About media in Backup Exec

With Backup Exec's media management tools you can do the following:

Protect data from being overwritten.
Set up media rotation strategies.
Track the location of media.
Label media automatically.
Read and track media labels with bar codes.
Collect and report media statistics.

With Backup Exec, you are not required to select media for jobs; it is done for you by the Advanced Device and Media Management (ADAMM) component. Backup Exec tracks all media that is loaded into attached storage devices, media that is offline, and media that has been placed in media vaults.

The following table lists and describes the Media nodes in the Media view.

Table: A description of media nodes in the Media view

Media node	Media node description
All Media	Lists all media that has been introduced into Backup Exec. Any media that is available for overwriting in backup operations, such as scratch or recyclable media, displays in blue. See Viewing general media properties.
Media Sets	Lists default system media sets and media sets that you create. A media set is a set of rules that manage media. These rules include the append and the overwrite protection periods, and vault rules, which allow you to set dates for when media should be moved to or returned from a media vault Media that are associated with a media set are allocated media. Allocated media have current append and overwrite protection periods. Media that are associated with a media set, but have expired overwrite protection periods are recyclable media. See Creating media sets.
Cleaning Media	Lists all cleaning media. See Setting up cleaning jobs .
Imported Media	Lists all media created by a product other than this installation of Backup Exec. By default, imported media have an overwrite protection period of Infinite, but can still be overwritten if the media overwrite protection level is set to Partial or None. You can overwrite imported media using several methods. Data can be restored from imported media until that media is overwritten. See Setting defaults for media management.
Backup Exec and Windows NT Backup Media	Lists all media from another installation of Backup Exec. See Cataloging media while reviewing devices or media.
Backup Exec Archive Media	Lists all media that is used for archive jobs.
Foreign Media	Lists all media from a product other than Backup Exec. See Cataloging media while reviewing devices or media.
Retired Media	Lists all media that you have taken out of service, usually because of an excessive number of errors. After a media has been associated with the retired media set, it is not selected for backup jobs by Backup Exec. It is still available for restore operations, if it has not been damaged. Retired Media protects media from being used (overwritten). You can delete media that is in Retired Media to remove it from Backup Exec. You may want to delete media, for example, when you have a lot of offsite media that you do not want to recycle or if you throw away the media. If you decide to use deleted media in Backup Exec, it is recognized as Imported Media and must be cataloged before you can restore from it. See Removing damaged media.
Scratch Media	Lists all media that can be overwritten. New, blank, and erased media are automatically associated with the scratch media set. See Media overwrite protection.
Keep Data Infinitely - Do Not Allow Overwrite	Lists all media that you use in backup jobs when you use the backup job defaults. Until you create another media set that you associate with the media, the default rules in the media set Keep Data Infinitely - Do Not Allow Overwrite apply to all backup jobs that you create. You can rename this media set at any time after installation, so it may not continue to be displayed as Keep Data Infinitely - Do Not Allow Overwrite. See About the default media set.
Media Location	Lists the location of media when it is online, offline, or in a user-defined media vault. See Media locations and vaults.