How to backup NFS file systems using Avamar

1. Command line options override avtar.cmd. avtar.cmd overrides the dataset. If a command line parameter is specified more than once, the last copy of that flag in the parameter list wins.

For example if you have something like this:

avtar --server=testgrid ... --server=192.168.111.4

...then avtar will ignore the first --server parameter and connect to 192.168.111.4.

2. I would avoid using includes / excludes this way. The behaviour of these flags is not always straightforward. In the case you've described, the include will be ignored because the path in the include flag is not in the target list.

The target list is used to control the whole scope of what should be backed up (all client filesystems, C:/, /homes, etc.). The --include and --exclude flags are used to provide more fine-grained control of what is backed up inside that scope. For example, the --include flag is used in cases like this:

Dataset target list:

C:/

--exclude=*.mp3

--include=C:/Marketing Materials/Important Audio Backup/*.mp3

Edit: The configuration above would back up everything on the C drive, excluding all MP3 files except those found in the C:\Marketing Materials\Important Audio Backup\ folder.

It is possible to add filenames or paths to the target list in avtar.cmd by specifying the filenames or paths one per line but I would strongly recommend against doing this. Really. Don't do it. Target list modifications should always be made in the dataset.

dynamox  I don't think you're really sorry.

Ian says:  It is possible to add filenames or paths to the target list in avtar.cmd by specifying the filenames or paths one per line but I would strongly recommend against doing this. Really. Don't do it. Target list modifications should always be made in the dataset.

Why?   have I not read it somewhere in EMC doc's to use the avtar.cmd on the client to do excludes and includes.

and if I had to do it at the dataset - I would have to make datasets for each client that required something special.  And then make a group/policy for just that one client (lots of work, lots to clean up when a server is retired - if you remember)

My practicehas been if  I want it for ALL clients in the policy - do it at the dataset

but if it is something special for just that one client  - do it in the avtar.cmd

So why do you think that is a bad idea?

Sorry, let me clarify a couple of things.

There are three separate lists that control what is actually backed up during filesystem backups:

• The target list
• The exclude list
• The include list

The target list is the list of files and folders specified in the dataset. This is normally something like "All fixed disks" or some list of paths (C:/, D:/, etc.).

The exclude list is the subset of files and folders that would otherwise be backed up as part of the target list that should not be included in the backup.

The include list is a subset of the excluded files that we actually want backed up.

Adding excludes to avtar.cmd if they are client specific is perfectly reasonable as long as you're aware of the potential pitfalls of overly broad excludes. In a previous post, I mentioned a cautionary tale about a customer excluding *.dat in avtar.cmd, leading to the registry hives on the system being excluded from system state backups, for example.

My recommendation is that you should never add files to the target list from avtar.cmd. That is an administrative and auditing nightmare waiting to happen.

As an aside, you don't need separate groups and policies for each client that has client-specific excludes -- it's possible to override individual client datasets for clients in a group. You'd only have to define the dataset and set the client override. The best approach to take (avtar.cmd vs. multiple datasets) is very context-dependent so there's no right answer here -- the approach that backs up the right things at the right time with the least amount of administrative overhead is the approach you should take.

Ian,

if/when you have time can you please share some examples how target list / include / exclude interact and some gotchas.