Library Properties - How To

Topics | How To | Related Topics

General

• Change the Default Scratch Pool
• Modify the Mount and Unmount Timeouts

Status

• Enable (or Disable) the Library
• View the Library Offline Reason
• Mark MediaAgent/Library/Drive Offline for Maintenance

Associations

• View the Storage Policies Accessing a Library

Library Controller

• Change the Active Library Controller
• View the Status of the Library Controller

• Mark Media as Appendable
• Reuse Media Marked as Appendable
• Start New Media for Data Protection Operations when Media is Exported
• Start New Media for Data Protection Operations when Media is Stuck
• Set up the Virtual Mail Slots in the Library
• Enable (or Disable) Media Related Pop-Ups in the CommCell Console
• Enable (or Disable) Automatic Use of Spare Media from Different Scratch Pools
• Enable (or Disable) Unloading of Media from a Stand-alone Drive when Different Media is Required
• Reset Container and Export Media Location for Media in the Library
• Modify the Barcode and Location for a Media Associated with a Stand-Alone Drive

Media Usage

• Overwrite Media with Old Data When Spare or Appendable Media is Unavailable

• Enable (or Disable) Automatic Media Discovery

• Enable (or Disable) Stuck Media Recovery

• Modify the Unmount Time for Inactive Media in the Drive
• Reuse Media with Failed Content Verification
• Enable Usage of Media From Other CommCells

Drive

• Enable (or Disable) the Verification of Drive Access Path and Serial Number
• Enable (or Disable) the Checking for Cleaning Media Loaded in the Drive
• Enable (or Disable) the Logging of Tape Alerts
• Automatically Detect Replaced Drives

CAP ID

• Specify the CAP ID for Importing and Exporting Media

Change the Default Scratch Pool

Required Capability: See Capabilities and Permitted Actions

To change the default scratch pool:

1. From the CommCell Browser, right-click the library for which you wish to change the default scratch pool, and then click Properties.
2. Select the name of the scratch pool that you wish to designate as the default scratch pool from the Default Scratch Pool list.
3. Click OK to save the changes.

Modify the Mount and Unmount Timeout Periods

Required Capability: See Capabilities and Permitted Actions

To modify the mount and unmount timeout periods:

1. From the CommCell Browser, right-click the library for which you wish to change mount and unmount timeout periods, and then click Properties.
2. In the Mount and Unmount box, type or select the timeout periods.
3. Click OK to save the changes.

Enable (or Disable) the Library

Required Capability: See Capabilities and Permitted Actions

To enable or disable a library:

1. From the CommCell Browser, right-click the library you wish to enable or disable, and then click Properties.
2. Click the Status tab.
3. In the Status area, click Enable Library.
4. Click OK to save the changes.

View the Library Offline Reason

Required Capability: See Capabilities and Permitted Actions

To view the offline reason for a library:

1. From the CommCell Browser, right-click the library for which you wish to view the offline reason, and then click Properties.
2. Click the Status tab.
3. Information on the library offline reason is displayed in the Offline Reason box.

Mark MediaAgent/Library/Drive Offline for Maintenance

Required Capability: Capabilities and Permitted Actions

To mark MediaAgent/Library/Drive Offline for Maintenance:

1. From the CommCell Browser, right-click the MediaAgent/Library/ Drive that you wish to mark offline for maintenance, and then click Properties.
2. Select one or more of the following options as appropriate:
   • To mark a MediaAgent offline for maintenance: Click the Control tab and then click and enable the Mark MediaAgent Offline for Maintenance option.
   • To mark a library offline for maintenance: Click the Status tab and then click and enable the Mark Library Offline for Maintenance option.
   • To mark a drive offline for maintenance: Click the Status tab and then click and enable the Mark Drive Offline for Maintenance option.
3. Click OK to save the configuration.

   Subsequent data protection, data recovery and auxiliary copy operations will not use the associated MediaAgent/Library/Drive.

View the Storage Policies Accessing a Library

Required Capability: See Capabilities and Permitted Actions

To view the storage policies accessing a library:

1. From the CommCell Browser, right-click the library for which you wish to view the storage policies, and then click Properties.
2. Click the Associations tab.

   All the storage policies and storage policy copies accessing the library are displayed.

Change the Active Library Controller

Use the following procedure to manually switch the active library controller in a library configured with library controllers, in the SAN environment.

