Operational Considerations › Control Data Set Backup › Back Up the BSDS1

Back Up the BSDS1

The ability to recover the Global VCAT from the BSDS is an important feature in CA Vtape.

Note: For more information, see the chapter “Recovering CA Vtape” in the Administration Guide.

We recommend that you maintain regular backups of the BSDS. In the unlikely event that both the BSDS and the Global VCAT are accidentally deleted or destroyed, you can restore the BSDS from a backup tape and then use it to recover the Global VCAT. You should back up daily to media that does not require that CA Vtape be active to read it.

Note: Because the Global VCAT can be recovered from the BSDS, a backup of both data sets is not required.

Back up the BSDS at about the same time as your tape management database. Taking backups of these data sets close together ensures that Virtual Volume information that is stored in the BSDS matches information that is stored in the tape management database. A synchronized set of backups is not required. If these backups are too far out-of-sync, it can complicate your disaster recovery efforts. CA Vtape can require manual intervention to access Virtual Volume files.

Back up the BSDS using CA Disk, DFSMSdss, FDR, or any other backup product that implements concurrent or snapshot copy. Concurrent or snapshot copy lets you create backups without having to stop CA Vtape or suspend tape processing.

Maintain backups on DASD or on physical tapes that provide access to the backup data set even when CA Vtape is inoperative. Using RAID devices for a backup to DASD or duplexing a backup to tape ensures that a subsequent media failure does not prevent the restoration of the most current Virtual Volume information.

The following is a sample of a CA Disk backup job:

//JOBNAME   JOB …
//BACKUP    EXEC DMS,MI=002
//SYSIN     DD *
  FIND      DSN=HLQ.BSDS1
  BACKUPCC  RETPD=14

The following is a sample of a DFSMSdss backup job:

//JOBNAME       JOB …
//BACKUP        EXEC PGM=ADRDSSU,REGION=4M
//SYSPRINT      DD SYSOUT=*
//INPUT         DD DISP=SHR,DSN=HLQ.BSDS1
//OUTPUT        DD DISP=(,CATLG),DSN=HLQ.BSDS.BACKUP(+1),
//LABEL=(1,SL),UNIT=REAL3490
//SYSIN         DD *
    DUMP DATASET(INCLUDE(HLQ.BSDS1)) -
    PHYSINDDNAME(INPUT) -
    OUTDDNAME(OUTPUT) -
    CANCELERROR OPTIMIZE(4)  CONCURRENT WAIT(20,20) -
    TOL(ENQF)
//