Best Practice Guide

NetBackup 6.5, 7.0 and 7.1 from Symantec with DXi-Series

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Table of Contents
DXi-Series Best Practices for NetBackup ................................................................... 1
Scope ....................................................................................................................................... 1

Installation Recommendations .................................................................................... 2

Virtual Tape Library Presentation: Fibre Channel .................................................................... 2 Robot/Media Changer Device Serialization and Recommendations ................................................. 2 Links to Mapping Files and Supported Device by NetBackup............................................................ 2 Supported Hardware Compatibility List .............................................................................................. 2 Virtual Tape Drive Device Description and Recommendation ........................................................... 3 Fibre Channel SAN Zoning ................................................................................................................. 3 DXi Tape Drive Emulations and Recommend Drivers ....................................................................... 4 Number of Concurrent Tape Drives in Use ........................................................................................ 4 Quantity and Capacity of Tapes ......................................................................................................... 5 Suggested Tape Cartridge Capacity .................................................................................................. 5 Tape Drive LUN Mapping ................................................................................................................... 6 Application Specific Path to Tape ....................................................................................................... 6 Network Attached Storage Presentation: GbE ......................................................................... 6 OpenStorage API Support........................................................................................................ 7 Quantum Accent Support ......................................................................................................... 7 Replication Recommendations................................................................................................. 7

Integration Recommendations ..................................................................................... 8

NetBackup with DXi Series Configuration Guide ............................................................................... 8 VTL - Fibre Channel ................................................................................................................. 8 Performance Tuning ........................................................................................................................... 8 Eliminating Interference from the Host System ............................................................................................. 8 Fragment Size for the Storage Unit ............................................................................................................... 8 Performance Gains with Buffer Settings in NetBackup ................................................................................. 9 Network Buffering For Windows Servers Overview .................................................................................... 10 DXi as Network Attached Storage .......................................................................................... 12 General Best Practices for DXi as a NAS target. ............................................................................. 12 Network Attached Storage Settings and Tuning .............................................................................. 12 NFS/CIFS Recommended Mount Options ............................................................................. 12 Sun Solaris NFS Settings ................................................................................................................. 13 Linux NFS Settings ........................................................................................................................... 15 IBM AIX NFS Client Settings ............................................................................................................ 16 HP HP-UX NFS Settings .................................................................................................................. 16 Testing the Source Data to Isolate Bottlenecks ............................................................................... 19 Utilization Recommendations .................................................................................... 20 Deduplication Limitations ....................................................................................................... 20 Good Candidates for Data De-Duplication ....................................................................................... 20 Not So Good Candidates for Data De-Duplication ........................................................................... 20 Space Reclamation ................................................................................................................ 20 Recommended Handling of Expired Media ............................................................................ 20

Additional Information ................................................................................................ 21

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DXi-Series Best Practices for NetBackup

Quantum Best Practices Guide for DXi-Series (DXi4500, DXi6500-Series, DXi6700, DXi6701/DXi6702, DXi7500-Series and DXi8500) and NetBackup by Symantec is provided to assist system administrators and backup administrators in getting the most out of their investment. Quantums global field teams and development engineering teams contributed their expertise in creating these recommendations. The Quantum Best Practices Guides are routinely updated to include the latest enhancements; check with your Quantum sales team for the latest version.

Scope
The intended audience for this guide is our customers and field sales teams as guidance to enhance the installation, integration, and utilization of the Quantum DXi-Series. Specifically, this guide provides recommendations and considerations impacting installing, integrating, and utilizing the DXi-Series products specifically for NetBackup by Symantec environments.

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Installation Recommendations
Virtual Tape Library Presentation: Fibre Channel
Robot/Media Changer Device Serialization and Recommendations
Quantum is a leading manufacturer of automation devices and extends this knowledge and experience to the Virtual Tape Library (VTL) disk-based solutions. One of the key components to ensure that SANconnected physical and virtual tape libraries are detected properly by backup servers is serialization. Serialization provides a unique identifier for each device in a physical or virtual tape library to automate device association from multiple backup servers. These identifiers, returned by the VTL devices, are separate from the element address that defines the position of devices in the library. The element address is used by the librarys robot or medium changer to manage the tape drives. Serialization allows the servers running the data protection application (the media servers) to coordinate tape drive configuration by aligning the device serial number with the devices element address. This enables the data protection application to automatically discover the devices in the library during the device discovery and configuration phase (e.g., the NetBackup Device Configuration Wizard), reducing the potential for improper configuration. This feature enables Symantec NetBackup device discovery to align these two addresses. If the Device Configuration Manager does not serialize the devices listed, do not commit the changes, and check the VTL online state. The DXi VTL partition must be online for this to function properly. The Quantum recommended device identification for each DXi system is the native mode (e.g., use the DXi6700, DXi7500 or DXi8500 inquiry response string as the identification for each model respectively). This allows product identification for the service teams at both Symantec and Quantum. When using the native device mode, Windows environments will display the device in the device manager as an unknown media changer. This is normal and not an error or problem to NetBackup. If the customer environment has requirements for a specific changer device for compatibility, the Quantum DXi products support emulation of many popular devices to meet those requirements. Please note NetBackup requires that VTLs be configured with the native inquiry string. Emulation stings are not supported. Quantum recommends installing NetBackups latest device mapping file to support properly identifying devices in NetBackup.

