Scalar i3 iBlades

Overview

There are two types of iBlades supported by Scalar i3: the SLTFS iBlade and the Veeam Tape Server iBlade. The SLTFS iBlade supports file system operations, such as reading and writing data to media. The Veeam Tape Server iBlade supports Veeam backup software.

The SLTFS iBlade can be used in two ways:

Single-volume volume groups (scratch disabled) - allows you to manage your media such that you know what data is written to each volume. As volumes fill up, you are responsible for writing data to the next volume.

Multi-volume volume groups (scratch enabled) - allows you to create volume groups and start writing data to a volume. When the volume is filled to capacity, the system will start writing to another volume in the same volume group. If volumes are full in the volume group, the system will pull volumes from the scratch pool to ensure data is captured.

As new media are imported into the SLTFS partition, the volumes will initially be in the Discovered Media volume group, or pool. When in the discovered pool, the system does not know the state of the media. It may be new, unformatted tapes, or tapes that have had data written to them previously. To use new, unformatted media in the discovered media pool, it will have to be formatted. Once formatted, the media are moved to the Scratch Media volume group, or pool. All newly formatted media are in the scratch media pool. Media with data may be attached if the data is to be retained. Upon attachment, the media is moved into a volume group.

Additional Information


Layout


Tasks

Configuration

Maintenance

Actions


Scalar LTFS iBlade Best Practices

Network Attached Storage (NAS) is a client-server presentation of a filesystem hosted by a server and made available to one or more clients using a local area network. In this product, the Scalar LTFS iBlade is a NAS server. The user’s desktop or laptop is an example of a NAS client.

A NAS client sees Scalar LTFS media as NAS storage by using NFS (Network File System) or CIFS (Common Internet File System) file sharing protocols. Scalar LTFS media are aggregated into a single name space that can be mounted by NFS clients or mapped by CIFS clients. A set of one or more Scalar LTFS media can be grouped together into volume groups. Each volume group is accessible by a NAS client as a NAS disk folder.

Scalar LTFS Terms

Term Definition
Discovered Pool Volumes imported into Scalar LTFS via the Library. These volumes can be assigned to a volume group or they can be formatted into scratch media for expanding a volume group's capacity. The discovered pool is displayed on the GUI as the [discovered media] volume group.
Fibre Channel A high-speed data transfer technology. Using optical fibre to connect devices, Fibre Channel primarily transports SCSI traffic between computers and I/O.
File Collision Situation where there are already existing file names in a volume group and there is an attempt to either merge a volume(s) into the volume group or to attach a sequestered volume that is in the volume group that has the same path name.
File Spanning Spanning of files across multiple media/volumes.
LTFS An acronym for Linear Tape File System, a file system that provides access to files on the latest generations of LTO tape technology as if the files were on the user’s local disk.
Partition A logical subset of an underlying physical library that may present a different personality, capacity, or both to the host. It is a representation of real physical elements, combined to create a grouping that is different from the physical library. Also a logical portion of the physical library that is viewed by the host as if it is a complete library. Partitions present the appearance of multiple, separate libraries for purposes of file management, access by multiple users, or dedication to one or more host applications.
RAS Ticket A ticket that alerts the user of an issue with the appliance. RAS tickets identify which appliance components are causing an issue. When possible, the RAS ticket provides instructions for resolving the issue.
Scratch Pool Volumes formatted and then available to be auto-attached by SLTFS for expanding a volume group's capacity. The scratch media pool is displayed on the GUI as the [scratch media] volume group.
Sequester A media state that removes all metadata from the system, such that the tape, and it's data, will no longer be seen in the file system. At this point a user can either physically remove it from the system, reformat it or reattach it.
URB User Request Broker.
Vaulted Media A media state indicating that volumes have been exported from the system but the system still retains their metadata.
Volume Group A volume group is a collection of one or more media that is presented to end users and applications as a directory in the file system.

Scalar LTFS Frequently Asked Questions

Here are some frequently asked questions and their answers. If the question is regarding an issue, then a resolution is recommended.

Note: Volume Group is abbreviated as VG in this FAQ.