3com database adapter module for networker nsr-ora v3.2 User Manual

Page of 79
System Administrator’s Guide
U42252-J-Z915-1-76
6
Using NSR-ORA with 
NetApp Filers
This chapter describes how to configure and use NSR-ORA with NetApp Filers
6.1
Running NSR-ORA with NAS devices
NSR-ORA allows database files stored on a Network Attached Storage (NAS) 
you to be backed up or recover or recovered using NDMP (Network Data 
Management Protocol). The data is written and read directly from the NAS 
device to the backup media, so the performance of the database computer is 
not degraded during the backup process. The NetWorker server controls the 
tape drives, labeling and initiates tape changers to provide tape media. The 
database itself is managed (start, stop, set to “Backup Mode”) by NSR-ORA on 
the database computer.
Currently, NSR-ORA only works together with the NAS devices from 
NetworkAppliance
®
(NetApp), called NetApp Filers. Fujitsu Siemens Computers 
will provide support for other systems in future.
As a special feature of NSR-ORA using NetApp Filers the software supports the 
NetApp Snapshot
 feature. A NetApp Snapshot is a snapshot of the database at 
the moment the NetApp Snapshot is created. This snapshot file will not be 
changed even though the database is still operating and its data is being contin-
uously. Due to NetApp’s specific working method the snapshots are created in 
a very short time and generally request only a small amount of storage. 
Therefore several snapshots can be held on a NetApp Filer.
The integration of NetApp snapshots provides the following benefits:
Using a Snap-Restore (Restore of a snapshot) can considerably reduce the 
time needed for a recovery operation.
Using NetApp snapshots allows the administrator to back up the database 
more often. This reduces the time needed for recovering a database after a 
logical error has occurred, because the number of redo logs to be re-
adjusted will be smaller.
An online backup of the database takes only a few minutes (from the 
database server’s point of view). Since the database in a consistent state is 
already stored on a snapshot a following tape backup of the data is 
completely independent of the backup itself.