Links to Mapping Files and Supported Device by NetBackup

Links to current device mappings files are located in the Hardware Compatibility List or at the locations below. Windows platforms: <http://www.symantec.com/docs/TECH129536> Linux/UNIX platforms: <http://www.symantec.com/docs/TECH129535>

Supported Hardware Compatibility List

NetBackup enterprise server hardware compatibility list: http://www.symantec.com/business/support/index?page=landing&key=15143

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Virtual Tape Library operation can be tested with the robtest utility included with NetBackup. Details of the robtest utility can be downloaded form the NetBackup support site: http://seer.entsupport.symantec.com/docs/274063.htm

Virtual Tape Drive Device Description and Recommendation

Quantum DXi products support multiple tape drive emulations and allow user-definable capacities of tape cartridges to support the drive type. The drive type selection does not internally impose any throttling of the ingest rate. The host system uses tape device drivers to communicate with the virtual tape drives and the NetBackup application. The qualified tape drive emulations published on the hardware compatibility list are HP and IBM LTO drives which have the widest support across platforms. Quantum recommends using the Symantec tape drive drivers for backup hosts running the Windows 32bit operating systems. For backup hosts running the 64-bit versions of the Windows operating system, the OEM tape device drivers are recommended. Symantecs complete tape drive driver recommendations can be located in their hardware compatibility list (see above). Quantum recommends against using the Windows update function to get the latest tape drive drivers, as it is possible that Windows Update can find unexpected driver matches for a tape drive. These unexpected matches often are not the same as those supplied by the tape drive manufacturer and may introduce unexpected incompatibilities. This can result in a change to the device in the Windows Device Manager.

Fibre Channel SAN Zoning

There are several different approaches to zone a Fibre Channel SAN for a variety of different SAN objects. The best practice for zoning a single backup server or a group of backup servers to connect to a single shared backup target could become quite complex. If the backup server consists of two or more Fibre Channel nodes, a single object such as a tape drive could possibly be presented to the backup server multiple times. The Fibre Channel Host Bus Adaptor (HBA) is normally configured as a SAN initiator because the request for a dialog or transaction is normally initiated by the backup server via the FC HBA. The object that receives the signal from the SAN Backup initiator is called the SAN Backup Target or SAN Target. Implementing a SAN zone dictates that the SAN Initiator Node or port on the HBA is assigned to a zone that speaks to only one target Node or port is called a Single Initiator Zoning method. By implementing Single Initiator Zoning, an administrator will have a much greater flexibility (and confidence) with adds, moves, and changes as each Initiator is separately zoned and changes won't affect other Initiator/Target combos in the same fabric. The following illustration shows a Single Initiator Zoning method across multiple servers that contain 2 FC Nodes / ports.

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Notice that a single FC Node could reside in multiple zones. This is due to the fact that it has multiple targets to contact.

DXi Tape Drive Emulations and Recommend Drivers

All drive types are tested by Quantum, and any limitations are listed below: DLT7000: Use the Symantec driver or OEM driver SDLT 600 and DLT-S4: Use the Symantec driver or OEM driver HP LTO drives: Use the Symantec driver or OEM driver IBM LTO drives: IBM Driver 6.1.5.4 with DPO function for 64-bit systems Please note: Quantum does not support mixing drive types in a single partition.

Number of Concurrent Tape Drives in Use

Each DXi model has a maximum number of virtual tape drives that can be configured. Each DXi model has a maximum aggregate throughput rate that will be divided relatively equally between the virtual tape drives in use. That does not prohibit a single tape drive from utilizing all available bandwidth. The media server typically determines individual tape drive performance. It is not a good idea to configure the maximum number of virtual tape drives and to perform I/O through all of them concurrently. Better performance can be achieved by using a subset of those virtual tape drives at the same time. Quantum expects the customer configuration to distribute those virtual tape drives

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among multiple media servers to simplify initial installation by providing dedicated resources to each media server. Quantum recommends that backups be staggered such that only a subset of drives are in use at one time. During a backup the data transfer rate is primarily controlled by the media server because the DXi system does not restrict the ingest data rate. This creates the opportunity for one or more media servers to burst data at a higher rate, leaving the remaining virtual tape drives less bandwidth. Conversely, it supports the coexistence of fast data streams with slow streams for maximum utilization of the available bandwidth. Note: Increasing the number of concurrently active virtual tape drives does not increase the aggregate DXi bandwidth and could result in a failed backup job due to a timeout from a bandwidth-starved operation. The table below lists the recommended maximum number of concurrently active virtual tape drives for the respective system bandwidth.
DXi Model DXi6700 DXi6701/DXi6702 DXi7500 Express DXi7500 Enterprise DXi8500 Maximum Virtual Tape Drives 80 80 80 160 160 Maximum Aggregate Bandwidth 3.5TB/Hr or 972 MB/sec 5.8TB/Hr or 1610 MB/sec 1.28TB/Hr or 355 MB/sec 4TB/Hr or 1,111MB/sec 6.4TB/Hr or 1,777MB/sec Recommended Maximum Number of Concurrently-Active Virtual Tape Drives Up to 48 concurrently-active virtual tape drives ** Up to 80 concurrently-active virtual tape drives ** Up to 17 concurrently-active virtual tape drives ** Up to 55 concurrently-active virtual tape drives ** Up to 88 concurrently-active virtual tape drives**

