Feature Request: ARCHIVE files to tape - delete after backup

[stuartmacgreen]

Would like to see an option in Files To Tape Job to delete files after backed up. A true archiving to tape feature.

Looking to use this as a way to backup the SAP redo logs.
We have SAP products (hosted on Linux VM's) write out redo logs to a Linux server over NFS that stores them in /backups/{SID}
We naturally backup our VM's using Veeam Backup. But would like all in solution that can answer the requirement to also backup to tape the sap redo logs files but delete them after backup (what i call true archiving) - using valid credentials of course.

Thanks

[veremin]

A cleaning script specified as a post-job activity should meet your expectations.

[musa_1]

What is a cleaning script would look like? Sorry, I'm not proficient at Veeam Powershell scripts and any guidance would be appreciated.

[veremin]

Shell script that cleans a given directory, once a file to tape job has taken place, should be a way to go.

[Sam0sval]

The competitor has such feature :

Configuring Backup Exec to automatically delete files after a backup

Article:HOWTO98917 | Created: 2014-06-02 | Updated: 2015-04-08 | Article URL http://www.symantec.com/docs/HOWTO98917
Article Type
How To

Product(s)
Show all

Environment
Show all

Languages
Show all

When you run a full backup, you can select to back up the files and then delete them. The Delete selected files and folders after successful backup option lets you free disk space on your server by deleting files and folders from the server after they are successfully backed up. Backup Exec backs up the selected data, verifies the backup sets, and then deletes the data from the server. You can back up and delete files for full backups only.

See Configuring file and folder options for backup jobs.

Backup Exec performs a verify operation after the data is backed up. If the verify operation fails, the job stops and you are notified. If you get a verification failure, view the job log. Try to correct the problem, and then retry the job. After the data is backed up and verified, Backup Exec deletes the selected data. The job log contains a list of the data that is deleted.

You can enable the checkpoint restart option for a full backup job that uses the Delete selected files and folders after successful backup option. If the job fails and is resumed, the files are not deleted from the source volume after the backup completes.

The Backup Exec Archive Option offers more features for data archiving.

See About the Archiving Option.

[Sam0sval]

I need similar feature too ( http://forums.veeam.com/post143234.html#p143234 )

Now I can't delete files after their transfer on a tape, but I need to do it.

[veremin]

Hi, Andrey,

As mentioned above, the post-job command that takes care about files present on disk sounds like the best idea.

Also, kindly, avoid posting in multiple threads, making cross-post references. It's better to keep everything within one discussion.

Thanks.

[Sam0sval]

Its work only to VM job backups, not for files or tapes. I need delete files after file or tape backup jobs. No "advanced' option in dialog for files or tape backups.

[veremin]

Which product version are you using? There is Advanced dialog for file to tape job in version 8.



Thanks.

[Sam0sval]

I use version 7 (with TAPE) and 8 without TAPE (home use)

[veremin]

Might be worth updating to first installation to the latest product version to make use of advanced settings (with post-job command included there) of file to tape. Thanks.

[stuartmacgreen]

My request was one for the source of the files was a Linux server. Does anyone have experience of post-job shell scripts to execute on Linux from Windows using Veeam? Or how to set this up. It is obviously easy on Windows.

[veremin]

What about leveraging plink tool to run script on a Linux machine from a Windows one?

[mcx]

I actually need VERIFIED file copies to tape (and Verified File Copy jobs too) at least with a checksum method and then automatic delete. This has been a long-time Backup Exec Feature that is needed by many people for all those apps that produce a backup in files that are stored to a share or such... too many to mention specifics... but this is a requirement. It's a real shame this feature doesn't exist... as it makes me skip Veeam as a solution... altogether

[Dima P.]

mcx,

Thanks for sharing your feedback – it’s highly appreciated. This feature is on our radar for sure but was postponed due low number of requests.

[mcx]

Thank you for your attention Dmitry!

Be sure to announce it with big red fonts when it's available as I will switch my almost 30 sockets to your solution when it is available...!

(while we're at it... be sure to include encryption on those verified file->tape with delete jobs)

Andreas

[Dima P.]

Deal! Thanks Andreas.

[rreed]

+1 to this feature request please. It would be fantastic to have a "flush to tape" feature. We would use this on a regular basis when we're retiring VM's; setup a one-time backup job that backs it up to tape then cleans up after itself. Right now it's a time and resource consuming process for us as well. Having a one-time backup to tape that completes w/ only data on tape would save us a bunch of time and storage.