Before You Begin

• Do not switch the active library controller if jobs are in progress for that MediaAgent

Required Capability: See Capabilities and Permitted Actions

To change the active library controller:

1. From the CommCell Browser, right-click the library for which you wish to change the active library controller, and then click Properties.
2. Click the Library Controller tab.
3. Click Change.
4. In the Change Active Library Controller dialog box, choose the library controller that you wish to designate as the active library controller from the Failover Controllers list.

   In order to manually change a failover library controller candidate as the active library controller, the failover library controller candidate must be Alive and Enabled.

5. Click OK in both the Change Active Library Controller dialog box and in the Library Properties dialog box.

   The selected failover library controller is switched as the active library controller.

View the Status of the Library Controller

Required Capability: See Capabilities and Permitted Actions

To view the status of the library controller:

1. From the CommCell Browser, right-click the library for which you wish to view the library controller status, and then click Properties.
2. Click the Library Controller tab.

   The status of the library controller can be viewed in the Library Properties (Library Controller) dialog box. Note the following:

   The Active Library Controller is the MediaAgent with the Active, Alive and Enabled status as YES, and the Soft State as ON. (You can view the status of the library controllers by clicking the Detail button on the Active Library Controller or Failover Library Controller panes.)
   • In a library configured in the SAN environment, where several MediaAgents are configured as library controllers, at any given point, the MediaAgent accessing the library is considered as Active and therefore displayed as the Active Library Controller. All the other MediaAgents are displayed as Failover Library Controllers. The Active status will be displayed as No for the failover library controllers.
   • In a library configured in the non-SAN environment, where only one MediaAgent is configured as a library controller, the MediaAgent is displayed as the Active Library Controller. If either the Alive or Enabled status is NO, or Soft State is OFF, the Active status will be displayed as OFF and the MediaAgent will be displayed as a Failover Library Controller.

Mark Media as Appendable

Required Capability: See Capabilities and Permitted Actions

To mark media as appendable:

1. From the CommCell Browser, right-click the library for which you wish to mark the media as appendable,  and then click Properties.
2. Click the Media tab.
3. Click Mark Media Appendable.
4. In the Use Appendable Media within n Day (s) of its last write time, type the number of days that the media can be used after it was marked as appendable.
5. Click OK to save the changes.

Reuse Media Marked as Appendable

Required Capability: See Capabilities and Permitted Actions

To reuse media marked as appendable:

1. From the CommCell Browser, right-click the library for which you wish to reuse media marked as appendable,  and then click Properties.
2. Click the Media tab.
3. Click Use Appendable Media within n Day (s) of its last write time.
4. Type the number of days that the media can be used after it was marked as appendable.
5. Click OK to save the changes.

Start New Media for Data Protection Operations when Media is Exported

Required Capability: See Capabilities and Permitted Actions

To start new media for data protection operations, when the required media is exported:

1. From the CommCell Browser, right-click the library for which you wish to start new media for data protection operations, when the required media is exported, and then click Properties.
2. Click the Media tab.
3. From the Start New Media region, click When required media is exported.
4. Click OK to save the changes.

Start New Media for Data Protection Operations when Media is Stuck

Required Capability: See Capabilities and Permitted Actions

To start new media for data protection operations, when the required media is stuck:

1. From the CommCell Browser, right-click the library for which you wish to start new media for data protection operations, when the required media is stuck, and then click Properties.
2. Click the Media tab.
3. From the Start New Media region, click When required media is stuck.
4. Click OK to save the changes.

Set up the Virtual Mail Slots in the Library

Required Capability: See Capabilities and Permitted Actions

To setup the virtual mail slots in the library:

1. From the CommCell Browser, right-click the library for which you wish to setup the virtual slots, and then click Properties.
2. Click the Media tab.
3. Click the Virtual mail slot for export option.
4. Enter the starting slot number that must be used for storing media in the virtual mail slot in the Starts From box.
5. Specify whether the direction that must be used from the starting slot number. (The options are UP and Down.)
6. Click OK to save the information.