** Based on a user wanting no less than20 MB/sec per virtual tape drive.

Quantity and Capacity of Tapes

Quantum suggests not oversubscribing the device capacity when initially creating tape cartridges, and recommends that the DXi installation team show the customer how to create additional virtual tape cartridges to be added as needed. This recommendation is to assist the user with managing the available space on the DXi device. The initial number of tapes to create should be based on the sizing exercise performed by the Quantum System Engineer. The DXi system can send alerts when the unit detects the user-selectable capacity point. Quantum recommends this feature be configured and utilized to alert the user before unknowingly arriving at a lowspace condition. When the backup environment requires additional virtual tapes cartridges and there is sufficient space available, the user can add additional virtual tape cartridges to a partition and run an inventory to update the NetBackup database.

Suggested Tape Cartridge Capacity

Space on tape cartridges cannot be reused until all backup data on that cartridge has expired. The greater the cartridges capacity, the longer it typically takes for all data on that cartridge to expire. Expired data continues to take up space on the virtual tape cartridge as well as in the DXi. Having tape cartridges with a lesser capacity is more desirable because tapes are returned to the scratch pool for reuse sooner. There is virtually no relationship between the configured capacity of a virtual tape cartridge and the tape drive emulation that has been configured for the partition: Any backup/restore operation will span the number of tapes required, ignoring the configured capacity. Any vaulting/duplicating operation performed by the backup application will ignore the virtual capacity when writing to another cartridge, whether virtual or physical. DXi8500, DXi7500, DXi6700 and DXi6701/DXi6702 will limit you to the maximum capacity permitted by the tape drive emulation; the minimum is 5GB.

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Be aware that capacity utilization for DXi8500, DXi7500, DXi6700 and DXi6701/DXi6702 is tracked in COMPRESSED GB and the data is stored compressed. That is, 100GB of data that is 2:1 compressible will report that it occupies 50GB of virtual tape cartridge space.

If Application Specific Path to Tape is utilized, the ultimate cartridge destination size is the suggested size. Quantums general guidance is to specify a smaller virtual tape cartridge capacity (such as 100GB) for the reasons mentioned above.

Tape Drive LUN Mapping

Quantum recommends mapping the device starting with LUN 0 on each port and not skipping any LUNs. Quantum recommends a best practice of zoning the VTL devices and the NetBackup media servers to prevent other servers from taking control of the VTL resources. Additionally, Quantum recommends using the HBA driver to bind the devices to a specific address. This helps keep devices in the same order after a reboot. Quantum DXi-Series VTL devices support reserve and release to accommodate the SSO NetBackup option. The option allows devices to be shared between media servers. The advantage is having a pool of drives available to each media server. Other SAN architectures assign drives to each media server and eliminate the shared function. For both conditions, it is a good practice to keep the NetBackup media server separate from the production server to eliminate downtime from maintenance. This requires the media servers to have a fast network connection to the source data.

Application Specific Path to Tape

When creating physical tapes from virtual tapes in a DXi8500, DXi7500, DXi6700 and DXi6701/DXi6702 users have two options: Cloning tapes through the NetBackup Media Server, or Using the DXi Application Specific Path to Tape option in conjunction with NetBackup "Direct to Tape" function Using the Application Specific Path to Tape combined with Direct to Tape has important advantages for the end user. The process creates physical media from the data stored on virtual tapes using a dedicated Fibre Channel connection and a directly connected tape library. The data is moved by the DXi, and does not use the resources of the Media Server, freeing the Media Server's resources for other operations. But because the operation uses the NetBackup Direct to Tape utility to coordinate the data duplication, there is a single point of management and the NetBackup catalog tracks the virtual and the physical tapes as separate instances and allows the user to assign them different expiration policies. A user might, for example, decide to expire the disk based virtual tape copies after 60 days but retain the copy of the data on physical tape for 24 months. The close integration of DXi and NetBackup also allows users to change media types and sizes when they move from virtual to physical while maintaining a single point of management--data from several small virtual cartridges, for example, might be consolidated onto a single, larger physical piece of media. For details see the Quantum DXi8500, DXi7500 and DXi6700: Symantec NetBackup Application Specific Configuration Guide 6-66537-xxx).

Network Attached Storage Presentation: GbE

The Quantum Network-Attached Storage (NAS) appliance is intended to act as a target for backup applications. This includes Network-Attached Storage or shares. NetBackup can use the NAS shares as Disk Storage Units (DSUs).

