Automatic snapshot selection
To have NetBackup select the snapshot method, click on the policy Attributes tab. Note the following points:
If the policy is new, NetBackup selects a snapshot method when the backup starts (by default, the snapshot method is set to ).
If the policy had been configured for a particular snapshot method, click the option and set the snapshot method to that particular one. NetBackup selects a snapshot method when the backup starts.
Use of the auto method does not guarantee that NetBackup can select a snapshot method for the backup. NetBackup looks for a suitable method according to the following factors:
The client platform and policy type.
The presence of up-to-date software licenses, such as VxFS and VxVM.
How the client data is configured. For instance:
Whether a raw partition has been specified for a copy-on-write cache.
See Entering the cache.
Whether the client's data is contained in the VxVM volumes that were configured with one or more snapshot mirrors.
NetBackup uses the first suitable method found.
Note:
The auto method cannot select a snapshot method that is designed for a particular disk array, such as EMC_TimeFinder_Clone or HP_EVA_Vsnap. You must select the disk array method from the drop-down list on the Snapshot Options dialog box.
The auto method has the following advantages:
NetBackup can use a different snapshot method for each item in the list, or for each client in the policy. As a result, NetBackup has more flexibility in choosing a snapshot method, and you can circumvent the one-snapshot-method-per-policy restriction.
At the time of backup, NetBackup selects a snapshot method according to how the client is configured at that moment. If the VxFS or VxVM license on the client has expired, or if the client was recently reconfigured, NetBackup selects a snapshot method accordingly.