Using the UNIX Backup-Archive Clients

Archiving Files

To archive files, you need to specifically select the files to archive. You can select the files by using a file specification or by choosing them from a directory tree.

Your administrator might have set up schedules to archive certain files on your workstation automatically. See Chapter 5. "Automating ADSM Tasks" for information on checking and running the schedules available to you. The following sections cover how to archive files without using a schedule.

Archiving Files Using File Names

To archive a file or a group of files, follow these steps:

  1. Click on Archive files and directories into long term storage from the ADSM Hub window. The Archive window displays.
  2. Expand the directory tree.
  3. Click on the directory or files to select the objects you want to archive.
  4. Click on the Search icon on the tool bar. The Find Files (Archive) window displays.
  5. Enter your search parameters on the Find Files (Archive) window.
  6. Click on Search. The Matching Files (Archive) window displays.
  7. Click the selection boxes of the files you want to archive and close the Matching Files (Archive) window.
  8. Enter the description, accept the default description, or an existing description for your archive package in the Description box. When an existing archive description is used, the files or directories selected are added to the archive package. The first and second archived sets are grouped for retrieves, queries, and deletions.
  9. Click on Archive. The Archive Status window displays the archive processing status.

Archiving Files Using a Directory Tree

Follow these steps to select only the files that match your search criteria:

  1. Click on Archive files and directories into long term storage from the ADSM Hub window. The Archive window displays.
  2. Expand the directory tree.
  3. Click on the files or directories you want.
  4. Click on Search icon on the tool bar. The Find Files (Archive) window displays.
  5. Enter your search criteria in the Find Files (Archive) window.
  6. Click on Filter.
  7. Click on the selection boxes next to the files or filtered directories you want.
  8. Enter a description, accept the default description, or select an existing description for your archive package in the Description box. When an existing archive description is used, the files or directories selected are added to the archive package. The first and second archived sets are grouped for retrieves, queries, and deletions.
  9. Click on Archive. The Archive Status window displays the archive processing status.

Archiving Files: Advanced Considerations

This section discusses some advanced considerations for archiving files. You do not need to understand this information in order to use ADSM for basic work.

Archiving Files Using Commands

You can use the ARCHIVE command to archive files. Use wildcards to archive more than one file at a time. You can archive all the files in a directory, and you can use the SUBDIR=YES option to include files in all subdirectories under that directory in the archive. You can also use the DELETEFILES option if you want ADSM to delete the files from your local workstation after they are archived and committed to ADSM storage.

For example, to archive the files in the /home/jones/proj directory and the files in its subdirectories, use: 

   dsmc archive /home/jones/proj/ -subdir=yes -deletefiles

You can use more than one file specification on the ARCHIVE command. For example, to archive the /home/jones/h1.doc and /home/jones/test.doc files, use: 

   dsmc archive /home/jones/h1.doc /home/jones/test.doc

Use the description option to assign a description to the archive: 

   dsmc archive /home/jones/h1.doc -description="Chapter 1, first version"

When the ARCHIVE command completes, ADSM provides you with statistics similar to those shown in the GUI's Archive Status window. Similar statistics are produced by the incremental and selective commands. These also show up in the schedule log for scheduled commands. See Archive for more information about the ARCHIVE command.

Saving Access Permissions

When you archive a file, ADSM saves standard UNIX access permissions assigned to the file. Depending on your operating system, it also saves extended permissions. For example, for files on an AIX workstation, ADSM saves access control lists.

If you are a user, and you archive a file to which you have read access, you own the archived copy of the file. You are the only user who can retrieve the archived file unless you grant access to another user.

Understanding How Symbolic Links are Handled

When you archive a symbolic link, ADSM archives the file to which the symbolic link points. It does not archive path information for the directory.

If you archive a symbolic link that points to a directory, ADSM archives the files contained in the directory (and its subdirectories if the SUBDIR option is set to yes) under the name of the symbolic link.

Understanding How Hardlinks are Handled

When you archive a file that contains a hard link to another file, ADSM stores both the link information and the data file on the ADSM server.

When you retrieve a file that contains hard link information, ADSM attempts to reestablish the links. If only one of the hard-linked files is still on your workstation, and you retrieve both files, ADSM retrieves both files and hard-links the retrieved files.

The one exception to this procedure occurs if you archive two files that are hard-linked together, and then break the connection between them on your workstation. The two files then contain separate data files. If you retrieve the two files from the ADSM server, ADSM respects the current file system and does not restore the hard link.

Problems can occur if you archive only one file of a hard-linked pair. For example, files texta and textb contain a hard link to each other. You archive texta, and then edit textb and make some changes. If you retrieve texta, the changes you made to textb are lost.

To ensure that hard-linked files remain synchronized, always archive all files that have hard links to each other at the same time, and retrieve those same files together.

Deleting Archived Files

You can delete archive copies if you decide you no longer need them. Unlike backup versions, you can delete individual archive copies without deleting the entire file space. To delete an archive copy:

  1. Click on Utilities from the ADSM Hub window and click on Delete Archive Data. The Archive Delete window displays.
  2. Expand the directory tree. The Directory tree contains groups of files identified by a description and archived to the ADSM server.
  3. Click on the selection boxes to select the objects you want to delete.
  4. Click on Delete. The Archive Delete Status window displays the archive deletion processing status.

If you are using commands, you can delete archive copies with the DELETE ARCHIVE command.

For example, to delete the file /home/jones/t.exe, use: 

   dsmc delete archive /home/jones/t.exe

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