Hi Guys. I want to start a discussion on Server-Free Backup.
Server-Free backup is to bee the holy grail in SAN backup. Server free backup is just when you tell something on the san backup these files, and it will copy disk to disk or disk to tape or what ever you want. This will make use of the SCSI 3´rd party command (XCOPY), and it´s real easy to write code that can recive that command and do the read and write because all the work is done, because it all comes down to "i want this track and block copyed to this device". Whats hard to do is to build that command in the fist place. File space has to bee written such that they will accept a request for a 3´rd party copy command and they haft to have a API so that the applications know that it´s possible or the application has to go around the file system and write directly to the SCSI adapter and then it got to figure out where all those files are. So the kind of Server Free Backup going on today is realy full volume backup where it´s jst block 0, block 1, blcok 2 and its more of a Server Free dump than a Server Free Backup. So my point is that when you use software to do a block level backup on the SAN. I belive that hardware, where you have firmware microcode will always be better than software. kinda like hardware raid vs software raid. I dont see any true benefits from using Server Free backup because today you´ll alwayes bee bound to full volume backup, and there are usualy mutch beter deviceses out on the san that can do that. The only scenario i see where Server Free backup would be acceptable is when you can start doing a file level backup. but that just isn´t possible today. I belive Server Free backup is just a sales hype, Server Free isn´t ready and wont be for many years to come. Please share your thoughts on my statement. Kvedja/Regards Petur Eythorsson Taeknimadur/Technician IBM Certified Specialist - AIX Tivoli Storage Manager Certified Professional Microsoft Certified System Engineer [EMAIL PROTECTED] Nyherji Hf Simi TEL: +354-569-7700 Borgartun 37 105 Iceland URL: http://www.nyherji.is
