Backup

IBM Spectrum Protect (also referred to as TSM for Tivoli Storage Manager) is a storage service on disk (for the primary copy) and on magnetic tape (for the secondary copy) that provides regular data backup. The HOME and THRONG directories accessible from the CC-IN2P3 interactive servers and compute nodes are automatically backed up every day.

Users and experiments also have the option to request a backup on specific storage areas by contacting the user support.

The software for the backup service provided by CC-IN2P3 is IBM Spectrum Protect.

For practical issues, please refer to the dedicated FAQ page.

Terms of use

The terms of use of the backup service are described in this document (French only).

Digital signature.

Installation

Download the TSM client here

Unix machines

The automation of the backup task must be done on the client side via cron for example. Please refer to the dedicated page on setting up a cron job.

The TSM client is configured mainly through two files:

/opt/tivoli/tsm/client/ba/bin/dsm.opt
/opt/tivoli/tsm/client/ba/bin/dsm.sys

To prevent a client update from affecting the configuration you have made, we recommend that you unpack the entire TSM configuration in a separate tree. We usually use /var/spool/tsm.

Create the tree

Create the TSM client configuration directory:

% mkdir -p /var/spool/tsm/{etc,log,lock,bin}

Copy the IBM template config files or those form the tsm-ccin2p3 package:

% cp /opt/tivoli/tsm/client/ba/bin/dsm.{opt,sys} /var/spool/tsm/etc/

or:

% cp /usr/share/doc/tsm-ccin2p3/etc/* /var/spool/tsm/etc/

Edit the config files

Backup server address

After contacting the TSM admins, they may have assigned you an alias such as tsm${LAB_NAME}.in2p3.fr (example: tsmlpnhe.in2p3.fr).

Attention

This alias must be used. In some cases, this alias does not exist or cannot be used, for example if you have backup nodes on different TSM servers. In the rest of the documentation ${SERVER_NAME} will have to be replaced by the server name you are assigned to.

Backup credentials

After contacting the TSM admins, you will be provided a node name (backup identifier) associated with a password.

Attention

In the rest of the documentation ${NODE_NAME} will have to be replaced by the node name you are assigned to.

File dsm.opt

This file specifies the server that the TSM client will try to contact when launching a backup:

% cat /var/spool/tsm/etc/dsm.opt
************************************************************************
* IBM Tivoli Storage Manager                                           *
*                                                                      *
* Sample Client User Options file for UNIX (dsm.opt.smp)               *
************************************************************************

*  This file contains an option you can use to specify the TSM
*  server to contact if more than one is defined in your client
*  system options file (dsm.sys).  Copy dsm.opt.smp to dsm.opt.
*  If you enter a server name for the option below, remove the
*  leading asterisk (*).

************************************************************************

* SErvername       A server name defined in the dsm.sys file

SErvername  ccin2p3

File dsm.sys

This file defines the known TSM backup profiles:

% cat /var/spool/tsm/etc/dsm.sys
************************************************************************
* IBM Tivoli Storage Manager                                           *
*                                                                      *
* Sample Client System Options file for UNIX (dsm.sys.smp)             *
************************************************************************

*  This file contains the minimum options required to get started
*  using TSM.  Copy dsm.sys.smp to dsm.sys.  In the dsm.sys file,
*  enter the appropriate values for each option listed below and
*  remove the leading asterisk (*) for each one.

*  If your client node communicates with multiple TSM servers, be
*  sure to add a stanza, beginning with the SERVERNAME option, for
*  each additional server.

************************************************************************

SErvername ccin2p3
        COMMMethod                      TCPip
        TCPPort                         1500
        NodeName                        ${NODE_NAME}
        PasswordAccess                  generate
        TCPServeraddress                ${SERVER_NAME}
        errorlogname                    "/var/spool/tsm/log/dsmerror.log"

Attention

Pay attention to specify the values of the options NodeName and TCPServeraddress.

