Virtual TapeServer 8.3 Configuration Guide

116 | Virtual TapeServer Configuration Guide
Restoring data
You can restore data in the following ways (if a capacity license is enabled on the server):
l Import from a physical library; this is the reverse of a tape-to-tape export job to an external
tape library and can be performed from the Manage External Data page of the web interface.
or
Import from a physical tape drive; this is the reverse of a tape-to-tape export to a standalone
drive and can be performed from the Manage External Data page.
Refer to "Enabling and Performing Tape-to-tape Exports" on page 39 for more information.
l Import from a physical library or drive, to import pre-existing tapes (dynamic import);
perform this operation from the Manage External Data page. Refer to the online help for
instructions.
l Import a virtual tape that was exported to one or more physical tapes; this is the reverse of a
stacked export job and can be performed from the Configure Tapes and Pools page. See
"Enabling and Performing Stacked Exports" on page 45 for details.
l Import a virtual tape on a remote host (replication target); this is the reverse of a replicate
job and can be performed from the Manage External Data page. See "Enabling and Configuring
Data Replication" on page 51 for details.
Otherwise, if a VTD license is enabled, you can import a physical tape to a virtual tape using the
Import/Export page of the web interface. The import feature was designed for occasional low-volume
use and requires that a standalone tape drive or simple cartridge autoloader is connected to VTS.
You must ensure that the tape drive is available and that appropriate tape media is installed before
beginning an import operation.
Erasing and deleting virtual tapes
Deleting a virtual tape removes it altogether, and its data cannot be recovered. Be careful when
deleting a virtual tape; its contents will no longer be available. To delete one or more virtual tapes,
you must create a Delete job. The job runs immediately after it is created.
You can erase the contents of a virtual tape but leaves the metadata and ANSI label of the virtual
tape file intact. When you erase a virtual tape, its modification date is not updated; the ctime (inode
change time) associated with the virtual tape file is updated. To erase one or more virtual tapes, you
must create an Erase job. The job runs immediately after it is created.
If Scan/Cleanup is enabled, you can configure VTS to automatically erase virtual tapes after they are
exported to tape by a stacked export job or after their retention periods expire. See "Enabling and
Configuring Scan/Cleanup" on page 125 for more information about enabling and configuring
Scan/Cleanup; using Scan/Cleanup is described below. See "Creating a pool" on page 87 for more
information about setting retention periods.