To use the virtual mail slot, the VaultTracker job must have the Use Virtual Mail Slot option enabled. You can enable this option in one of the following dialog boxes:

• Selecting the Use Virtual Mail Slots for export in source libraries option in the Tracking Policy from the Tracking Policy Details (Criteria) dialog box.
• Selecting the Use Virtual Mail Slots option for a backup job, from the Advanced Backup Options dialog box.
• The MediaAgent does not support the creation of virtual mail slots for blind libraries and libraries attached to an ACSLS server.

Enable (or Disable) Media Related Pop-Ups in the CommCell Console

Related Topics:

• Pop-up Messages in Stand-Alone Drives

Required Capability: See Capabilities and Permitted Actions

To enable (or disable) media related pop-ups in the CommCell Console:

1. From the CommCell Browser, right-click the library for which you wish to enable or disable the pop-ups then click Properties.
2. Click the Media tab.
3. Click on Show Media related pop-up messages on CommCell Console to enable the option, or clear the option to disable it.
4. Click OK to save the changes.

Enable (or Disable) Automatic Use of Spare Media from Different Scratch Pools

Required Capability: See Capabilities and Permitted Actions

To enable (or disable) automatic use of spare media from different scratch pools:

1. From the CommCell Browser, right-click the library for which you wish to enable or disable this option then click Properties.
2. Click the Media tab.
3. Select the Automatically use spare media from different scratch pool if found in drive to enable the option, or clear the option to disable it.
4. Click OK to save the changes.

Enable (or Disable) Unloading of Media From a Stand-Alone Drive When Different Media is Required

Required Capability: See Capabilities and Permitted Actions

To enable (or disable) unloading of media from a stand-alone drive when different media is required:

1. From the CommCell Browser, right-click the library for which you wish to enable or disable this option then click Properties.
2. Click the Media tab.
3. Select the Unload media in standalone drive when different media is required to enable the option, or clear the option to disable it.
4. Click OK to save the changes.

Reset Container and Export Media Location for Media in the Library

Required Capability: See Capabilities and Permitted Actions

To reset container and export media location for media in the library:

1. From the CommCell Browser, right-click the library you wish to reset the container and/or export media location, and then click Properties.
2. Click the Media tab.
3. In the When Assigned Media Re-Appears in Library area, select the Reset container and/or Reset export location options to enable them:
4. Click OK to save the changes.

Modify the Barcode and Location for a Media Associated with a Stand-Alone Drive

Required Capability: See Capabilities and Permitted Actions

To modify the barcode and location for a media associated with a stand-alone drive

1. From the CommCell Browser, click on Exported Media or Assigned Media group associated with a stand-alone drive in which the media is available. All the media existing in the stand-alone drive are displayed on the right-pane of the CommCell browser
2. Right-click the media for which you want to modify the properties, and then click Properties.
3. In the Barcode/ Identifier box, type a new barcode/identifier for the media.
4. In the Location box, type the location in which the media is stored.
5. Click OK to save the changes.

Overwrite Media with Old Data, When Spare or Appendable Media is Unavailable

Required Capability: See Capabilities and Permitted Actions

To overwrite media with old data, when Spare or Appendable media is unavailable in the library:

1. From the CommCell Browser, right-click the library in which you wish to enable this option,  and then click Properties.
2. Click the Media Usage tab.
3. Click Overwrite Media if Media Last Written to in.
4. Type the number of days/hours after which the media can be reused.
5. Click OK to save the changes.

Enable or Disable Automatic Media Discovery

Required Capability: See Capabilities and Permitted Actions

To enable automatic media discovery:

1. From the CommCell Browser, right-click the library for which you wish to enable automatic media discovery, and then click Properties.
2. Click the Media Usage tab.
3. From the Auto-Discovery of Media region, click Enable Auto-Discovery of Media into default scratch pool option. (Clear this check box to disable this option.)
4. Select the default media type available in the library from the Default Media Type list.

   Note that the media available in a library must be compatible with the drives attached to the library.

5. Click OK to save the changes.

   When you subsequently import media, the imported media is automatically moved to the default scratch pool.

Enable or Disable Stuck Media Recovery

Required Capability: See Capabilities and Permitted Actions

To enable or disable stuck media recovery:

1. From the CommCell Browser, right-click the library for which you wish to enable or disable stuck media recovery, and then click Properties.
2. Click the Media Usage tab.
3. From the Stuck in Drive region, choose the necessary options. (Clear the appropriate check boxes to disable this option.)
4. Click OK to save the changes.