Link backup profile to IBM directories :

% ln -s /var/spool/tsm/etc/dsm.{sys,opt} /opt/tivoli/tsm/client/ba/bin/

Initial entry of the TSM password

The option PasswordAccess Generate from the config file dsm.sys allows the TSM client to remember the TSM password used to authenticate to the CC-IN2P3 backup servers. However, during the first configuration, you must enter this password at least once:

% /usr/bin/dsmc

IBM Spectrum Protect
Command Line Backup-Archive Client Interface
  Client Version 8, Release 1, Level 13.0
  Client date/time: 01/19/2023 19:38:47
(c) Copyright by IBM Corporation and other(s) 1990, 2021. All Rights Reserved.

Node Name: DEMO
Please enter your user id <DEMO>: (1)

Please enter password for user id "DEMO": (2)

Session established with server CCTSM9: Linux/x86_64
  Server Version 8, Release 1, Level 13.000
  Server date/time: 01/19/2023 19:38:49  Last access: 01/19/2023 11:56:15

Protect>
  1. Just press Enter ou type the TSM node that you need to use.

  2. Enter the initial password you received from the TSM administrators.

  3. If the dsm.sys or dsm.opt files are not found when dsmc starts, you will need to specify the path to these files in the DSM_DIR environment variable.

Red-Hat like machines

For systems using the RPM, YUM pair, CC-IN3P3 provides a repository to maintain your TSM package in a version known to be compatible with the one used on the CC-IN2P3 TSM servers. You can also get the TSM packages directly from the official IBM repository to get the latest version available (see link above in the Installation section).

Importing the package signing key

The repository available at CC-IN2P3 to distribute the backup service packages is based on the digital signature of the repository packages and metadata to ensure the integrity of the packages that will be installed on your machinery.

Note

For the procedure to retrieve the signature key, please refer to here.

Package repository

Set up the repository:

% cat > /etc/yum.repos.d/tsm_ccin2p3.repo
[tsm-ccin2p3]
name=tsm-ccin2p3
baseurl=https://ccrepository.in2p3.fr/pulp/repos/el/all/x86_64/tsm
gpgcheck=1
gpgkey=https://ccrepository.in2p3.fr/pulp/static/tsm.gpg

Install the Spectrum Protect client and sample files :

% yum install tsm-ccin2p3
[...]
Dependencies Resolved

============================================================================================================================================================================================================
 Package                                              Arch                                            Version                                            Repository                                    Size
============================================================================================================================================================================================================
Installing:
 tsm-ccin2p3                                          noarch                                          2.0-0                                              tsm                                          4.9 k
Installing for dependencies:
 TIVsm-API64                                          x86_64                                          7.1.2-0                                            tsm                                           29 M
 TIVsm-BA                                             x86_64                                          7.1.2-0                                            tsm                                           62 M
 gskcrypt64                                           x86_64                                          8.0-50.40                                          tsm                                          1.2 M
 gskssl64                                             x86_64                                          8.0-50.40                                          tsm                                          6.0 M

Transaction Summary
============================================================================================================================================================================================================
Install  1 Package (+4 Dependent packages)
[...]

Note

The installation RPMs will install the TSM client and its libraries under the tree /opt/tivoli/tsm/client.

Use the Spectrum Protect client

Note

To install the Spectrum Protect client on non-Red-Hat like Unix systems, please contact your IT administrators.

To run the Spectrum Protect client in interactive mode, simply use the command dsmc (ou dsmc.exe). The prompt Protect> indicates that you are in the TSM interactive shell.

Change your password:

Protect> set password
Please enter password for user id "DEMO": (1)

Please enter a new password: (2)
Enter new password for verification: (3)
Password updated.

