About multiple media servers with one master server
A protection domain refers collectively to the NetBackup master server, its NetBackup media servers, and its NetBackup clients. In a group of NetBackup servers, a client can have backups directed to any device on any server in the group.
Set up a NetBackup protection domain as follows:
One master server, which controls all backup scheduling.
Multiple media servers, which write the backup images to disk or removable media. They can have peripheral devices to provide additional storage.
Multiple protected NetBackup clients, which send their data to the media servers.
A common alternative strategy is to install extra peripherals on the clients that produce large amounts of data. The master server directs the data from the client to the client's peripherals, which reduces network traffic because the data does not traverse the network. This strategy also distributes the backup load between the master and the media servers.
Important factors to remember about master and media servers are as follows:
There can be only one master server in a group.
A NetBackup master server is a media server for itself but cannot be a media server for another master server.
Figure: Catalog location using multiple media servers shows where software is installed and where the NetBackup catalogs are located (by default).
Install NetBackup server software on each NetBackup server that has a peripheral that you want to include in a storage unit. The NetBackup installation program has choices for master and media server installation.
The master server is the default location for the NetBackup catalogs. The catalogs include the media and the volume database (emm_data.db). The volume database contains the media usage information and the volume information that are used during the backups.