NetBackup host IDs and host ID-based certificates
Each host in a NetBackup domain has a unique identity, which is referred to as a host ID or a Universally Unique Identifier (UUID). The system randomly generates Host IDs; these IDs not tied to any property of the hardware. The host ID remains the same even when the host name changes. The host ID is used in many certificate management operations to identify the host.
In some cases a host can have multiple host IDs:
If a host obtains certificates from multiple NetBackup domains, it has multiple host IDs that correspond to each NetBackup domain.
When the master server is configured as part of a cluster, each node in the cluster receives a unique host ID. An additional host ID is assigned for the virtual name. For example, if the master server cluster is composed of N nodes, the number of host IDs that are allocated for the master server cluster is N + 1.
The master server is the Certificate Authority (CA), which maintains a list of all of the host IDs that have certificates (or revoked certificates). It assigns host ID-based certificates to NetBackup 8.1 and later hosts and stores the host information in the nbdb database.