About ensuring successful copies using lifecycles

The process to create copies as part of a storage lifecycle policy differs from the process to create copies as set up in a policy. The policy's Configure Multiple Copies dialog box includes the option to Fail all copies. That option means that if one copy fails, the remaining copies can be set to either continue or fail.

In an SLP, all copies must be completed. An SLP initially tries three times to create a copy. If no copy is created, NetBackup continues to try, but less frequently.

The successful completion of copies is important because an SLP does not allow a copy to be expired before all copy operations in the SLP are complete. NetBackup changes the retention period of a copy to Infinity until all copies are created. After all copies are complete, the retention returns to the level as set in the policy.

To create successful copies, a Backup operation may be required to duplicate a backup onto the storage unit for another Backup operation.

Consider the following example: The operations list for an SLP contains two Backup operations to two storage units (BU_1, BU_2) and three Duplication operations.

The backup to BU_1 is successful, but the backup to BU_2 is unsuccessful.

To fulfill the backup on BU_2, NetBackup creates a duplication job from BU_1 to BU_2. The duplication job is in addition to the jobs that are run for the three duplication operations.

Duplication jobs can be controlled by using the nbstlutil command.