threats such as malware and hackers. However, because copying to these storage types requires a full data copy, the time that is required to copy data increases. In addition, the recovery time can be unpredictable and the data might take longer to process before it is usable. Some of the data may be duplicated on the tape storage pool and cache storage pool. To copy data to tape, you must create a tape storage pool first and then you must create a disk storage pool which is where the cold-data-cache storage pool will reside on the IBM Storage Protect server. Adding the object agent is a mandatory step. Follow steps 1-4 listed, here.
Mixture of both standard object storage and long-term copying to tape Secure your data in incremental backups on the IBM Storage Protect server, as well as retaining data on tape for longer term security. This is a combination of the previous cases: data is stored to tape and data is stored on standard object storage at the IBM Storage Protect server. As well as setting up the required data storage pools for both scenarios, the creation of an object agent is mandatory.
The four steps required to set up and configure the data transfer communication between IBM Storage Protect Plus and the IBM Storage Protect server are as follows:
  1. If you are setting up storage pools for copying data to tape follow Step1. Create storage pools on the IBM Storage Protect server by using the IBM Storage Protect Operations Center. For instructions, see Step 1: Creating a tape storage pool and a cold-data-cache storage pool for copying data to tape. This step is required only if you are setting IBM Storage Protect for archiving with copies run once a week or less frequently.
  2. Create a policy domain that points to the storage pool or pools. The policy domain defines the rules that control the backup services for IBM Storage Protect Plus. For instructions, see Step 2: Configuring an object policy domain.
  3. If you are copying data to a standard storage pool or to tape, you must add standard object storage on the IBM Storage Protect server. For instructions, see Step 3: Setting up standard object storage.
  4. Add an object agent on the IBM Storage Protect server. The object agent provides a gateway between the IBM Storage Protect Plus server and the IBM Storage Protect server. For instructions, see Step 4: Adding an object agent for copying data.
  5. To complete the setup, you must add an object client on the IBM Storage Protect server. The object client identifies the IBM Storage Protect Plus server and enables it to store objects at the IBM Storage Protect server. The same credentials as those that you used for IBM Storage Protect Plus are used for the object client, which is the object client that is associated with the policy domain as set up in Step 2. For instructions to set up an object client, see Step 5: Adding and configuring an object client for copying data.
Tip: Alternatively, enter the DEFINE STGPOOL command to create a storage pool as described in the following topics:

What to do next

  1. After you complete the tasks required for IBM Storage Protect storage, you must add the IBM Storage Protect server to IBM Storage Protect Plus. For information about how to do this, follow the instructions in Registering a repository server as a backup storage provider.
  2. When that is done, you can create an SLA policy that defines the IBM Storage Protect server as the backup storage target. For more information to help you choose which type of policy you need, see Configuration for copying or archiving data to IBM Storage Protect