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Note: The NAS shares created on the DXi system are not recommended for general-purpose storage. Quantum DXi systems support both CiFS (Windows-based) and NFS shares. Each system can support multiple NAS shares with a maximum of 128 shares. Quantum recommends that users create only the required number of shares for each media server. DXi systems can support concurrent NFS and CiFS shares and can support Fibre Channel VTLs concurrently with those NFS and CiFS shares. When using NAS shares on the DXi systems, Quantum recommends creating at least one share for each media server to use. Media servers should not share the NAS shares during normal backup operations. Root access to an NFS share is not allowed, and the access rights will be changed to nfsnobody as a security precaution. This does not impact access to the share from the NetBackup application.

OpenStorage API Support

The integration of Symantec's OpenStorage (OST) API initiative with Quantum's DXi4500, DXi6500 Series, DXi6701/DXi6702, DXi7500 and DXi8500 disk backup, deduplication, and replication solutions provides end users with a highly optimized solution for managing backup data across multiple locations and storage tiers. The DXi's OST support allows users to set up Storage Servers and Logical Storage Units (LSUs) on the DXi units, and to use NetBackup to duplicate data between DXi-based LSU's in different locations, providing disk-to-disk DR protection while leveraging the DXi's deduplication technology to dramatically reduce network bandwidth requirements. Beginning with NetBackup 6.5.4, the DXi6540, DXi6550, DXi6701/DXi6702, DXi7500 and DXi8500 also provide support for the OST Direct to Tape functionality. This will allow users to move data written to DXi-based LSUs directly to a tape library using the data movement resources of the DXi while NetBackup manages the data on disk and tape with independent retention policies. For complete details, refer to Symantec's OST documentation, and Quantum Configuration Guides: Quantum DXi-Series Symantec NetBackup OST Configuration Guide 6-67079-xx

DXi Accent Support

Designed for bandwidth-constrained environments, DXi Accent dramatically increases backup performance using a hybrid-mode workflow to move part of the deduplication process to the backup server so that only new blocks in each backup are sent to the appliance. For complete details on configuration of Netbackup with Accent, refer to Quantum Configuration Guides: Quantum DXi-Series Symantec NetBackup OST Configuration Guide 6-67079-xx DXi-Series Configuration Guide with NetBackup PN 20020429-xxx

Replication Recommendations
For first-time replication setup, it is important to manually replicate the name space once the target system is configured and is online. This facilitates the first replication following the first backup to that share/partition. The replication is only available to VTL and NAS shares with de-duplication enabled. The DXi supports 128-bit AES encryption for replication. Data is only encrypted while in transit between replication source and replication target. Data is unencrypted upon arrival at the replication target. Encryption may affect replication performance. It should be disabled if the customers WAN is already secured. Please refer to the Quantum DXi-Series Best Practices for Data Replication (Document 20020430-xxx).

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Integration Recommendations
NetBackup with DXi Series Configuration Guide
The NetBackup with DXi Series Configuration Guide contains additions additional information about configuring solutions with NetBackup (see the DXi-Series Configuration Guide with NetBackup PN 20020429-xxx)

VTL - Fibre Channel

Performance Tuning
Combining our in-house testing, partner information sharing and customer feedback, we have found enhanced performance for NetBackup environments by using the following tuning parameters: Eliminating Interference from the Host System According to Microsoft: A conflict in Windows Server 2003 causes a Test Unit Ready (TUR) request issue on SCSI-attached and fiber-attached devices. When this issue occurs, an overflow of TUR requests causes the storage unit not to respond or to respond slowly to SCSI commands. In a SAN environment, any Windows Server 2003-based computer that is zoned to detect the Tape Backup Unit hardware can send TUR requests. The cause and workaround are documented in the Microsoft knowledge base article number 842411. Microsoft support link: (http://support.microsoft.com/kb/842411/en-us). Fragment Size for the Storage Unit Based on customer feedback and performance tuning, changing the fragment size for the storage unit in NetBackup from the default to 2000 balances backup and restore operations. The fragment size indicates the size for a single fragment before a file mark is inserted. When restoring a file, the operation must search the full fragment. Using the smaller size allows the operation to search a limited area of the backup.

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Figure 1. Fragment Size Change

Performance Gains with Buffer Settings in NetBackup Three main settings in NetBackup have been shown to have a major performance impact for backups: the size of the data buffer, the number of the data buffers, and the size of the network data buffers. SIZE_DATA_BUFFERS After changing this value, it is important to test both backups and restores, because sometimes data can be written at the modified size but potentially cannot be read at the modified size. Our lab environment testing and field experience has been positive using the recommended 262,144 block size. To change the SIZE_DATA_BUFFERS setting: 1. Create a file called SIZE_DATA_BUFFERS in the <INSTALL_PATH>\\NetBackup\\db\config. Note: The file name is case sensitive and must have no extension. 2. Add the value 262144 in this file. Note: If the file is not present, the default value for the SIZE_DATA_BUFFER is 65,536. Windows-specific guidance to use 256K block size: Windows Server 2003 requires that SP2 be installed; otherwise, the maximum allowed is 64K. After this file is created you do not have to cycle any services. The change will be done when the next backup job starts. In combination with the change in block size, the number of buffers used will impact overall system performance. The default setting for the number of buffers used is 16. Increasing the number of buffers al-

