Backup and recovery frequently asked questions

Plan a backup strategy

How do I make sure that I save everything that I need to save on a regular basis? See Know what to save and how often to save it.

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What are the different iSeries object types that I might need to save? See Manually saving parts of your server.

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Is it possible to save only objects that have changed? Yes. See Saving only changed objects.

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What kind of methods besides a good save strategy can I use to protect my data? You can use disk protection to protect the data on your server.

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What kind of storage devices can I take advantage of? See Storage solutions for different ways to store your data.

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What is the best way to manage my save media? Backup, Recovery and Media Services (BRMS) helps you implement a disciplined approach to managing your backups, and provides you with an orderly way to retrieve lost or damaged data.

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How does Save-While-Active work? See Saving your server while it is active.

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How can I reduce the time it takes to back up my server? You can take advantage of several different methods to reduce the time it takes to back up your server. Your business has unique needs and some methods will be more appropriate than others. See the following options to investigate time-saving backup techniques.

• Save only changed objects
• Save-while-active
• Saving to multiple devices

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Basic backup tasks

How do I back up my entire server while I am away? If you want to perform unattended backups, you have a few options to pursue:

• Use the GO SAVE: Option 21 command and specify a time at the Start time prompt.
• Use the Backup, Recovery and Media Services (BRMS) backup support for unattended full system backups.

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How do I back up my Domino User Information? See the Lotus^® Domino Reference Library for topics on saving Domino information. Backup, Recovery and Media Services (BRMS) also provides excellent support for backing up Domino information.

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How do I save an independent auxiliary storage pool? See Save independent ASPs.

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Do I need to be in a restricted state to back up QUSRSYS? It is highly recommended that you back up QUSRSYS while in a restricted state. However, there are other ways to fully save QUSRSYS without having to be in a restricted state. See Methods to save Q libraries that contain user data.

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How do I save objects that are active? See Saving your server while it is active for information about the save-while-active function.

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How can I check to make sure that everything on my server was backed up? See Determining objects that the server saved.

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How do I transfer objects from server to server? There are a few ways to transfer objects from one server to another server.

• You can use the ObjectConnect/400 function, which is a set of CL commands, to move the objects. See "Using the ObjectConnect/400 Function" in Backup and Recovery .
• You can save your objects to media, and then restore them on to the other server. See Manually saving parts of your server for more information.

See "How to Restore Specific Types of Information" in Backup and Recovery for more information.

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How can I find out when an object was last saved? See Determining when an object was last saved.

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Troubleshoot backup problems

Why does my backup take so long after I restart my server? Before an object can be saved, it must be loaded into main storage from disk storage. Often the objects that you are saving are already in main storage because you have been using the objects with your business applications. When you restart your server, all of the objects might be cleared out of main storage. Therefore, if you back up your server immediately after restarting it, the backup takes longer because all of the objects must be loaded into main storage before they can be saved.

The backup also performs additional processing the first time an object is accessed after a restart. The backup can run even slower if the previous restart was not normal.

If you want better performance in these scenarios, try the following methods:

• Avoid backups that coincide immediately after a restart.
• Access as many objects as possible between the restart and the start of the first backup. For example, submit a DSPOBJD or DSPFD. This loads more objects into main storage before a backup, and limits the processing during the backup.

For information about this problem, see "Slower save after IPL" in the iSeries Performance Capabilities Reference . You can also check out Info APAR II12893 on the iSeries and AS/400^® Technical Support Web site.

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Why do my backups take longer after I upgrade to a new release? If you changed any hardware during the upgrade, the hardware configurations might affect backup and recovery performance. See the "Save/Restore" chapter in the iSeries Performance Capabilities Reference . Before an object can be saved, it must be loaded into main storage from disk storage. Often the objects that you are saving are already in main storage because you have been using the objects with your business applications. When you upgrade your server, all of the objects might be cleared out of main storage. Therefore, if you back up your server immediately after upgrading it, the backup takes longer because all of the objects must be loaded into main storage before they can be saved.

