RE: ontape -c questions

-----Original Message----- From: Huy Vu [SMTP:huyv@usa.net] Sent: Tuesday, July 06, 1999 11:20 AM To: informix-list@iiug.org Subject: ontape -c questions Hi all, I'm using 'ontape -c' command to run the backup log manually to the cassette but I still confuse about it. I would like to make sure if my plan for backup log is good. Here are my questions: 1-I start the 'ontape -c' every morning and stop it before going home, so is it the 'ontape -c' command will overwrite the contents of the cassette every morning after I started the 'ontape -c'? [Murray Wood] It will overwrite. If you have a problem at 6am you go back to your Archive? You could have a problem from the last log backed up in the evening until the backup is complete in the morning. Another tape drive, even a slow one, cannot be that expensive? 2-I have the full informix backup with 'ontape -s -L 0' every night from Monday to Friday with 5 cassettes rotation. The same for backup logs with 5 cassettes rotation in the days. [Murray Wood] Thats a reasonable plan. You can never go back further than 1 week. I have known reasons for people to want data from older archive - restored onto another machine similarly configured to the production server. Cost in tapes versus a once requirement for older data. Some keep every Friday for a month or every month end for 6 months. Take you pick or not at all. Do I need 5 cassettes for backup logs from Monday to Friday or just use the same cassette which will be overwritten everyday....? How long the backup log should to be keep for recovery plan? [Murray Wood] You must have more than 1. In this case 5 is a simple number. I'm newbie in disaster recovery informix instant and I don't have chance to test it.....:-( [Murray Wood] It is essential to TEST your recovery procedures and ensure that they work! There is no point in doing backups unless you are also sure that a restore will actually work. I hope receiving some advises from you... Thanks in advance for any helps.... H.V