Session established with server CCTSM9: Linux/x86_64
  Server Version 8, Release 1, Level 13.000
  Server date/time: 01/19/2023 19:43:14  Last access: 01/19/2023 11:56:15

Here you must:

  • Enter the initial password you received from the CC-IN2P3 TSM admins;

  • enter your new password;

  • enter your new password once again.

Check the management classes available for my backup:

Protect> query mgmt -detail

Check the options enabled for my backup:

Protect> query options
[...]

              ACTIVATEKEY: YES
          AFSBACKUPMNTPNT: YES
          ALLOWWILDCARDCH: NO
                   ARCHMC:
        ARCHSYMLINKASFILE: YES
               ASNODENAME:
             ASRFILESPATH:
                  ASRMODE: NO
             AUTOFSRENAME: PROMPT
             AUDITLOGGING: OFF
             AUDITLOGNAME: /tmp/dsmaudit.log
                AUTOMOUNT:
               AUTODEPLOY: YES
                   BACKMC:
           BACKUPREGISTRY: YES
       CANDIDATESINTERVAL: 1
       CASESENSITIVEAWARE: NO
          CHANGINGRETRIES: 4
          CHECKFORORPHANS: NO
          CHECKTHRESHOLDS: 5
               CLIENTVIEW: STANDARD
         CLUSTERDISKSONLY: NO
              CLUSTERNODE: NO
               COMMMETHOD: TCP/IP
      COLLOCATEBYFILESPEC: NO
      COMMRESTARTDURATION: 60
[...]
                   DOMAIN:
                           /home
                           /etc
[...]
        VIRTUALMOUNTPOINT:
                           /home
                           /etc

Note

For more information on the directives VirtualMountPoint or Domain, please refer to the FAQ.

Check the list of the filters used by my backup client:

Protect> query inclexcl
[...]

*** FILE INCLUDE/EXCLUDE ***
Mode Function  Pattern (match from top down)  Source File
---- --------- ------------------------------ -----------------
No exclude filespace statements defined.
Excl Directory /.../*no_backup*               Server
Excl Directory /.../*NO_BACKUP*               Server
Excl Directory /.../.beagle                   Server
Excl Directory /.../.[Cc]ache                 Server
Excl Directory /.../[Cc]ache.Trash            Server
Excl Directory /.../Cache                     Server
Excl Directory /usr/lib64                     Server
Excl Directory /usr/lib32                     Server
Excl Directory /usr/lib                       Server
Excl Directory /usr/bin                       Server
Excl Directory /var/lock                      Server
Excl Directory /var/run                       Server
Excl Directory /var/tmp                       Server
Excl Directory /boot                          Server
Excl Directory /lib64                         Server
Excl Directory /lib32                         Server
Excl Directory /lib                           Server
Excl Directory /sbin                          Server
Excl Directory /bin                           Server
[...]

For example, the following line means that everything under /bin will not be saved:

Excl Directory /bin                           Server

The information Server indicates that this filter originates from the backup server (and is therefore not modifiable without intervention from the CC-IN2P3 TSM administrators).

Check the FileSpaces assigned to my backup node:

Protect> query files

Backup a directory:

% dsmc incremental /PATH/TO/DIR/ -subdir=yes

Backup a file:

% dsmc incremental /PATH/TO/FILE

Preview a directory contents as backuped by the TSM client:

% dsmc preview backup /PATH/TO/DIR/ -subdir=yes
[...]

Preview function invoked.
Depending on the number of objects to query, this operation could take a while to complete.

Are you sure you want to continue? (Yes (Y)/No (N)) Y
Preview output has been successfully written to file '/var/spool/tsm/log/dsmprev.txt'.

This command generates a list of files and directories in $PWD/dsmprev.txt, and mentions whether Spectrum Protect will save them or not. The preview file dsmprev.txt may in some cases be requested by CC-IN2P3 administrators to help you solve your backup problems.

