Archiving data by using the web user interface

You can use archive function to save a copy of a file or directory to long-term storage on the IBM® Storage Protect server for archival purposes. If the original file or directory was ever damaged or lost, you can use the retrieve function to recover the archive copy from the server.

Before you begin

Ensure that you are logged in to the web user interface with admin privileges and you have access permissions to the file system for files and directories that you want to archive.

About this task

Using the web user interface, you can archive your files and directories by browsing the file system or by searching for files in the search bar.

While both backup and archive functions save copies of files and directories to the IBM Storage Protect server, the copies that are saved to the server are managed differently. Multiple backup versions can be retained on the server, and the administrator can specify the number of days to retain them before the backup versions are expired. In contrast, archive copies are kept for a specified number of days on the server, and have no concept of versions. For a comparison between backups and archives, see When to back up and when to archive files.

The files and directories that you archive are organized into groups that are called archive packages. You can use the default archive package name, create a new name, or select and existing archive package in which to archive your files and directories.

Procedure

To archive a file or a directory, complete the following steps:

On the button bar in the web user interface, click Backup/Archive.

Use one of the following methods to search for files or directories that you want to archive:

Method	Steps
By browsing a file system	Click a file system name and browse the directories and subdirectories within the file system. You can also use the breadcrumb to navigate to different directory levels.
By searching for files and directories	To search for a file or a group of files with similar names, you must specify a file name or a pattern to search on. Use one of the following choices: To search for a file without specifying options: Enter the search criteria in the search field. You can enter all or part of a file name. You can use the wildcard characters in the search string. Use an asterisk () to represent zero, one, or multiple characters. Use the question mark (?) to represent a single character. Optional: Click the name of a file system and browse to a directory. If you do not select a file system or directory in which to search, the search operation will be across all file systems, which might be a long-running task. Click Search without options. To search for files and directories by specifying options: Enter the search criteria in the search field. You can enter all or part of a file name. You can use the wildcard characters in the search string. Use an asterisk () to represent zero, one, or multiple characters. Use the question mark (?) to represent a single character. Optional: Click the name of a file system and browse to a directory. If you do not specify a file system or directory, the search operates across all file systems and might take a long time to complete. Click Options to open the Search Options pane. To search for files, click Search for > files. To search for directories, click Search for > directories. To search for both files and directories, click Search for > both. To search for objects in subdirectories, select Search in subdirectories. To search for files within a specific range of modification dates, click Search for objects with modification date and specify a range of dates to search on. You can use the date picker (calendars) to select the start and end dates. The start date is the first modification date in the range and the end date is the last modification date in the range. You can also specify a single date for end and start date by double-clicking a date in the date picker. This action sets the start and end dates to the same date. This option is disabled if you are searching for directories. Click Search with Options to begin the search. The objects that match the criteria are displayed in the file list with their full path names and sizes. For more information about the search function, see Tips about the search function.

Method

Steps

By browsing a file system

Click a file system name and browse the directories and subdirectories within the file system. You can also use the breadcrumb to navigate to different directory levels.

By searching for files and directories

To search for a file or a group of files with similar names, you must specify a file name or a pattern to search on. Use one of the following choices:

To search for a file without specifying options:
1. Enter the search criteria in the search field. You can enter all or part of a file name. You can use the wildcard characters in the search string. Use an asterisk (*) to represent zero, one, or multiple characters. Use the question mark (?) to represent a single character.
2. Optional: Click the name of a file system and browse to a directory. If you do not select a file system or directory in which to search, the search operation will be across all file systems, which might be a long-running task.
3. Click Search without options.
To search for files and directories by specifying options:
1. Enter the search criteria in the search field. You can enter all or part of a file name. You can use the wildcard characters in the search string. Use an asterisk (*) to represent zero, one, or multiple characters. Use the question mark (?) to represent a single character.
2. Optional: Click the name of a file system and browse to a directory. If you do not specify a file system or directory, the search operates across all file systems and might take a long time to complete.
3. Click Options to open the Search Options pane.
4. To search for files, click Search for > files. To search for directories, click Search for > directories. To search for both files and directories, click Search for > both. To search for objects in subdirectories, select Search in subdirectories.
5. To search for files within a specific range of modification dates, click Search for objects with modification date and specify a range of dates to search on. You can use the date picker (calendars) to select the start and end dates. The start date is the first modification date in the range and the end date is the last modification date in the range.
  You can also specify a single date for end and start date by double-clicking a date in the date picker. This action sets the start and end dates to the same date.
  
  This option is disabled if you are searching for directories.
6. Click Search with Options to begin the search. The objects that match the criteria are displayed in the file list with their full path names and sizes.
For more information about the search function, see Tips about the search function.

Select the file or the directory by clicking the arrow icon

. The selected file or directory is added to the Backup/Archive List.

You can add the following objects to the Backup/Archive list.

Table 1. Types of objects in the web user interface
Icon	Description
	File
	Directory
	Link, junction, or mount point You cannot navigate into a link, junction, or mount point object, but the object itself is processed. The content in the target directory that is linked to is not processed.
	IBM Storage Protect HSM for Windows or IBM Storage Protect for Space Management stub file (shown only in the Backup/Archive page) On the Restore and Retrieve pages, stub files are indicated by the file icon.

Click Archive.
In the Select archive package window, you can use one of the following choices to specify the package for archiving:
- Use the default archive package name, such as "Archive Date: mm/dd/yyyy".
- Enter the new package name in the Archive Package field.
- Select an existing package from the list of archive packages. Files and folders are added to this package for archiving. The most recent archive packages are displayed at the beginning of the list.
Click Start to begin the archive process.

Files that are excluded in the client options file, include-exclude list, or client option set on the IBM Storage Protect server are not archived.
Monitor the progress of the operation in the Tasks pane.
The task status is automatically refreshed every 5 seconds. You can click the twistie to expand a task to view its details.
If the task ended with the Failed status, a number is displayed in the Total objects failed field in the task details. Click the information icon in the Total objects failed field to view detailed information about any objects that were not processed successfully.

To cancel a task, click the icon.

When a task completes processing with the Success, Failed, or Canceled status, you can click the delete icon to remove the task from the Tasks pane. This action also removes the task from the database that stores the task information.

If a long-running task is in progress and you close the web user interface, or the web user interface times out after 30 minutes of inactivity, the task continues. When you log in to the web user interface later, the details of the task are available for review. All tasks are automatically removed 48 hours after completion, or when the backup-archive client web server is restarted.