OFFLOAD

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The OFFLOAD section of the profile configuration contains information that is related to IBM® Storage Protect backups from a snapshot.

File names that are specified in the OFFLOAD section typically point to files that are on a backup server. The offload section is optional and can exist for DB2®, and DB2 in an SAP environment. The parameters do not depend on the storage device.

The following list provides the parameters, a description of each parameter, and default values applicable for DB2, and DB2 in an SAP environment.
BACKUP_METHOD
This parameter is preset by the setup script (the profile configuration wizard). The setup script value depends on the environment where the setup script is running.
  • DB2 and DB2 in an SAP environment - DB2
  • DB2 standby server - TSM_CLIENT
Default
Preset by the setup script, according to the environment.
Advanced mode only
Yes.
OPTIONS
A file specification must be a fully qualified file name. If IBM Storage Protect for Enterprise Resource Planning is being used, the IBM Storage Protect for Enterprise Resource Planning DB2 vendor options file, vendor.env, must be specified.
To be able to set up individual partitions in a DB2 environment in a different manner, the placeholder string %DB2NODE can be embedded in the options string. At run time, the string is replaced with the appropriate partition number for which the backup was run. This placeholder can be part of the vendor options file entry, and depending on the partition, allows different configuration files. For example, if there are two partitions as follows:
OPTIONS @/db2/T01/tdpr3/vendor_%DB2NODE.env
The following two files are referred: 
/db2/T01/tdpr3/vendor_0.env
/db2/T01/tdpr3/vendor_1.env
The first file is used for partition 0, the second for partition 1. Specifying this parameter overrides the value that is specified by the VENDOROPT database configuration parameter.
options string
Specifies options to be used for this IBM Storage Protect backup operation. The string is passed directly to the backup utility.
@filename
Specifies that the options to be used for the IBM Storage Protect backup operation are contained in a file that is on the backup server. The string is passed directly to the backup utility.
Default
The default value is an empty string.
Advanced mode only
No.
DB2_OPTIONS
This parameter allows certain extra DB2 backup command options to be set during an offload backup to IBM Storage Protect server. The options string that is specified by the DB2_OPTIONS parameter is passed directly to the DB2 backup command.
Note: If you use DB2_OPTIONS in combination with NUM_BUFFERS, BUFFER_SIZE or PARALLELISM, errors that relate to incorrect order of options are sent for the DB2 backup operation. Resolve the errors by not using the NUM_BUFFERS, BUFFER_SIZE, and PARALLELISM parameters with the DEDUP_DEVICE option in the DB2_OPTIONS string. If this cannot be avoided, then specify the corresponding DB2 options WITH num-buffers BUFFERS, BUFFER buffer-size, and PARALLELISM n with the DB2_OPTIONS parameter and the DEDUP_DEVICE option. Ensure to use the correct order of options that is defined in the DB2 documentation for the DB2 BACKUP command.

If multiple options must be specified in DB2_OPTIONS parameter string, you must enclose the complete options string in single or double quotation marks. The string (without the quotation marks) is passed to the DB2 backup command. The following example shows you how to define more than one option: 

