>I'm working on a project where the client wants to have individual files >deleted from backups in TSM 5.2 0.0; his organization does not use >archives. ...
Welcome to the product, and the List, Brian. >From time to time we see postings like this from client customers who spring for a big, expensive product like TSM and then completely ignore what it's all about, seeking instead to have it do things which are contrary to its nature. Very much a Dilbert P.H.B. scenario. That client may not use Archives, but obviously should for this expressed need. You can otherwise try to bend the product to make it do what they want, but I doubt that anyone involved in the effort will be happy with the result. Stay away from anything which is not a standard, supported part of the product, which is to say Delete Object. There are procedural alternatives: one is found in the IBM site Technote 1166278, "How to remove a single file from a TSM backup tape volume". But not trivial. Another approach is to employ limited retentions for Inactive files and then do 'dsmc EXPire'; or do a selective backup on an empty surrogate file to push the real data out of existence in the TSM storage pool; or just Exclude the file to incite its expiration. Overall, though, I don't get the sense that the client has fully defined EXACTLY what they want to achieve. A file not in the Backup storage pool implies that the file is no longer in the originating file system - which doesn't seem like the situation they'd have (but which is the inherent, most simple way that files expire out of TSM). That client obviously does not understand what "backup" means, or perhaps care. Archive was created for what they want to do. Have them define their requirements in detail, and then outline the aspects of the product which meet their needs. Beyond that, a whole different methodology - and perhaps product - would be called for. Richard Sims http://people.bu.edu/rbs
