Media pools allow several systems to share the same backup volumes, ensuring efficient use of resources.

Media Pools

A media pool is a collection of volumes, such as 8mm tapes, that are managed by a BACKUP.UNET Input/Output provider (IOP). You can configure multiple hosts to use volumes from a single media pool; however, all volumes in a media pool must be readable by all IOPs associated with that pool. After you create a media pool you then bind it to an IOP.

A media pool:

must contain volumes of the same media type, i.e., you can not mix 8mm and 4mm tapes in the same pool.
may be further identified by function, e.g., two 8mm pools one for full backups ("8mm_full") and one for incrementals ("8mm_incr").
must be intended for the same backup format if using the append feature, because you cannot mix backup formats on the same volume. For example, if you will sometimes use tar and other times use cpio to back up your data, create separate pools such as "8mm_tar" and "8mm_cpio".

Assigning a Poolmaster

A poolmaster is a host that manages volume records for a media pool. Other hosts may be associated with a media pool but there is only one poolmaster.

To create a pool and assign a poolmaster:

From the command line interface, specify nvol -createpool poolname -poolmaster host.
From the Motif GUI, select Manage Tables Pools Add from the main menu. Enter a poolname, select a poolmaster, and change the blocking and blocksize if required.

Refer to the corresponding user's guide for complete instructions on creating pools and assigning a poolmaster.

Binding a Pool to a Host

After you create a media pool, you bind that pool to a host, called a provider. A media pool provider is a host that is running an IOP daemon. More than one host can be a provider for a given media pool. Each provider must have an appropriate device attached for each type of media pool to which it is bound. For example, host loki must have an 8mm device attached to it in order for loki to be a provider for media pool 8mm_pool.

To bind a pool to a host:

From the command line interface, specify nmaint -bindpool poolname
From the Motif GUI, no action is required. A pool is bound to a host automatically when a device is assigned to a pool.

Refer to the corresponding user's guide for complete instructions on binding pools to a host.

CHAPTER 10 Managing Media Pools

Table of Contents

Media Pools

Assigning a Poolmaster

Binding a Pool to a Host