Media Explorer for Microsoft Windows File Systems - How To
Topics |
How To
Determine Required Archive Files for Data Recovery
Catalog the Media
Restore
a Full System In Place or Generate a File Listing
Restore File System Data Out
of Place or Generate a File Listing
Determine Required Archive Files for Data Recovery
Required Capability: none
To determine
which archive files are needed to complete a data recovery:
- Determine the time for which you want to recover the data. This is based
on your decision to recover either the latest set of data as in the case of
a hardware failure or to a earlier time as in the case of a database or software
corruption that was captured by more recent data protection operations.
- Once you have determined the recovery time, determine the number of subclients
that will be required in the recovery.
If the data being recovered is of File System type and only part of the data
is required or the entire Database application was secured by a data protection
operation of the default subclient, then the number of subclients required can
be as few as one.
If the entire File System is required or the data being recovered is a database
application, then most likely all subclients that contained any part
of this application will be required.
|
This identification process is greatly facilitated
if you had run Media Information and CommCell Configuration reports
while the CommServe was still available, and have those reports available
as reference materials. |
- Catalog all the required media using Media Explorer, and view the archive
files in the Archive File Catalog
Database pane. To determine the number of subclients that exist, sort by
clients and examine the number of unique application IDs per client.
- Once you have determined the time of the recovery and the number of subclients
that are required, using the Backup Time column, select the first Full data
protection operation prior to the desired recovery time.
- Continue selecting each non-full data protection operation for that subclient
until:
- you reach the desired recovery time
- you reach the next Full
- there are no more archive files
(At which option your stop is dependent upon your particular recovery scenario.)
- Step 5 needs to be executed for each subclient that was determined to be
part of this client's recovery.
- Repeat for each client.
Catalog the Media
Before You Begin
- Install Media Explorer from the installer.
- Make sure no other applications or services are attempting to access the
library.
- Have your encryption pass-phrases available, if applicable.
- Have your Media Information and CommCell Configuration reports at hand to
facilitate your identification and location of media archive files.
|
Regularly running the above reports prior to the
need for a disaster recovery will facilitate your identification and
location of media archive files. |
To Catalog the Media
using Media Explorer:
- From whichever folder you installed Media Explorer, run the
MediaExplorer.exe. The
Current database file path is created and defaults
to the DrCatalogDb.dat as indicated in
the Media Explorer window.
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It is possible to perform a recovery using only
the default archive database. However, if recovering large numbers of
or many types of archive files makes locating files cumbersome, you
can create additional database file paths using the New button.
The New and Open buttons can be used to start cataloging
to a new catalog or to open an existing catalog database. This is useful
in situations where you would like to use Media Explorer over multiple
sessions and not overwrite previous catalog operations.
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- Detecting the Media - Selecting the tape or magnetic/optical media option.
Use
the Media Information and CommCell Configuration reports to assist you in determining
from which media it will be necessary to restore. If you do not have any reports
saved, you will have to manually determine the required media. This involves
finding the correct (latest) archive file(s) for backups you want to restore.
For a locally-attached tape drive/library:
- manually load the media into the drive
- select the Tape option
- click Drive Detect to populate the tape mount paths in this field
(i.e., tape0, tape1, tape2, etc., depending on your SCSI settings). The
drive shown matches the SCSI ID setting for the device.
- select the drive on which it is loaded
- identify the Media Type by selecting from the list
|
A full DLT 7000 tape will take approximately two
hours to catalog. Be certain you have enough disc space on your local
computer to accommodate the files. |
For a magnetic volume:
- Select the Magnetic/optical option
- Browse to or type the drive path for the magnetic volume path. (i.e.,
F:\, where F
is the drive which holds the magnetic volume)
- Directly beneath CV_magnetic folder,
select the volume folder in which the archive files (AF_nnn)
reside, and click OK to continue.
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The CV_MAGNETIC
folder structure represents the top level of the magnetic mount path.
The V_nn folder represents a volume
which is equivalent to a storage policy copy.
The AF_nnn folders represent the
individual archive files within a volume. Each backup creates one or
more archive files, depending on the
iDataAgent.
|
- If the magnetic volume to be cataloged belongs to a de-duplicated
library, check the De-Duplicated Data checkbox.
For an optical volume:
- Select the Magnetic/optical option.
- Provide the root drive of the optical media in the volume path.
- Click Catalog Jobs. The catalog operation reads the media for archive
file information and displays it in the
Archive File Catalog Database
pane.
- You may be asked to provide a media password. Type the password and click
OK. If you do not know the media password, contact your software provider
for assistance.
- If data was encrypted using a pass-phrase, you are prompted to enter the
pass-phrase used at the time of the data protection operation.
- The status bar reflects the cataloging process as it is occurring. A message
appears when cataloging is complete. Click OK. You can check for details
in the DrRecovery.log located in the local Media
Explorer folder.
|
An archive file will sometimes span across several
tapes during the course of normal backups. In this case when a catalog
operation is run on the first media, the information on the second media
may not appear to have been cataloged. However, when you perform a recovery
from the first tape, Media Explorer asks you to load the second tape
manually to continue the recovery. |
- For multiple tapes, return to Step 2 and continue cataloging all media to
be used in the restore.
Post Catalog Check
Recovering Data that Span Media
In some cases, a data protection operation will start on one media and complete
on another. This we refer to as a spanned job . At most there can be one spanned
job per any given media.