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lows more data to be buffered before being sent to the device. Our lab testing has yielded better results using 32 for the number of buffers. NUMBER_DATA_BUFFERS To change the NUMBER_DATA_BUFFERS setting: 1. Create the <INSTALL_PATH\NetBackup\db\config\NUMBER_DATA_BUFFERS file. Note: The file name is case sensitive and must have no extension. 2. Add the value 32 in this file Note: If the file is not present, the default value 16 will be used. After this file is created you do not have to cycle any services. The change will be done when the next backup job starts. Network Buffering For Windows Servers Overview When a backup is initiated, the client packages data of the amount specified by the Buffer_size value, and then transfers the information to the media server, which in turn buffers that data in the NET_BUFFER_SZ. When the NET_BUFFER_SZ is full, it transfers data to the array of space created by a combination of NUMBER_DATA_BUFFERS and SIZE_DATA_BUFFERS. As soon as at least one of the SIZE_DATA_BUFFERS is full, the information is written to the tape drive. NET_BUFFER_SZ Note the NET_BUFFER_SZ value is the size of the buffer on the media server that receives data from the client server. To change the Net_Buffer_SZ: 1. Create the NET_BUFFER_SZ file in the <INSTALL_PATH>\NetBackup directory. Note: The file name is case sensitive and must have no extension. The value in the file must be a multiple of 1024. If the file is not present, the default value 262144 (or 256K) is used. 2. Add the appropriate value to this file. Our lab testing has yielded improved performance by matching the Buffer_Size on the clients to NET_BUFFER_SZ on the media server. Buffer_size Note: The value of the Buffer_size does not show up in the bptm log file, but can be viewed and set from the master server or by modifying a registry value. The default value for the Buffer_size setting is 32K. Changing the client server, the buffer size (Buffer_size) can be modified from the application user interface. Changing the Client Buffer_size (called communications buffer):

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From the NetBackup Administration console, Host Properties | Clients, double-click the client you are configuring. Expand the options under Windows Client | select Client Settings. Change the Communications buffer to the desired size in KB.

Figure 2. Communication Buffer Size

For additional information on the settings, see our partner site link: http://support.veritas.com/docs/244652

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DXi as Network Attached Storage

General Best Practices for DXi as a NAS target.
In Windows Active Directory environments, the share acts as the target for the NetBackup Media Server. The share is not intended as primary storage or drag-and-drop storage. A best practice is to create a new account and workgroup as opposed to joining the domain to limit the access and prevent accidental file deletion by another user. Quantum recommends users not reconfigure or delete NAS shares while data is being written. There is no mechanism to detect the I/O and provide a warning to the user. Use a dedicated network for backup data or use QoS features that guarantee network bandwidth. Another option would be to use virtual networks (VLANs) to segregate backup from production network traffic. Configure network interface cards (NICs) in servers, clients and set routers to full duplex. Use only CAT 5e or CAT 6 cables (1Gb/s rated cables). If using a DNS server, verify the DNS server configuration settings are correct using nslookup on the host name as well as the IP address It is also a good idea to add the HOST NAME and IP Address to the host file Use multiple DXi ports when connecting to the network. The more DXi Ports used the better the performance capability will be across the ports. For redundancy, connect a least two DXi ports to an Ethernet switch. Set each switch port used by the DXi to auto-negotiate/auto-sensing. The DXi network interface cards are preset to auto/auto and cannot be changed.

Network Attached Storage Settings and Tuning

If you experience slow performance on disk storage units and disk staging storage units, implement the following recommendations: Increase the data buffers used by Symantec NetBackup disk manager process on the master and media servers. The Default value is set to 262144 (256K). Create a file <install path>/usr/openv/netbackup/db/config/SIZE_DATA_BUFFERS_DISK Add the value 1048576 to the file content. Note: The file name is case sensitive. Create a file <install path>/netbackup/db/config/NUMBER_DATA_BUFFERS_DISK Add the value 16 to the file. This can be increased based on available memory.

NFS/CIFS Recommended Mount Options

The following additional mount options are recommended for all NFS clients: Use NFSv3, not NFSv2. Do not use sync or noac mount options.

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Use the largest rsize/wsize that both the client and server support since the client and server will negotiate down. Use 1048576 (the default for many clients) since this is the maximum supported by DXi. 1. Mount with rsize/wsize set to 1M.
mount o vers=3,tcp,rsize=1048576,wsize=1048576

2. Verify the mount options by running the command cat /proc/mounts NOTE: The older versions of Linux (pre-2.6.16) only support maximum of 32K rsize/wsizes that are not optimal. 2.6.18 and recent versions showed better performance.