If you want better performance in these scenarios, try the following methods:

• Avoid backups that coincide immediately after an upgrade.
• Access as many objects as possible between the upgrade and the start of the first backup. For example, submit a DSPOBJD or DSPFD. This loads more objects into main storage before a backup, and limits the processing during the backup.

For more information, see the following webpages:

• Object conversions
• "Slower save after IPL" in the iSeries Performance Capabilities Reference

You can also check out the Memo to users for the release to see if the backup performs any conversions during the first backup.

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Why do my backups take longer after I change hardware on my server? When you change hardware on your server, the hardware configuration might affect backup and recovery performance. See the "Save/Restore" chapter in the iSeries Performance Capabilities Reference for information about hardware changes that might affect performance.

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I am backing up only changed objects, but why is my tape filling up? The most likely cause for this problem is that you have specified *NO on the Journaled Objects (OBJJRN) parameter of the SAVCHGOBJ command. The OBJJRN parameter specifies whether changes to objects currently being entered in a journal as specified on the Start Journal Physical Files (STRJRNPF) are saved. If OBJJRN(*NO), which is the default, is specified, database files currently being journaled are not saved, unless journaling was started after the specified Reference date (REFDATE) and Reference time (REFTIME) parameters on the SAVCHGOBJ command.

This ensures that changes made to a physical file before journaling starts are not lost (because they were not journaled in a journal receiver). The date and time of the last journal start can be displayed by using the Display File Description (DSPFD) command.

When you journal database files, the system uses one or more journal receivers to keep a record of changes that have occurred to the journaled files. If you journal database files, you probably do not want to save those physical files when you save changed objects. You should save the journal receivers rather than the physical files.

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I am trying to save changed objects on my server, but not all the objects that have been changed are being saved. See Determining objects that are not saved.

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I am saving the QUSRSYS library but not all objects in QUSRSYS are being saved. Some of the objects in QUSRSYS might be active during the backup. You might need to be in a restricted state to back up all of the objects in that library. See Methods to save Q libraries that contain user data.

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Why is my server not saving all of my libraries? See Determining objects that are not saved.

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How do save commands handle damage on objects? See How the server handles damaged objects during a save operation.

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Prepare for a recovery

What happens when you restore user profiles? See "What Happens When You Restore User Profiles" in Backup and Recovery .

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What are the advantages in using RSTUSRPRF *ALL as opposed to individual profiles? See "What You Should Know About Restoring User Profiles" in Backup and Recovery .

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What does the RSTAUT command do? Use RSTAUT to restore a user's private authorities to objects. See "Restoring Object Authorities" in Backup and Recovery .

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What steps should I follow to reload my entire server? See the "Recovering your server" appendix in Backup and Recovery .

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Basic recovery tasks

How do I reload my entire server? See the "Recovering your server" appendix in Backup and Recovery .

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What should I follow if I want to reload my Licensed Internal Code? See "Recovering the Licensed Internal Code" in Backup and Recovery .

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What should I follow if I want to reload my operating system? See "Restoring the Operating System" in Backup and Recovery .

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How do I restore physical database files? See "Restoring Database Files" in Backup and Recovery .

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How do I restore logical files? See "Restoring Logical Files" in Backup and Recovery .

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How do I restore programs? See "How the System Restores Programs" in Backup and Recovery .

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How do I restore an individual object from tape? See "How to Restore Objects" in Backup and Recovery .

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How do I recover an independent ASP? See the following topics in Backup and Recovery for information about recovering an independent ASP:

• "Choosing the recovery procedure for a disk failure or disk errors"
• "How to recover an independent ASP"

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Troubleshoot recovery problems

My restoring process is taking a very long time. Why? See the following topics in Backup and Recovery for information about restore performance:

• "Restoring Database Files"
• "How the System Restores Access Paths"
• "How the System Restores Programs"

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Why am I experiencing authority errors after a restore? See the following topics in Backup and Recovery for information about handling authority errors after a restore:

• "Sequence for Restoring Security Information"
• "Restoring User Profiles"
• "Sequence for Restoring Security Information"

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