[prev in list] [next in list] [prev in thread] [next in thread] 

List:       novell
Subject:    Re: NovaStor backup software
From:       Donovan Bray <dbray () CUESTA ! CC ! CA ! US>
Date:       2000-04-27 16:12:52
[Download RAW message or body]

FYI: NovaStor/Novanet is an OEM'd version of Tapeware by Yosemite
Technologies.
www.tapeware.com

We are considering moving from Backup Exec to Tapeware because we are adding
in some SQL Servers and Exchange Servers. Because our primary backup servers
are netware, the Backup Exec Agents for SQL & Exchange won't work.

We would have to move everything over to NT, however once you do that, you
have to purchase an agent for EACH server you wish to back up over the wire.
At $271/server BE Enterprise for NT starts getting very expensive.

-----Original Message-----
From: Carter_John [mailto:carter@IPFW.EDU]
Sent: Thursday, April 27, 2000 12:18 AM
Subject: NovaStor backup software


We switched from BackupExec to Novastor (NovaNet Alliance) I like it, I
have had a few quirks that I hope to get worked out.

I have been waiting for my V8 to be shiped before I call tech support with
the few problems that I have been having.  The first problem is that before
and after every full backup I seem to need to shut down the NovaNet server
on the machine connected to the tape library (Qualstar 4480 4-AIT2 80
tapes)  Otherwise I get a error 25 or 31 which is a communications
error.  Because of the way that novanet is designed (distributed backup)
you have one machine that is the keeper of the catalogs and tells each of
the agents what to do.  The agent (if it has a tape drive) does the backup
and reports back to the backup manager what files it backed up.  If during
that time it looses communication with the backup manager, then it craps
out.

The other issue I am having and I don't know if it is a novastor or a St.
Bernard (open file manager 6.2) problem.  But one box that is a very busy
server tends to hang the backup job.  The backup server looks like it is
trying to backup a file but will sit there forever or until you stop it or
shut down the backup agent on the server being backed up.  The file is a
file that is open by the server, thus handled by open file manager when the
backup software tries to back it up.

The only other grip I have, and it is fixed in V8, is that to re submit a
job, it increments the job to the next run.  Thus if a full backup pukes
and you re start it, it will use the next set of tapes in the
rotation.  Until v8, you have to make a backup of the job, and manualy
assign the tapes and run it.

Tech support (via email) seems to be taking a bit longer than it did in the
past and they are short on their answers. It is almost like they are not
reading the entire problem that you send and are dishing out some caned
responces.  Example: we asked when doing a restore and you select which
media you want to use to restore a specific file does it automaticaly
select all files in that folder even though you only had 1 file selected
before choosing the appropriate media.  The responce was basicaly, go to
the restore tab, choose restore, find the file you want, and submit
it.  Almost sounds like he answered someone elses question...

The program is pretty fast.  The machine you make the backup manager, make
sure it is fast so it can keep up because the program can  backup multiple
servers and multiple volumes at the same time.  Typically backing up to one
tape drive, it will backup 4 volumes at the same time from the same or
different servers.  If you have 2 tape drives going for the same backup
job, then you end up having 16 streams going and it really pumps the
data.  The entire time the backup manager has to record what files are
being backed up, etc...

The program does not have integrated tape duplications.  You have to
purchase their NovaExchange with the tape copy plugin and use that to dupe
tapes.  It also does not currently work with tape libraries. You have to
already have the tapes in the drive before running the copy command.  This
is something I asked them about because we did not want our operators
having to try to figure out the front panel of the tape library to move
tapes from the rack to the drives and back.  They said that tape library
support would be in the next version.


>Date:    Wed, 26 Apr 2000 11:19:47 -0400
>From:    SWohlers@COROMED.COM
>Subject: NovaStor backup software
>MIME-Version: 1.0
>Content-Type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII
>Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit
>
>Hello,
>
>Has anyone been running Novastor (www.novastor.com) tape backup software in
a
>production Netware 5.0 network?  The software was mentioned to me as a
>replacement for BackupExec for three reasons.  One, according to the
>contractor
>I was using, it ran as fast as BackupExec.  Two, it had less timeout and
other
>flakey errors requiring server parameter manipulations to get BackupExec
>to run
>consistently and finally, good tech support without the fees that Veritas
now
>charges.
>
>Any experience positive or negative would be appreciated.
>
>Spencer Wohlers

John Carter
Network Systems Programmer
Indiana Purdue University Ft. Wayne
Carter@ipfw.edu
219-481-5473
219-481-4152 FAX

[prev in list] [next in list] [prev in thread] [next in thread]