Sun Solaris NFS Settings

NOTE: The commands are based on Solaris 10 client.
Solaris# uname a SunOS 5.10 Sun 4u Sparc SUNw Sun-Fire-v245

Step # 1

Solaris TCP/IP Settings

For OST configurations; 8M buffer size is recommended for DXi software versions 1.4.3 and later. The buffer size for earlier versions was 4M. For the most current information and tuning details, please refer to the following documents: OST Plug-in Installation Instructions. 6-67074-xx Quantum DXi-Series Symantec NetBackup OST Configuration Guide 6-67079-xx

For NAS configurations set socket buffer size to 4M.

Solaris# ndd set /dev/tcp tcp_xmit_hiwat 4194304 Solaris# ndd set /dev/tcp tcp_recv_hiwat 4194304 Solaris# ndd set /dev/tcp tcp_max_buf 4194304 Solaris# ndd set /dev/tcp tcp_cwnd_max 2097152 NOTE: 1M and 4M are both fine. Also, as per Solaris documentation, some of these can be added in /etc/system file for persistence. set tcp:tcp_xmit_hiwat = 4194304 set tcp:tcp_recv_hiwat = 4194304 NOTE: Set the socket buffers before doing mounts from clients. If they are already mounted, clients need to unmount and remount for the settings to take place. The unmount and remount may be done after the client is fully configured.

3.

Verify the settings by issuing the command

ndd get /dev/tcp tcp_recv_hiwat

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OPTIONAL. If your client has multiple NICs bonding can be beneficial. Create Link aggregation group with LACP.
Solaris# dladm create-aggr d bge0 d bge1 1 Solaris# ifconfig aggr1 unplumb Solaris# dladm modify-aggr P L4 l active 1 Solaris# ifconfig aggr1 plumb <ip> netmask <netmask> up

Verify the settings by issuing the commands:

dladm show-aggr dladm show-aggr -L

Step# 1

Solaris NFS Client Settings

Add the following lines to /etc/system to support > 32K rsize/wsize.
set nfs:nfs3_bsize=1048576 set nfs:nfs3_max_transfer_size=1048576 set nfs:nfs3_max_threads=32 set maxphys=1048576 NOTE: this step needs a reboot, prior to mounting (step 3 below).

2.

Maximize parallelism between an NFS client and its servers; set the following in the /etc/system file
set rpcmod:clnt_max_conns = 8

3.

Mount with rsize/wsize set to 1M.

mount o vers=3,tcp,rsize=1048576,wsize=1048576 NOTE: If the settings in Step 3 are executed correctly, the default rsize, wsize should be 1M without a need for specifying in the mount command. NOTE: forcedirectio may not be available on all versions of Solaris

4. 5.

Verify the actual rsize and wsize.

nfsstat m

Maximize the contiguous blocks on the NFS share with the following command
tunefs a 256 /<SHARENAME>

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Linux NFS Settings

Step # 1 Linux TCP/IP Settings
For OST configurations; 8M buffer size is recommended for DXi software versions 1.4.3 and later. The buffer size for earlier versions was 4M. For the most current information and tuning details, please refer to the following documents: OST Plug-in Installation Instructions. 6-67074-xx Quantum DXi-Series Symantec NetBackup OST Configuration Guide 6-67079-xx

For NAS configurations set socket buffer settings to 4M default. Append these lines to /etc/sysctl.conf
net.ipv4.tcp_rmem = 4194304 4194304 4194304 net.ipv4.tcp_wmem = 4194304 4194304 4194304 net.ipv4.tcp_mem = 10485760 10485760 10485760 net.core.netdev_max_backlog = 30000 Run the command sysctl p for the newly added configuration to take effect. Verify the configuration by running sysctl net.ipv4.tcp_rmem, it should show 4194304 4194304 4194304. Note: Set the socket buffers before doing mounts from clients. If they are already mounted, clients need to unmount and remount for the settings to take place. The unmount and remount may be done after the client is fully configured.

OPTIONAL. If your client has multiple NICs bonding can be beneficial. Create Link aggregation group with LACP
And add bonded round robin policy by adding this line in /etc/modprobe.conf: options bonding mode=6 miimon=500 [NOTE: During this testing, in lieu of LACP, Layer3+4 xmit_hash policy was also successfully used to reduce TCP retransmissions. In the /etc/modprobe.conf, add the line options bonding mode=2 xmit_hash_policy=layer3+4 miimon=500 NOTE: this step needs a reboot.

Step# 1

Linux NFS Client Settings Mount with rsize/wsize set to 1M. This testing almost always had at least 4 mounts to the DXI. Each mount was to one unique IP address.
mount o vers=3,tcp,rsize=1048576,wsize=1048576 NOTE: The older versions of Linux (pre-2.6.16) only support maximum of 32K rsize/wsizes that are not optimal. 2.6.18 and recent versions showed better performance.

Verify the mount options by running the command

cat /proc/mounts

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IBM AIX NFS Client Settings

Step# 1. AIX Ethernet Interface Settings
Configure the Ethernet channel by using the smit etherchannel command.
OPTIONAL. If your client has multiple NICs bonding can be beneficial.