DB2_OPTIONS "DEDUP_DEVICE UTIL_IMPACT_PRIORITY 50"
<options string>
Specifies options to be used for this IBM Storage Protect backup operation. The string is passed directly to the DB2 backup command.
Default
The default value is an empty string.
Advanced mode only
Yes.
DBPARTITIONNUM
This parameter can be overridden by the tsm4acs command option -N.
ALL
All partitions
partition list
Comma-separated list of partition numbers
Default
ALL
Advanced mode only
Yes.
PARALLELISM
Note: If you use DB2_OPTIONS in combination with NUM_BUFFERS, BUFFER_SIZE or PARALLELISM, errors that relate to incorrect order of options are sent for the DB2 backup operation. Resolve the errors by not using the NUM_BUFFERS, BUFFER_SIZE, and PARALLELISM parameters with the DEDUP_DEVICE option in the DB2_OPTIONS string. If this cannot be avoided, then specify the corresponding DB2 options WITH num-buffers BUFFERS, BUFFER buffer-size, and PARALLELISM n with the DB2_OPTIONS parameter and the DEDUP_DEVICE option. Ensure to use the correct order of options that is defined in the DB2 documentation for the DB2 BACKUP command.
The following list identifies the options for this parameter:
n
Number of table spaces that can be read in parallel by the backup utility.
AUTO
DB2 calculates an optimum value.
Default
AUTO
Advanced mode only
Yes.
NUM_SESSIONS
The following list identifies the options for this parameter:
n
Number of I/O sessions to be created between DB2 and the IBM Storage Protect server.
Default
1
Advanced mode only
No.
NUM_BUFFERS
The following list identifies the options for this parameter:
Note: If you use DB2_OPTIONS in combination with NUM_BUFFERS, BUFFER_SIZE or PARALLELISM, errors that relate to incorrect order of options are sent for the DB2 backup operation. Resolve the errors by not using the NUM_BUFFERS, BUFFER_SIZE, and PARALLELISM parameters with the DEDUP_DEVICE option in the DB2_OPTIONS string. If this cannot be avoided, then specify the corresponding DB2 options WITH num-buffers BUFFERS, BUFFER buffer-size, and PARALLELISM n with the DB2_OPTIONS parameter and the DEDUP_DEVICE option. Ensure to use the correct order of options that is defined in the DB2 documentation for the DB2 BACKUP command.
n
The number of buffers to be used by DB2
AUTO
The DB2 software calculates the optimum value for this parameter.
Default
AUTO
Advanced mode only
Yes.
BUFFER_SIZE
The following list identifies the options for this parameter:
Note: If you use DB2_OPTIONS in combination with NUM_BUFFERS, BUFFER_SIZE or PARALLELISM, errors that relate to incorrect order of options are sent for the DB2 backup operation. Resolve the errors by not using the NUM_BUFFERS, BUFFER_SIZE, and PARALLELISM parameters with the DEDUP_DEVICE option in the DB2_OPTIONS string. If this cannot be avoided, then specify the corresponding DB2 options WITH num-buffers BUFFERS, BUFFER buffer-size, and PARALLELISM n with the DB2_OPTIONS parameter and the DEDUP_DEVICE option. Ensure to use the correct order of options that is defined in the DB2 documentation for the DB2 BACKUP command.
n
The value of this parameter specifies the size, in 4 KB pages, of the buffer that is used by the DB2 software when the backup image is built. The minimum value is 8 pages.
AUTO
If the backup is automatically started, the DB2 software calculates the optimum value.
Default
AUTO
Advanced mode only
Yes.
PARALLEL_BACKUP
The following list identifies the options for this parameter:
YES
The IBM Storage Protect backup of all participating partitions is run in parallel.
NO
The IBM Storage Protect backups of all participating partitions are sequentially run. If NUMBER_BACKUPS_IN_PARALLEL is set to a value greater than 0, then the specified number of partitions is backed up in parallel. For more information about parallel backups, see the description of NUMBER_BACKUPS_IN_PARALLEL.
Default
No
Advanced mode only
Yes.
DATABASE_MEMORY
For IBM Storage Protect Snapshot software to correctly protect DB2 database data, the DB2 database must be started on the backup system during the offload of this database to the IBM Storage Protect server. To start this database on the backup system, the DB2 software needs the database memory size that is specified on the DB2 database on the production system.

This parameter specifies the size of DB2 database shared memory on the backup system. By specifying an empty string or 0, the DB2 memory size that is specified in the DB2 database configuration on the production system is used.

Default
0
Advanced mode only
Yes.
NUMBER_BACKUPS_IN_PARALLEL
In DB2 DPF environments with more than one DB2 partition, start the offloaded IBM Storage Protect backup in parallel for multiple DB2 partitions. In large DB2 DPF environments with more than one backup system, the performance of the overall offloaded IBM Storage Protect backup can be increased if the IBM Storage Protect backups of each DB2 partition can be started in parallel on each of the backup systems.

This profile parameter specifies the degree of parallelism to use during the offloaded backup. If you specify a positive integer value for this parameter, the specified number of IBM Storage Protect backups start in parallel on each of the backup systems. For example, if a value of 4 is specified, four backups are started in parallel on each backup system. If the parameter value is 0, no parallelism is used. If you want to use a value greater than 0 for NUMBER_BACKUPS_IN_PARALLEL, set the PARALLEL_BACKUP value to NO.

Default
0
Advanced mode only
Yes.
VENDOR_LIB
DEFAULT
Use the library or agent corresponding to the database environment.
DB2_TSM_AGENT
Use the DB2 IBM Storage Protect agent.
TSM4ERP
Use IBM Storage Protect for Enterprise Resource Planning.
library
Use the fully qualified name for the custom library.
Default
DEFAULT
Advanced mode only
Yes.