Modify the Unmount Time for Inactive Media in the Drive

Required Capability: See Capabilities and Permitted Actions

To modify the unmount time for inactive media in the drive:

1. From the CommCell Browser, right-click the library for which you wish to modify the unmount time for inactive media in the drive, and then click Properties.
2. Click the Media Usage tab.
3. From the Unmount Media from the drive after (n) Minutes/Hours of inactivity box, type the unmount time that you wish to establish and then choose minutes or hours.
4. Click OK to save the changes.

Reuse Media with Failed Content Verification

Required Capability: See Capabilities and Permitted Actions

Use the following procedure to overwrite media in situations where the MediaAgent fails to read a media, e.g., incompatible data formats, etc.

To reuse media with failed content verification:

1. From the CommCell Browser, right-click the library for which you wish to reuse media with failed content verification, and then click Properties.
2. Click the Media tab.
3. From the Overwrite Media region, click When Content Verification Failed.
4. Click OK to save the changes.

Enable or Disable the Usage of Media From Other CommCells

Use the following procedure to overwrite media from other CommCells.

Required Capability: See Capabilities and Permitted Actions

To enable or disable the usage of media from other CommCells:

1. From the CommCell Browser, right-click the library for which you wish to enable usage from other CommCells, and then click Properties.
2. Click the Media tab.
3. From the Overwrite Media region, click When it is from different CommCell to enable this option. (Clear this check box to disable this option.)
4. Click OK to save the changes.

Enable or Disable the Verification of Drive Access Path and Serial Number

Required Capability: See Capabilities and Permitted Actions

To enable or disable the verification of Drive Access Path and Serial Number:

1. From the CommCell Browser, right-click the library for which you wish to enable or disable this option, and then click Properties.
2. Click the Drive tab.
3. From the Attributes region, choose the Verify access path using Serial Number for Drive to enable this option. (Clear this check box to disable this option.)
4. Click OK to save the changes.

Enable (or Disable) the Checking for Cleaning Media Loaded in the Drive

Required Capability: Capabilities and Permitted Actions

To enable or disable the checking for cleaning media loaded in the drive:

1. From the CommCell Browser, right-click the library for which you wish to enable or disable this option, and then click Properties.
2. Click the Drive tab.
3. From the Attributes region, choose Check for cleaning media loaded in Drive to enable this option. (Clear this check box to disable this option.)
4. Click OK to save the changes.

Enable or Disable the Logging of Tape Alerts

Required Capability: See Capabilities and Permitted Actions

To enable or disable the logging of tape alerts:

1. From the CommCell Browser, right-click the library for which you wish to enable or disable this option, and then click Properties.
2. Click the Drive tab.
3. From the Attributes region, choose Check for Tape Alerts to enable this option. (Clear this check box to disable this option.)
4. Click OK to save the changes.

Automatically Detect Replaced Drives

Required Capability: See Capabilities and Permitted Actions

To automatically detect replaced drives:

1. From the CommCell Browser, right-click the library for which you wish to enable the option to automatically detect replaced drives, and then click Properties.
2. Click the Drive tab.
3. From the Attributes region, choose Enable Auto Drive Replacement when new device is detected during Mount to enable this option. (Clear this check box to disable this option.)
4. Click OK to save the changes.

NOTES

• This is recommended method for replacing compatible drives as it provides a one touch solution for replacing drives.
• In some cases the system may not automatically detect the new drives. e.g., if the library does not support drive serialization, if the drive is not replaced with a compatible drive type, if the library is attached to a Solaris MediaAgent, etc. In such cases, use one of the following procedures for replacing drives:
  • Replace a Drive with the Same Drive Type
  • Replace a Drive with the Compatible Drive Type
  • Replace a Drive With the Same Drive Type in the SAN DDS Environment
  • Replace a Drive With a Compatible Drive Type in the SAN DDS Environment

Specify the CAP ID for Importing and Exporting Media

Use the following procedure to specify the CAP ID associated with the mail slot that will be used for importing and exporting media from the specific MediaAgent.

Required Capability: See Capabilities and Permitted Actions

To specify the CAP ID for importing and exporting media:

1. From the CommCell Browser, right-click the library for which you wish to change the CAP selection, and then click Properties.
2. Click the CAP Selection tab.
3. Select the CAP ID that must be used for importing and exporting media.
4. Click OK.