6 ·  You plan to add servers or workstations to the new backup scheme using the VXA-2 Packet Data Tape Drive ·  Your application creates or references very large data files, of which the number or size varies dynamically When considering your initial tape purchase, it is important to consider that VXA tapes last at least five times as long as DDS media, for a minimum of 500 uses.  The VXA tapes that you purchase today will also be fully compatible with the next generation of VXA drives, with double the capacity. 11. Backups are critical to our organization.  How can I be sure that the process goes smoothly? To ensure success with your tape migration efforts, Exabyte has compiled the following best practice techniques and suggestions: ·  Multiple surveys have shown that many companies do not test or otherwise verify their backups.  The migration process presents an opportunity to confirm that your archived data is indeed secure.  Current and future backups should be tested by attempting to restore a single critical file or folder.  Take this opportunity to institute new procedures to test a backup at least quarterly, and preferably monthly. ·  If your company has not established an off-site tape rotation scheme, that practice should begin immediately.  Ensure that tapes are not left in a hot automobile for any period. ·  You should review your tape rotation schemes to ensure that they are providing a sufficient depth of data protection.  Please refer to the Exabyte “The Basic Backup Guide”, available at www.exabyte.com, for instructions on designing an optimal backup strategy. ·  If your intention is to move the DDS drive to another application, both drives should remain operable on the server for a period of time to allow for emergency file restores from the old format. ·  Perform the installation at the beginning of a full-backup cycle.  Unless you are planning to change to a new backup scheme, maintaining the existing backup cycle will avoid confusion. ·  Extensively test any new backup system by restoring data from the new backup tapes before rotating the old backup tapes off-site. ·  Do not attempt to operate both backup systems for any period of time.  Each backup sets “flags” to keep track of what files have changedsince the last backup.  The two different backups will interfere with each other, causing only subsets of your data to appear on each format. ·  Be generous in planning for future growth when considering your initial tape purchase as described in Question 10.  Allow for a minimum of double your current storage capacity. ·  Review all aspects of your backup software configuration to ensure that: ·  All data is being backed-up, and that no new drives, applications or folders are overlooked. ·  All updates and patches have been applied to the backup application and operating system. ·  The device driver for the VXA-2 drive should be the revision specified by the backup application vendor, which may not be the most current revision. ·  When configuring your backup software: ·  Use the backup application’sconfiguration wizards to configure the VXA-2 Packet Tape Drive, rather than attempting to set the configuration options manually. p1   p2   p3   p4   p5   p6   p7   p8