Check the backuped files and their state in Spectrum Protect:

In Spectrum Protect a file may assume two states:

  • A pour Active when the file is still available on the machine that performs the backup;

  • I pour Inactive when the file is not longer available on the machine that performs the backup or is no longer the latest version of the file:

% dsmc query backup /var/spool/tsm/etc/dsm.sys -inactive
[...]

           Size        Backup Date                Mgmt Class           A/I File
           ----        -----------                ----------           --- ----
         2 206  B  20/09/2011 17:10:36              PCMGM               A  /var/spool/tsm/etc/dsm.sys
         1 929  B  01/06/2011 17:06:08              PCMGM               I  /var/spool/tsm/etc/dsm.sys
         2 010  B  18/07/2011 17:52:02              PCMGM               I  /var/spool/tsm/etc/dsm.sys
         2 178  B  19/07/2011 17:13:58              PCMGM               I  /var/spool/tsm/etc/dsm.sys

Restore the last version of a file:

% dsmc restore /var/spool/tsm/etc/dsm.sys /tmp/dsm.sys.restored
[...]

Restore function invoked.

 ** Interrupted **
Restoring           2 206 /var/spool/tsm/etc/dsm.sys --> /tmp/dsm.sys.restored [Done]

Restore processing finished.

Total number of objects restored:         1
Total number of objects failed:           0
Total number of bytes transferred:    2,17 KB
Data transfer time:                    0,00 sec
Network data transfer rate:        90 779,62 KB/sec
Aggregate data transfer rate:          0,02 KB/sec
Elapsed processing time:           00:01:37

This command restores the last version of the file /var/spool/tsm/etc/dsm.sys to the location /tmp/dsm.sys.restored. If a new location would have not been specified, the file would have been restored directly in /var/spool/tsm/etc/dsm.sys and would have overwritten our file in case it already existed.

Restore the last version of a directory and its contents:

% dsmc restore /var/spool/tsm/ -verbose -subdir=yes

As for files, you may specify a new location for the restore:

% dsmc restore /var/spool/tsm/ /tmp/tsm.restored/ -subdir=yes

Restore an older file version using a date:

% dsmc query backup /var/spool/tsm/etc/dsm.sys -inactive -pitd=09/01/2011
[...]

           Size        Backup Date                Mgmt Class           A/I File
           ----        -----------                ----------           --- ----
         2,178  B  07/19/2011 17:13:58              PCMGM               I  /var/spool/tsm/etc/dsm.sys

The option -pitd means Point In Time Date and allows to specify a precise date for the restoration. In the command shown as an example we asked which version of file /var/spool/tsm/etc/dsm.sys was in Spectrum Protect as of September 1st 2011. The date format as specified in the option -pitd is MM/DD/YYYY (default format if LANG=C).

We can see that the file /var/spool/tsm/etc/dsm.sys from September 1st 2011 is an inactive version of the file backed up on July 19th 2011 and never modified since then. To restore it, just use the -pitd option in conjunction with the dsmc restore function:

% dsmc restore /var/spool/tsm/etc/dsm.sys -inactive -pitd=09/01/2011

Restore data between two dates:

% dsmc restore /path/to/restore/ -fromdate=06/01/2014 -todate=06/11/2014 -subdir=yes

Restore a list of files:

Given a file to_restore.txt with the following content:

/tmp/file1.txt
/tmp/file2.txt
[...]
/var/tmp/files/fileN.txt

To restore all the files listed in to_restore.txt, use the -filelist option of the Spectrum Protect client:

% dsmc restore -filelist=to_restore.txt
[...]

Get a report on the TSM client installation and configuration:

% dsmc query systeminfo
[...]

QUERY SYSTEMINFO output has been written to file /var/spool/tsm/etc/CCAFS/dsminfo.txt.

The file dsminfo.txt generated by this command may in some cases be requested by CC-IN2P3 administrators to help you solve your backup problems.

Backup statistics

Detailed statistics per laboratory can be obtained by querying the API at https://tsmlabapi.in2p3.fr. For any access request to the API please contact the user support.

