Troubleshooting backup issues

If you have problems with backing up data, review the following questions.

Table: Backup questions

Question	Answer
I am unable to back up certain files on my system that are being used by other processes. Why is that?	When Backup Exec encounters a file that is in use by another process, it either skips the file or waits for the file to become available, depending on the Backup open files setting. When Backup Exec is configured to back up open files, it attempts to open the files in a different mode. It locks these files while they are being backed up to prevent other processes from writing to them. This mode should be a last resort to obtaining a backup of open files; in most circumstances, it is more desirable to close applications that leave files open so their files may be backed up in a consistent state. If you want to back up open files on Windows computers, Backup Exec's Advanced Open File Option provides uninterrupted data protection for network environments.
Why do Backup Exec's consoles continue to own a storage device even when it's not running?	Backup Exec is a true client/server application that must always be available to process jobs submitted from both local and remote administrative consoles. Because of the Advanced Device and Media Management functionality, all storage devices attached to the media server are claimed by Backup Exec whenever the server is running. The Advanced Device and Media Management feature in Backup Exec requires constant control of the storage devices in order to perform two important and useful operations: collection of statistics on media and device usage, and media overwrite protection.
When performing a local backup, the total number of bytes backed up by Backup Exec does not match the number of bytes displayed by Windows. Why?	This problem may be caused by the type of partition for which the system is formatted. If you have a Windows NTFS compressed partition, Backup Exec displays the uncompressed byte count of the files being backed up while Windows Explorer displays the compressed byte count of the files on the hard drive. For example, a NTFS partition that contains 1 GB of data is compressed by Windows to 500 MB. Backup Exec reports that 1 GB of data was backed up, even though Windows Explorer displays that only 500 MB of compressed data exists on the hard drive. If you have a FAT partition, Backup Exec reports the actual number of bytes of the files being backed up while File Manager reports an inflated amount of disk space. For example, a 2 GB FAT partition has a 32 K cluster size and File Manager displays 1.9 GB of used space. Backup Exec reports that 1.4 GB of data was backed up. Assuming that a 50 MB pagefile.sys is excluded from the backup, there is a 450 MB difference in the number of bytes. Converting to NTFS will regain disk space since it is more efficient and the default cluster size (automatically set by Windows) in NTFS is less than FAT. Windows allows you to specify a cluster size other than the default; however system performance may decrease. For more information, see the Windows documentation. See About cluster sizes for NTFS partitions.

Question

Answer

I am unable to back up certain files on my system that are being used by other processes. Why is that?

When Backup Exec encounters a file that is in use by another process, it either skips the file or waits for the file to become available, depending on the Backup open files setting. When Backup Exec is configured to back up open files, it attempts to open the files in a different mode. It locks these files while they are being backed up to prevent other processes from writing to them. This mode should be a last resort to obtaining a backup of open files; in most circumstances, it is more desirable to close applications that leave files open so their files may be backed up in a consistent state.

If you want to back up open files on Windows computers, Backup Exec's Advanced Open File Option provides uninterrupted data protection for network environments.

Why do Backup Exec's consoles continue to own a storage device even when it's not running?

Backup Exec is a true client/server application that must always be available to process jobs submitted from both local and remote administrative consoles.

Because of the Advanced Device and Media Management functionality, all storage devices attached to the media server are claimed by Backup Exec whenever the server is running. The Advanced Device and Media Management feature in Backup Exec requires constant control of the storage devices in order to perform two important and useful operations: collection of statistics on media and device usage, and media overwrite protection.

When performing a local backup, the total number of bytes backed up by Backup Exec does not match the number of bytes displayed by Windows. Why?

This problem may be caused by the type of partition for which the system is formatted.

If you have a Windows NTFS compressed partition, Backup Exec displays the uncompressed byte count of the files being backed up while Windows Explorer displays the compressed byte count of the files on the hard drive. For example, a NTFS partition that contains 1 GB of data is compressed by Windows to 500 MB. Backup Exec reports that 1 GB of data was backed up, even though Windows Explorer displays that only 500 MB of compressed data exists on the hard drive.

If you have a FAT partition, Backup Exec reports the actual number of bytes of the files being backed up while File Manager reports an inflated amount of disk space. For example, a 2 GB FAT partition has a 32 K cluster size and File Manager displays 1.9 GB of used space. Backup Exec reports that 1.4 GB of data was backed up. Assuming that a 50 MB pagefile.sys is excluded from the backup, there is a 450 MB difference in the number of bytes.

Converting to NTFS will regain disk space since it is more efficient and the default cluster size (automatically set by Windows) in NTFS is less than FAT. Windows allows you to specify a cluster size other than the default; however system performance may decrease. For more information, see the Windows documentation.

See About cluster sizes for NTFS partitions.