Creating a copy subrule

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To exercise granular control over copy-to-tape operations, you can create a copy subrule. A copy subrule specifies exceptions to a parent copy storage rule for the specified subrule members.

Before you begin

Before you can create a copy subrule, a copy storage rule must exist.

About this task

Use copy subrules when you do not want a copy storage rule to copy all client data from the source directory-container storage pools to the target copy storage pool. By using copy subrules, you can control whether data is copied for individual clients that were backed up to the source directory-container storage pools. If the value of the parent storage rule property Data to copy is set to the value Specify by subrule, you must define at least one subrule to identify the client data to be copied.
The properties of a copy subrule include the following information:
  • The name of the parent rule. This property is inherited and cannot be changed.
  • The server that runs the parent rule. This property is inherited and cannot be changed.
  • The target pool of the parent rule. The target pool is the storage pool to which eligible data is copied. This property is inherited, but you can change the value.
    Tip: By specifying a different target pool, you can copy data from the subrule members to a different target pool than the parent rule.
  • One or more source pools of the parent rule. The source pools are the container storage pools whose data is copied to tape. This property is inherited and cannot be changed.
  • The name of the copy subrule. You must specify a name that is unique to the server and is no more than 30 characters.
  • Whether data is copied for the subrule members. You can specify one of the following options:
    All data
    Specifies that the data that was backed up to the source pools by the subrule members is copied to the target pool.
    None
    Specifies that the data that was backed up to the source pools by the subrule members is not copied to the target pool.
  • The members of the copy subrule. The members are the clients and virtual machine (VM) file spaces to which the copy subrule applies. You can select individual clients, specify VM name patterns, or both. You can also create a copy subrule with no members and edit the subrule later to add members.

Procedure

To create a copy subrule, complete the following steps:

  1. On the Operations Center menu bar, click Storage > Storage Rules.
  2. On the Storage Rules page, select the copy storage rule for which you want to create a copy subrule. Click Add icon Create Subrule.
  3. On the Create Subrule for Storage Pool Copy page, complete the fields.
  4. To add individual client members to the copy subrule, click Add icon Add > Individual clients. On the Add Clients to Subrule page, select clients and click Add Clients.
  5. To add members to the copy subrule by specifying VM patterns, take the following actions:
    1. Click Add icon Add > VM name pattern.
    2. On the Add Clients to Subrule page, select a VM owner and specify a pattern. Before you add a pattern, you must test the pattern to confirm that it does not overlap existing patterns for this or other subrules of the parent rule.
    3. Test the pattern by clicking Test. The VMs that match the pattern are displayed.
    4. After a pattern is successfully tested, add the pattern by clicking Add VM Pattern.
  6. To create the copy subrule, click Create.

Results

The copy subrule is created. If the parent storage rule is active, the copy subrule is also active and runs on the same schedule as the parent storage rule. If the parent storage rule is inactive, the copy subrule is also inactive.