Step # 1

AIX TCP/IP Settings

Change socket buffer settings to 4M default.
Append these lines to /etc/sysctl.conf /usr/sbin/no -o tcp_sendspace=4194304 /usr/sbin/no -o tcp_recvspace=4194304

To make them permanent, add the following lines into the /etc/rc.net file: /usr/sbin/no -o tcp_sendspace=4194304 /usr/sbin/no -o tcp_recvspace=4194304

Step# 1
Mount with rsize/wsize set to 1M.

AIX NFS Client Settings

mount o vers=3,tcp,rsize=1048576,wsize=1048576 NOTE: The AIX in the test ignored the rsize, wsize and defaulted to 65536

HP HP-UX NFS Settings

Step # 1 HPUX TCP/IP Settings
Change socket buffer settings to 4M default.
# ndd -set /dev/tcp tcp_recv_hiwater_def 4194304 # ndd -set /dev/tcp tcp_xmit_hiwater_def 4194304 To make the changes permanent add the following lines to the /etc/rc.config.d/nddconf file and issue the command ndd c to activate the changes: TRANSPORT_NAME[0]=tcp NDD_NAME[0]=tcp_recv_hiwater_def NDD_VALUE[0]=4194304 TRANSPORT_NAME[1]=tcp NDD_NAME[0]=tcp_xmit_hiwater_def NDD_VALUE[0]=4194304

OPTIONAL. If your client has multiple NICs bonding can be beneficial.

See HP-UX System Administration documentation.

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Step # 1

HPUX NFS Client Settings

In order to support greater than the default maximum of 32K rsize/wsize do the following:.
# kctune nfs3_bsize=1048576 # kctune nfs3_max_transfer_size=1048576 # kctune nfs3_max_transfer_size_cots=1048576 confirm they were added to the Tunable entries section of the file /stand/system: # cat /stand/system This change will take effect either after a reboot or after the NFS file systems are unmounted and remounted.

2 3

Mount with rsize/wsize set to 1M.

mount o vers=3,tcp,rsize=1048576,wsize=1048576

Verify the actual rsize and wsize.

nfsstat m

Microsoft Windows Settings

Step # 1
OST Configuration Options: For the most current installation and tuning recommendations, please refer to the following documents: OST Plug-in Installation Instructions. 6-67074-xx Quantum DXi-Series Symantec NetBackup OST Configuration Guide 6-67079-xx

Windows TCP/IP Settings

CIFS Configuration Options: Under Windows XP SP2, the "DefaultReceiveWindow" value in the AFD branch of the Registry takes precedence over the RWIN values in the TCP branch. Under SP1, it is the other way around, the values in the TCP branch override the AFD value and go out in TCP packet headers. Afd.sys is the kernel-mode driver that is used to support Windows Sockets applications. When there are three default values, the default is calculated based on the amount of memory detected in the system: The first value is the default for smaller computers (less than 19 MB). The second value is the default for medium computers (<32 MB on Windows XP Professional, <64 MB on Windows Server 2003). The third value is the default for large computers (>32 MB on Windows XP Professional, >64 MB on Windows Server 2003).

The following values should be set to 16384 on larger backup servers, or the defaults based on the machine sizes listed above.
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\Afd\Parameters DefaultReceiveWindow

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Value Type: REG_DWORD Default: 4096/8192/8192

The number of receive bytes that AFD buffers on a connection before imposing flow control. For some applications, a larger value here gives slightly better performance at the expense of increased resource utilization. Applications can modify this value on a per-socket basis with the SO_RCVBUF socket option.
DefaultSendWindow Value Type: REG_DWORD Default: 4096/8192/8192 This is similar to DefaultReceiveWindow, but for the send side of connections.

Step# 1

Windows CIFS Recommendations

On a Windows backup server using a DXi system and a CIFS share, you must change the SESSTIMEOUT value from the default of 45 seconds to decimal 600 seconds (10 minutes). Detailed background information on changing this value can be found here: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/102067/.
Workaround:

1. 2.

Go to Start>Run and type REGEDT32. Open the Registry Key: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CURRENTCONTROLSET\ SERVICES\LANMANWORKSTATION\PARAMTERS\

3.

Locate the Key SESSTIMEOUT in the right panel. NOTE: If the SESSTIMEOUT key does not exist: Click in the right panel and select New and DWORD value. Create a new key, SESSTIMEOUT.

4.

Change the value of the Key SESSTIMEOUT from 0 to 600.

Now all new Read append Operations will wait for 600 seconds before they Timeout. This gives the blockpool enough time to reconstruct the data out of the blockpool.

