Chapter 7 Using Minicopy for Backing Up Data (Integrity servers and Alpha)

Table of Contents

What Is Minicopy?

Different Uses for Copy and Minicopy

Why Use Minicopy?

Procedure for Using Minicopy

Minicopy Restrictions

Write Bitmaps and Dissimilar Device Shadowing Caution

Creating Bitmaps

Creating a Bitmap With DISMOUNT
Creating a Bitmap With MOUNT

Starting a Minicopy Operation

Master and Local Bitmaps

Managing Bitmaps With DCL Commands

Determining Bitmap Support and Activity
Displaying Bitmap IDs
Displaying Bitmap Status of Cluster Members
Deleting Bitmaps

Performance Implications of Bitmaps

Guidelines for Using a Shadow Set Member for Backup

Removing a Shadow Set Member for Backup
Data Consistency Requirements
Application Activity
RMS Considerations
Mapped Files
Database Systems
Base File System
$QIO File Access and VIOC
Multiple Shadow Sets
Host-Based RAID
OpenVMS Cluster Operation
Testing
Restoring Data
Revalidation of Data Consistency Methods

This chapter describes the minicopy feature of Volume Shadowing for OpenVMS introduced in OpenVMS Version 7.3. Minicopy and its enabling technology, bitmaps, are fully implemented on OpenVMS Integrity and OpenVMS Alpha systems. In an OpenVMS Alpha Cluster system , only one Alpha system is required in order to use minicopy.

The primary purpose of minicopy is to reduce the time it takes to return a shadow set member to the shadow set. The shadow set member is typically removed for the purpose of backing up the data and is then returned to membership in the shadow set.