If after cataloging a media you see an archive file for which the
Catalog column does not display
Found All and the Catalog
State column displays Partial, this indicates
the archive file is spanned to another media. In this case, you need to locate that
other media and catalog it as well. Once the last media that contains the spanned
archive has been reached, you will be prompted to reinsert all the media (starting
with the first) necessary to finish the cataloging process for the spanned job.
Once all media has been successfully cataloged, the
Catalog column should display Found All and
the Catalog State column should display
Complete, and the recovery may take place like any
other recovery. During the recovery of this archive file, you will be prompted to
insert the media as required to complete the recovery.
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Media Explorer stores cataloged media information in
its database on your local hard drive for future reference. Once your files
have been cataloged, you can go back and obtain this information without
running the catalog operation again. To have the information available on
another computer, however, you would need to run a catalog on that computer. |
Using the Chunk Details Window
You can click View Chunks from the File menu to display the Chunk Details window. This window
provides Media Explorer database details that may be helpful to you.
Before You Begin
- Catalog your media.
- Ensure that no other applications or services are attempting to access the
library.
- If you want to generate a listing of the recovered files during the procedure,
be sure to create an empty text file now.
|
An archive file will sometimes span several tapes during
the course of normal data protection operations. In this case when a catalog
operation is run on the first media, the information on the second media
may not appear to have been cataloged. However, when you perform a restore
from the first tape, Media Explorer will ask you to load the second tape
manually to continue the restore. |
To perform an in
place Full System Restore of Windows File System data using Media Explorer
- From the Display data corresponding to list,
select File System .
This selection filters the data in the Archive File Catalog
Database pane to show only the File System indexes for each client. These display
as Not named.
- For each client in turn, select the desired Index entries, and from the
File menu, click Recover Data to begin the restore.
Your desired index entries can be
defined as the latest Full Not named entry and
subsequent non-Full Not named entries for each
subclient (App ID) within a client which together
constitute a snapshot of the last pre-catastrophe data backed up.
- To restore data, in the Restore Options dialog box, you must select
Restore in place for a Full System Restore.
- If you want to generate a listing of the recovered files, click Generate
File Listing and include the path to the appropriate text file in the space
provided.
- Click OK to continue.
- For a restore, a message warns that an in place restore overwrites the existing
data. Click OK to start the restore.
- If data was encrypted using a pass-phrase, you are prompted to enter the
pass-phrase used at the time of the data protection operation.
- For a restore, the status bar indicates which files Media Explorer is restoring.
- For a restore, a message states the completion of the restore and a reboot
is required for the changes to take effect. To continue and restore the system
state, do not restart at this time. Click OK. If you generated a file
listing, the associated file should now be in place.
This concludes the File System Restore or file listing generation using Media Explorer.
Continue to the next section to restore the client's system state.
To perform an in place
Full System Restore of Windows system state data using Media Explorer
When restoring a domain controller, carefully review Media
Explorer for Windows.
- From the Display data corresponding to list,
select System State . This selection filters
the data in the Catalog database pane to show only the System State Components
Indexes.
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It is not recommended that you select individual
components of a system state index for restore. These components can
only be viewed when the Display data
corresponding to selection is not set to System
State. Should you attempt to restore individual components,
never restore the SYSVOL archive out of place on a domain controller,
because doing so will corrupt your SYSVOL.
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- For each client in turn, select the desired Index entries, and from the
File menu, click Recover Data to begin the restore.
- If data was encrypted using a pass-phrase, you are prompted to enter the
pass-phrase used at the time of the data protection operation.
During the
restore, the status bar indicates Media Explorer is seeking and opening files.
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In the Catalog Database pane:
- Use Archive File Name to determine
the entry type
- Use the Level information to
determine backup type.
- Use the Job ID and
Backup Time information to determine
chronology.
- Use the App ID column to determine
subclient identity.
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- A message states the completion of the restore and a reboot is required
for the changes to take effect. Click OK.
By default, Media Explorer recovers a domain controller in a non-authoritative
mode. Refer to the Full System Restore for Windows File System in Books Online for
instructions on performing an authoritative restore of the Active Directory once
it has been recovered by Media Explorer.
This concludes the system state portion of a Full System Restore.
Should you need to get certain non-system data up quickly to a different computer,
follow these steps.
Before You Begin
- Catalog your media.
- Ensure that no other applications or services are attempting to access the
library.
- If you want to generate a listing of the recovered files during the procedure,
be sure to create an empty text file now.
To perform an out
of place Restore of Windows File System data using Media Explorer
- From the Display data corresponding to list,
select File System.
This selection filters
the data in the Archive File Catalog Database pane to show only the File System
indexes for each client. These display as Not named.
- For each client in turn, select the desired Index entries, and from the
File menu, click Recover Data to begin the restore.
Your desired index entries can be defined
as the latest Full Not named entry and subsequent
non-Full Not named entries for each subclient
(App ID) within a client which together constitute
a snapshot of the last pre-catastrophe data backed up.
- For a restore, in the Restore Options dialog box, select Restore out
of place and enter a path.
- If you want to generate a listing of the recovered files, click Generate
File Listing and include the path to the appropriate text file in the space
provided.
- For a restore, click OK to start the restore.
- If data was encrypted using a pass-phrase, you are prompted to enter the
pass-phrase used at the time of the data protection operation.
- For a restore, the status bar indicates which files Media Explorer is restoring.
- For a restore, a message states the completion of the restore and a reboot
is required for the changes to take effect. Click OK and restart your
computer. If you generated a file listing, the associated file should now be
in place.
This concludes the out of place restore or file listing generation for Windows File
System data using Media Explorer.Back to Top