Description

Information delivered by the API is:

  • the date of the last update for the data given in the Unix timestamp format;

  • statistics for the entire laboratory;

  • statistics for a given node in the laboratory;

  • statistics for a given filespace in a specific node in the laboratory.

Information delivered at laboratory level is:

  • the lab name;

  • the total number of backup nodes assigned to this lab;

  • the total number of lab files available in the backup system (primary copy + secondary copy);

  • the total used space in bytes for the lab backup in the backup system (primary copy + secondary copy);

  • the list of the backup nodes assigned to this lab.

Information delivered at the backup node level is:

  • the node name;

  • the total number of files in this node available in the backup system (primary copy + secondary copy);

  • the total used space in Bytes for the node backup in the backup system (primary copy + secondary copy);

  • the list of users registered as official contact for this node (users that will be contacted if necessary by CC-IN2P3 backup administrators);

  • the last access date to this node, given in timestamp Unix format;

  • the number of days since the node last access to the backup system (<1 meaning that access has been made in the last 24 hours);

  • the list of the filespaces assigned to this node.

Information delivered at the filespace level is:

  • the filespace name;

  • the total number of files belonging to this filespace available in the backup system (primary copy + secondary copy);

  • the the total used space in bytes for this filespace backup in the backup system (primary copy + secondary copy).

API querying

Access to this API requires identifiers that must be communicated to you by the CC-IN2P3 backup service administrators. The API provided by CC-IN2P3 is in Web Service REST form. The supported output formats (or serializer) are:

Examples of use

With a Web browser

  1. Access the URL https://tsmlabapi.in2p3.fr with your browser and check the SSL certificate presented by the website before entering your credentials.

  2. Enter the identifiers that you received from CC-IN2P3 backup service administrators.

The Web interface that is currently displayed is only the result of a basic rendering made by your Web browser of the XML document returned by the API.

With a command line interface

The tool that will be used as an example is cURL. The options that will be used in the following examples are:

  • -H "Accept: application/json" that allows to add the HTTP header Accept: application/json to the request;

  • -u "username:password" that allows to authenticate to the Web server with the login “username” and the password “password”;

  • -L that tells cURL to follow the HTTP redirections.

Example of data retrieval in JSON format:

% curl -L -H 'Accept: application/json' -u 'username:password' https://tsmlabapi.in2p3.fr
output
{
    "details": {
        "generated_in": "0.66ms",
        "last_cache_update": 1406551433
    },
    "results": [
        {
            "laboratory": "CCIN2P3",
            "nodes": [
                {
                    "contacts": [
                        "no-reply@cc.in2p3.fr"
                    ],
                    "days_since_last_access": "<1",
                    "filespaces": [
                        {
                            "filespace_name": "/backup/volume1",
                            "num_files": 6,
                            "physical_b": 21
                        },
                        {
                            "filespace_name": "/backup/volume2",
                            "num_files": 6,
                            "physical_b": 21
                        }
                    ],
                    "last_access": 1406524790,
                    "node_name": "DEMO_NODE",
                    "total": {
                        "num_files": 12,
                        "physical_b": 42
                    }
                }
            ],
            "total": {
                "nodes": 1,
                "num_files": 12,
                "physical_b": 42
            }
        }
    ]
}

Note

The output of this command was formatted with curl | python -mjson.tool.

Digital signatures

The documents made available by TSM administrators are digitally signed using OpenGPG.

Details on the key used for signatures

The public key used for all digital signatures can be found here. here.

Key details:

pub   2048R/18877579 2012-12-05
      Key fingerprint = 1868 E312 47B4 610A CC8A  CD67 14A7 1D76 1887 7579
uid                  CC-IN2P3 TsmMaster <tsmmaster@cc.in2p3.fr>

Import the public key into your keyring to verify digital signatures

Given ${PUBLICKEY_PATH} your public key path. It can be for instance C:\Documents and settings\Administrator\CC-IN2P3_public_key.gpg or /tmp/CC-IN2P3_public_key.gpg.