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Microsoft provides comprehensive guidelines for configuration and tuning for networks and storage in the documents referenced below.
Windows XP

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/314053/
Windows 2003

http://download.microsoft.com/download/2/8/0/2800a518-7ac6-4aac-bd8574d2c52e1ec6/tuning.doc
Windows 2008

http://download.microsoft.com/download/b/b/5/bb50037f-e4ae-40d1-a8987cdfcf0ee9d8/WS08_STEP_BY_STEP_GUIDE/WS08PerformanceTuningGuide_En.doc x http://download.microsoft.com/download/9/c/5/9c5b2167-8017-4bae-9fded599bac8184a/Perf-tun-srv.docx
Windows Vista

http://download.microsoft.com/download/c/2/6/c26893a6-46c7-4b5c-b287830216597340/TCPIP_Reg.doc

Testing the Source Data to Isolate Bottlenecks

The following commands show if bpbkar can read data from a hard disk. An even better use of this command is for performance troubleshooting, because it is never possible to write to tape any faster than the disk subsystem can produce it. The command shows how fast bpbkar can read data from the hard disk. Note on command syntax: The "<path-to-read>" is the path to the directories to back up, and "> /dev/null" is where the files list will be sent along with the report regarding the speed of reading data from the disk. On UNIX systems: ./netbackup/bin/bpbkar -nocont <absolute-path-to-read> > /dev/null Example: ./netbackup/bin/bpbkar -nocont /home > /dev/null On Windows systems: .\netbackup\bin\bpbkar32 -nocont <absolute-path-to-read> > NUL 2>temp.f Example: .\netbackup\bin\bpbkar32 -nocont C:\ > NUL 2>temp.f The starting point for reading data for the path in the Windows example is on C:\ and it will continue to read down all subdirectories. So C:\winnt is also valid, for example.

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Utilization Recommendations
Deduplication Limitations
Deduplication results can be negatively impacted by compression, encryption, software deduplication and, multiplexing. These functions all change the data stream in a way that obscures patterns in the data content that will reduce the performance and deduplication from any downstream appliance including DXi. To obtain effective deduplication rates, users should NOT encrypt, deduplicate, compress, or multiplex their backup data before sending it to a DXi appliance. The use of multiplexing was intended for slow source data and a minimum transfer rate required by physical tape drives. Multiplexing backup streams was intended to provide a more efficient use of a limited number of physical tape drives. Since the virtual tape drives in the DXi systems are not susceptible to performance losses from slow data transfer rates, the number of virtual tape drives can easily be increased in quantity without any time penalty for re-positioning. It is not necessary to use multiplexing with the DXi systems. Additionally, the multiplexing adds additional header information to the data lowering the deduplication ratio.

Good Candidates for Data De-Duplication

VMware, large databases (note exceptions below), PowerPoint presentations, Word documents, Excel spreadsheets, SQL, Oracle (note exceptions below), Exchange database, source code

Not So Good Candidates for Data De-Duplication

In-line compressed data, SQL with LiteSpeed (in-line compression), inline multiplexed data, Oracle with multi-channel RMAN (in-line multiplex), and in-line encrypted data For long-term archiving, Quantum recommends vaulting the data to a physical tape device.

Space Reclamation
Space management involves two processes: data reconciliation and data reclamation. Data reconciliation is used to create a list of what can be removed. It runs automatically every twelve hours at noon and midnight, unless data reclamation is running. Data reclamation is the process of deleting the data on the data reconciliation list. It can be scheduled or run manually. There is significant overhead associated with this process, and therefore it should not be run during periods of high appliance use. Replication, reclamation, and backup stream ingest all consume system resources, and consequently should not all be done at the same time. Quantum recommends scheduling daily reconciliation and reclamation to manage the available space. The scheduled time should be configured to start the data reclamation process after the daily backups are complete. The default schedule is weekly, and the default time for the data reclamation is set to 12:00AM Sunday. These parameters are user configurable and should be configured for the customer backup window.

Recommended Handling of Expired Media

When a tape is expired by NetBackup, there is no direct communication of the event to the DXi-series. The result is that a tape might be displayed as empty or SCRATCH to the NetBackup graphical Interface, but show the same tape on the DXi-series GUI as containing data. This indicates the data on the expired tape is still using space on the DX-Series. To reclaim this space (for example, in an emergency low space condition), Quantum recommends using the bplabel utility. This will tell NetBackup to write a new label

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on the tape at the beginning of tape. This new label is a data block written to the virtual tape cartridge. The DXi-Series VTL will act similar to a physical tape and the data after the label becomes no longer accessible. The space reclamation can be initiated by the scheduled time or started manually from the DXiseries GUI. Additional information about the reclamation process can be found in the DXi-Series user manual. Note: Running the bplabel utility on a tape will make the contents inaccessible. Make sure the tape is expired before labeling the cartridge.

Additional Information
Quantum web site: http://www.quantum.com Symantec web site: http://www.symantec.com Microsoft web site: http://www.microsoft.com Guardian web site: http://www.quantum.com/ServiceandSupport/Services/GuardianInformation/index.aspx StorageCare Vision web site: http://www.quantum.com/Products/Software/Storagecarevision/Index.aspx Quantum Service web site: http://www.quantum.com/ServiceandSupport/Index.aspx Call Center Americas. To contact our world-class support representatives, please refer to the information below:

Telephone: 800-284-5101 (toll-free), 949-725-2100 (local/long distance) Hours of operation (subject to change without notice): 7 days a week, 24 hours a day with valid contract All other contracts can contact Quantum during normal business days from 5AM to 5PM US Pacific Time.

View our Service Level Objective: http://www.quantum.com/ServiceandSupport/ServiceLevelAgreement/Index.aspx

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