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Abstract
Backup, Recovery & Media Services for i is the IBM strategic solution for planning and managing the backup of your i server.
For the full BRMS wiki, go here - https://ibm.biz/ibmi-brms
BRMS provides the i Server with support for policy-oriented setup and execution of backup, recovery, archive, and other removable-media-related operations. BRMS uses a consistent set of intuitive concepts and operations that can be used to develop and implement a backup strategy tailored to your business requirements.
BRMS facilitates centralized management of media by maintaining a consistent view of removable tape media, its contents, location, and availability across multiple i servers or partitions referred to as networked systems. This common media scratch pool contains shared tape volumes that are eligible for use by any participating networked system. When a networked system uses one of the shared volumes, that usage is broadcast to all networked systems so that each system has a current view of the active and expired media.
Content
Base Product
BRMS provides the following functions in the base product:
Backup
- Backup planning interfaces
- Online backup of Lotus server and journaled objects
- Automated backup capabilities
- Media library support for both IBM and third-party media libraries
- Parallel save capabilities
- Unattended restricted state backup
- Maintain complete backup history
Recovery
- System disaster recovery report
- Automated point-in-time recovery for Lotus server and journaled objects
- Individual object recovery
- Automated recovery capabilities
Media Management
- Media reporting, tracking, and selection
- Manage media movement
- Protect and secure media
- Duplicate media
- Reclaim fragmented media
Optional Features
In addition, there are two optional features that you can add to the base product to provide greater functional capability.
BRMS Network Feature
With the BRMS Network Feature, a BRMS system is connected to other BRMS systems in the network that uses native TCP/IP or APPN. A BRMS network system provides:
- Centralized media management
- The ability to restore data from another system
BRMS Advanced Feature
The BRMS Advanced feature enables Hierarchical Storage Manager (HSM) archive with HSM dynamic retrieval and automated auxiliary storage pool (ASP) data migration. Some of the functions provided by HSM are:
- Automatic, transparent management of data across a storage hierarchy
- Migration of user libraries, folders, and spooled files between ASPs
- Archive (with storage free option)
- Dynamic retrieval
- Automatic movement of data, based on system policies
In addition, the BRMS Advanced feature is required to use the following functions in BRMS:
- Media library management
- BRMS system defined name
- Tape media library status tool
- Software encryption
- High availability for I-ASPd in a BRMS network
BRMS licensing information
The software license agreements for IBM products are published here, where you can search for the product ID, Example 5770BR1
To help find BRMS (5770-BR1), here's the link for 7.4, 7.3 and 7.2. There are two licenses for each release: Option 1 has a separate license since it has a flat charge, and the rest is under a license for price based on processor group of machine. The "License information" and base license are both part of the terms.
Online Lotus server backup
BRMS provides true online backup support for Lotus Servers such as Domino and Quickplace. These servers can be saved while they are in use with no save while active synchronization points.
System recovery reports
BRMS recovery provides for the orderly retrieval of lost or damaged data by providing comprehensive reports that take you step-by-step through the recovery of your entire system.
Media management
BRMS media management tracks all of your tapes and save files. Your media is tracked from tape creation to expiration.
Virtual tape libraries
IBM has also qualified DSI VTLs to work BRMS.
TCP/IP Networking
You can now use native TCP/IP for the BRMS Networking Feature.
Supported Tape Drives
BRMS officially supports and tests ONLY IBM Tape Media Libraries, IBM tape drives , IBM Virtual Tape Libraries (VTL), IBM optical drives, DSI VTLs .
No testing occurs with any OEM Tape Media Libraries or OEM Virtual Tape Libraries (except DSI) or OEM tape and optical drives.
- IBM i and BRMS does NO testing and has no official support for ANY OEM tape devices.
- The only tape devices tested and officially supported are the ones that IBM sells and are listed as supported.
- Any claims of an OEM device being supported on IBM i and BRMS are exclusively those of the OEM vendor.
- The IBM i Removable Media and BRMS teams do not develop code to specifically support a particular OEM device nor do we put code in to try to block any OEM device.
- It is the sole responsibility of the OEM vendor to properly emulate the drive their inquiry data says they are emulating and to test that the drive really does work when connected to IBM i using BRMS.
BRMS does have code to use some OEM tape media libraries that are not able to emulate IBM tape media libraries. This code allows the use of the stand-alone drives in the tape media library. However, it is still the responsibility of the OEM vendor to insure that their solution works with BRMS.
Support for parallel saves
Reduce your backup window by taking advantage of the parallel save (and restore) support in BRMS.
For the full BRMS wiki, go here
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Modified date:
10 January 2024
UID
ibm11105629