The Erase Data feature allows you to permanently erase any data that was
backed up.
This is useful if you want to erase data so that it cannot be restored again.
For example, you may want to erase data for legal purposes or compliance
regulations.
Keep in mind that the erase data operation only erases the backup data -
the
source data will remain on the local hard drive. Therefore, it is recommended to delete
the data from the source first so that it will not be backed up again.
The Erase Data operation makes the data inaccessible for browsing and
recovery - the data will remain on the media and take up space until it is aged
off according to the retention rules set for the data. Data will not be
recoverable using any data recovery methods. If the backup job
is already content indexed, the data being erased will be removed from the
index.
Using Erase Data, you can erase
data such as NSS volumes and namespaces (Long, DOS, MAC, and NFS).
To erase data, a filter storage policy needs to be associated with the Agent.
Ensure that the filter storage policy that you associate with the agent has
retention criteria that is greater than or equal to the retention criteria of
the storage policy for the data to be erased.
1.
From the CommCell Browser, right-click the appropriate agent icon
and then click Properties.
NOTES
Your screen may look different from the example shown.
2.
From the Storage Device tab of the agent Properties dialog box, select a filter storage policy from the Filter Storage Policy list.
To erase data, the storage
policy assigned to the subclient where data will be erased needs permission to allow
the erasing of data. Ensure that the retention criteria of the storage
policy for the data to be erased is equal or greater to the filter storage
policy that is associated with the agent.
1.
From the CommCell Browser, right-click the storage policy you want to
allow for the erasing of data, then click Properties.
2.
From the
General tab of the Storage Policy Properties dialog box, select the Allow
Erase Data
check box.
After the configuration has been completed, you
can now browse and erase data.
run or schedule erase data job
1.
From the CommCell Browser, right-click the agent or instance that contains the data which you want to erase, select All Tasks and then click Erase Data By Browsing.
NOTES
Your screen may look different from the example shown.
2.
You are warned that the data will be permanently removed. Click Yes to continue.
3.
From the
Erase Data by Browsing dialog box, click Browse.
When a path is selected and a browse time is
specified, all data that matches the path will be erased even if the
data was not backed up in the specified time range.
4.
In the Browse Options dialog box, select a browse time range and any advanced browse options,
and click
OK.
5.
From the browse selection window, select the data objects that you want
to erase, and click OK.
If you need to erase data from a specific
folder that is not visible in the current browse selection, you need
to browse to a point in time to a backup that included the folder.
Then, you can select the data under that folder to be erased.
6.
Optionally, you can click Advanced to configure an alert for this job.
7.
Click Job Initiation if you would like to run this job
immediately or schedule it.
Click Immediate and then OK to run the job now.
When the job is done, Job Controller displays Completed.
If Schedule is selected, click Configure to create a
schedule for this operation. Your Erase Data by Browsing operation will execute according to the specified schedule. See
Create a Job Schedule for more information.
The Find feature allows you to search and locate data such as files,
directories, and messages in a backup. Once located, this data can be erased.
After erasing the data, it can no longer be browsed or
restored. However, the data will remain on the media and take up space until it
is aged off according to the retention rules set for the data.
Keep in mind that the erase data operation only erases the backup data -
the
source data will remain on the local hard drive. Therefore, it is recommended to delete
the data from the source first so that it will not be backed up again.
1.
From the CommCell Browser, navigate to Client Computers |<Client>|
<Agent>.
Right-click Backup Set or Subclient, click
All Tasks | Find.
2.
Enter search criteria. For example, you can type a file name
in Name/Pattern to narrow the search. You can search for partial words without the need
for wildcard characters at the beginning and/or end of the search
string.
These wildcards, or a combination of these wildcards, are
supported:
* for any number of
characters e.g., Accounting*.
? for any one character
e.g., user_group?.
[] for a range of characters
e.g., [a-k]Lee.
[!] for a negation of a
range of characters e.g., [!a-k] Lee.
Click Search. The data that matches the criteria are displayed in Search
Results.
3.
Select one or more items.
Right-click the items and select Erase Selected Item(s).
You can also erase data when it has
been moved to Selected Items.
4.
Click Yes.
5.
Optionally, modify what will be erased by selecting either Browse,
Add, or Delete.
To view the log files
of a CommServe, MediaAgent, or client computer.
From the CommCell Browser, right-click a CommServe, MediaAgent, or client
computer, click View, and then click Log Files. The Select the Log File to Open
window displays.
To see a specific log file, either select the log file name from the list
or type the name of the log file in the field provided. (In the Files of
type field, Log Files (*.log) is displayed by default.) Click Open.
The contents of the log file are displayed.
An Administrative Job Summary Report provides details of all the Erase Data
jobs.
To
create an Erase Data Job Summary report:
From the CommCell Browser, click the Reports icon.
Select Job Summary from the Reports pane of the Report
Selection dialog box.
From the General tab, select Administrative Jobs and then select
Erase Backup/Archived Data.
Select the filter criteria to include in the Erase Backup/Archived Data
Job Summary Report from the various tabs (e.g., Computers, Selection,
Options, Time Range).
From the Output tab, select the output format and/or save options for
the report.
Click one of the following: Run to generate the report
immediately, Schedule to schedule the reports for specific times,
Save Template to save the report filter options into the My Reports
node, or Close to exit the window.
Once an erase data job has completed, it may be useful to view specific historical
information about the job, such as the following:
Items that failed during the job
Items that succeeded during the job
Details of the job
Media associated with the job
Events of the job
Log files of the job.
This information can be viewed in the Job History window. The history provided depends on the entity from which the job history is viewed.
For example, viewing job history from the subclient level will yield information
for the jobs performed for that subclient. Conversely, viewing job history from
the instance level will yield information for jobs run from all subclients within
that instance.
To view the backup job history:
From the CommCell Browser, right-click the entity (client computer,
iDataAgent, instance, or subclient)
whose backup history you want to view, click View, and then click
View Job History.
From the Job History
filter window select the filter options, if any, that you want to apply, and
then click OK. The system displays the
Job History
window.
Once you have chosen your filter options, they are displayed in the Job History window.
To view the additional options discussed above, right-click the desired job
choose the appropriate option.