And very respectfully, off-loading feature requests to administrators to hand build on their own will not win you any potential business or cool points. We're all here and thrilled that we can give - and Veeam listens to - our input as paying customers, but telling us to go do it ourselves could potentially have people taking a second look at competitors, even when some of us like myself are died in the wool Veeam fans. Let's all be helpful, guys. And many thanks Dima for throwing our request hats in the ring!

[veremin]

If it's more about one time backup, haven't you thought about using combination of VeeamZIP and files to tape job? In the setting of VeeamZIP activity you can enable automatic file deletion (Delete this backup automatically -> Tomorrow Night).

Even being a workaround that still should give you what you're after.

Thanks.

[mcx]

Although I appreciate the "traction" to have other people post similar problems... plus other Engineers provide other workarounds... the feature request remains AS IS...

"Archive this file or folder of files, verify (CRC at least) they are on destination correctly, DELETE (with or without folder structure)".

Thanks


BR,

Andreas

[ccatlett1984]

I'll add my vote for this feature.
Would be nice not to have to custom script with all kinds of error handling.

[mcx]

I do hope this would be a v10 feature (pretty please with sugar on it)

[veremin]

Truth be told we're a little bit reluctant to implement features contradicting with our backup redundancy paradigm (3-2-1 rule). Anyway, thank you for the feedback; much appreciated.

[mcx]

Truth be told we're a little bit reluctant to implement features contradicting with our backup redundancy paradigm (3-2-1 rule). Anyway, thank you for the feedback; much appreciated.

Well.. there will always be files like that (logs, mailboxes, static exports/data) that will need to be backed up... even on a virtual world... so, 3-2-1 or just 1-1... one needs to "offload" something "someplace"... no matter what. Say I'm a video editor and I produce some hours of video each week... I can't possibly keep all that on disk "forever"... So I can choose BlueRay Disks, or tapes... but not disks...

Anyhow, not to over-complicate things... it's a real need. I don't like the fact that I (and others) have it... but we do

[mcx]

2 versions later. One PRICEY Server Agent later... still nothing like the (*hated*) old-school BE... Choose a folder, set filters, get the files, verify backup is done, delete files that were backed up.

Please oh please... think of people needing to archive file exports from those Enterprise applications that only export daily files as backup/archive!!!!

TY!

[aevans@ricoh.com.au]

+1 to this feature request please.
We have just migrated a customer from BE to Veeam and while they like the product they require archive to tape and then delete functionality (for very specific datasets)

[aceit]

Kind of agree with all the posts here requiring the feature.
For file based stuff delete after backup has been in backup softwares since the dawn of times.

While pre/post hooks are useful for other integrations (ie. signal external system etc.), my opinion is that they can't used here reliably (not really their use case) and you CANNOT leave this burden to customers reasonably (many things can go wrong, transactionally and the requirements for data integrity like delete after verification etc....), and it is almost "wrong" to suggest it... this kind of things must be handled by the backup software because has the visibility of the overall process and QA tested edge cases for all of us.

[merku]

I would need this feature too, but it seems like it wasn't implemented in v11 either

[Dima P.]

merku,

Correct we do not provide 'traditional' archiving and do not have options to delete source data after it's been backed up. I do recall couple of posts in the PowerShell subforum where customers used pre/post job scripts to delete files after tape out, so that might be a workaround. Thank you!

[vmtech123]

I would love the idea of something like VeeamZip for a fileshare/directory. and a tab under the tape or file infrastructure to view it.

With 2 sites, I do everything twice incase a tape fails, but I would love to be able to do a file to tape (to 2 locations as an option would be great) and name it.

The issue doing this as a "Job" is that I have to remove and add a new file location every time to a Media pool that never expires. That way I could essentially go back, delete the data, and restore it at a later time.

Having a "FileZip" or something with a cool Veeam name, could allow me to do a file - tape backup, (once again the option to select 2 spots would be amazing) Name it (Eg. Sales_Archive_data_2010) and Delete it off the SAN.

Having a spot with just these backups would make it easy to search the archives for what I am looking for.

I would assume Veeam does not want to be responsible for deleting customers data. You guys are in the OPPOSITE business A script to delete a folder after would be fine, or just manually deleting it myself as this isn't a "Job" or something that runs more than one time.

This is literally the LAST piece I need to get off TSM.