Along with the basic Backup Exec software, there are a number of “add-on” options available. These are purchased separately, so it’s a good idea to plan ahead to determine what will be needed.
The Remote Agent
The basic license for a single copy of Backup Exec allows you to back up one Windows server. That’s it. You can back up as many workstations as you want, but each server requires something called a Remote Agent. There is a Remote Agent for Novell NetWare, as well as a Remote Agent for Windows Servers (often referred to as RAWS—pronounced “rozz”).
The Remote Agent can be quite confusing at first. This is partly because it is both a license and a Windows service. To back up an additional server, you must have a Remote Agent license installed on the media server as well as the Remote Agent service installed on the target server to be backed up.
Autoloader/Robotic Library Support
Once upon a time, if you wanted to use a robotic library with Backup Exec, you were required to purchase a special license for it. VERITAS dropped this requirement a few years ago. Robotic libraries are now supported without any additional licensing requirements. However, if the library contains more than one internal tape drive, you must purchase something called a “library expansion option” for each additional drive.
Library Expansion Option (LEO)
In addition to having multiple cartridge slots, some robotic libraries come with multiple drive heads. A drive head is simply the tape drive that is located inside your robotic library. Most libraries have only one drive head and can therefore only write to one cartridge at a time. Some have multiple drive heads, allowing multiple cartridges to be written to simultaneously. Although Backup Exec comes with free support for robotic libraries, a library expansion option is required for each additional drive head after the first one.
The Advanced Open File Option (AOFO)
When a file is being used by an application, it will typically flag itself as being in use, or “locked.” This tells the other applications that the file is currently busy and prevents another process from being able to access that file until the first process lets go. While this helps prevent corruption, it also makes life complicated for backup software, which often needs to back up files that are locked.
The Advanced Open File Option (AOFO) resolves this by taking a “snapshot” of the data that is to be backed up. When an AOFO-enabled backup job runs, it will back up any locked files from the snapshot instead of trying to access them at their original location.
The Database Options
VERITAS offers backup agents for several popular applications, including Microsoft Exchange, Microsoft SQL Server, Microsoft Sharepoint Server, Oracle, Lotus Domino Server, and SAP/R3. These agents are similar to AOFO in that they allow backups of files that are constantly locked. However, each database agent is individually tailored for the specific application for which it was designed. This allows for a greater amount of application-specific features to be addressed.
Intelligent Disaster Recovery (IDR)
How do you run a restore to a computer that has a blank hard drive and no operating system? The standard procedure in this case is to actually install the entire operating system first. Then you must go about connecting it to your network and reinstalling Backup Exec on it (if this was your media server). Once you’ve done all that, you still have to recatalog your tapes before running a restore. That’s a lot of work already, and you haven’t started the restore yet!
With the Intelligent Disaster Recovery Option (IDR), you can create a set of boot diskettes that will help you install a minimal operating system and allow you to start a restore without having to go through much of the aforementioned hassle.
In addition to boot disks, you also have the option of creating a single, bootable CD-ROM or even a bootable tape. Although it does save time, IDR won’t do everything for you. You’ll still have to sit through a scripted installation of Windows and do some initial configuration before the restore will actually run.
NetWare
VERITAS also offers a Remote Agent for NetWare. Using this option, you can back up an entire NetWare server, including volumes and NetWare Directory Services (NDS).
UNIX/Linux
Happily, Backup Exec does not currently require any special licensing to back up a UNIX or Linux server. You can install the UNIX/Linux agent onto any number of workstations or servers to be protected. However, don’t be surprised if this changes in the future.
Shared Storage Option (SSO)
If you plan to back up to devices over a fibre channel storage area network (SAN), you’ll need the Shared Storage Option (SSO). The “shared” part of the title refers to the fact that the library (or drive array) can be shared by multiple media servers. The Shared Storage Option is required to back up data to any device over fibre channel.
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