  1. Verify the public key fingerprint:

    % gpg --with-fingerprint ${PUBLICKEY_PATH}
    pub  2048R/18877579 2012-12-05 CC-IN2P3 TsmMaster <tsmmaster@cc.in2p3.fr>
          Key fingerprint = 1868 E312 47B4 610A CC8A  CD67 14A7 1D76 1887 7579
    
  2. Import the public key into your keyring:

    % gpg --verbose --import ${PUBLICKEY_PATH}
    gpg: armor header: Version: GnuPG v2.0.14 (GNU/Linux)
    gpg: pub  2048R/18877579 2012-12-05  CC-IN2P3 TsmMaster <tsmmaster@cc.in2p3.fr>
    gpg: using PGP trust model
    gpg: key 18877579: public key "CC-IN2P3 TsmMaster <tsmmaster@cc.in2p3.fr>" imported
    gpg: Total number processed: 1
    gpg:               imported: 1  (RSA: 1)
    
  3. Modify the confidence attributed to the CC-IN2P3 backup service key:

    % gpg --edit "CC-IN2P3 TsmMaster"
    gpg (GnuPG) 1.4.11; Copyright (C) 2010 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
    This is free software: you are free to change and redistribute it.
    There is NO WARRANTY, to the extent permitted by law.
    
    pub  2048R/18877579  created: 2012-12-05  expires: never       usage: SC
                         trust: unknown       validity: unknown
    [ unknown] (1). CC-IN2P3 TsmMaster <tsmmaster@cc.in2p3.fr>
    
    gpg> trust
    pub  2048R/18877579  created: 2012-12-05  expires: never       usage: SC
                         trust: unknown       validity: unknown
    [ unknown] (1). CC-IN2P3 TsmMaster <tsmmaster@cc.in2p3.fr>
    
    Please decide how far you trust this user to correctly verify other users' keys
    (by looking at passports, checking fingerprints from different sources, etc.)
    
      1 = I don't know or won't say
      2 = I do NOT trust
      3 = I trust marginally
      4 = I trust fully
      5 = I trust ultimately
      m = back to the main menu
    
    Your decision? 5
    Do you really want to set this key to ultimate trust? (y/N) y
    
    pub  2048R/18877579  created: 2012-12-05  expires: never       usage: SC
                         trust: ultimate          validity: unknown
    [ unknown] (1). CC-IN2P3 TsmMaster <tsmmaster@cc.in2p3.fr>
    Please note that the shown key validity is not necessarily correct
    unless you restart the program.
    
    gpg> quit
    
    % gpg --verbose --list-key "CC-IN2P3 TsmMaster"
    gpg: using PGP trust model
    pub   2048R/18877579 2012-12-05
    uid                  CC-IN2P3 TsmMaster <tsmmaster@cc.in2p3.fr>
    

Verify a digital signature

Given:

  • MY_FILE.pdf the file which signature we want to verify.

  • MY_FILE.asc the signature file:

% gpg --verbose --verify MY_FILE.asc
gpg: armor header: Version: GnuPG v2.0.14 (GNU/Linux)
gpg: assuming signed data in `MY_FILE.pdf'
gpg: Signature made Tue 26 Feb 2013 02:28:03 PM CET using RSA key ID 18877579
gpg: using PGP trust model
gpg: Good signature from "CC-IN2P3 TsmMaster <tsmmaster@cc.in2p3.fr>"
gpg: binary signature, digest algorithm SHA1

Version compatibilities

The client/server compatibility matrix of IBM supported versions is described in the official documentation.

Tools

Data generator for new tree structures backup

This generator allows to set up an exchange format when the addition to the backup of a new tree structure is requested.

IBM official documentation