Technical Note: XTN1202
Introduction
The XenData6 software family represents the sixth generation of XenData Archive Series software. XenData6 is available in three editions:
- XenData6 Server x64
- XenData6 Workstation x64
- XenData6 Workstation x32
The way empty folders are managed is different between the XenData6 Server and Workstation editions, as described in this technical note.
XenData6 Workstation Version 6.00
XenData6 Workstation version 6.00 does not archive empty folders to LTO. When a folder structure is archived to LTO, all folders containing files will be copied to LTO but any empty folders will be ignored in the copy process. Consequently, copied empty folders are not recorded in the XenData tape catalogs and do not appear in the Windows Explorer view of the LTO contents.
XenData6 Workstation Version 6.01
XenData Workstation version 6.01 introduced the ability to archive empty folders to LTO. When a folder structure is archived to LTO, all folders containing files will be copied to LTO immediately and any empty folders will be recorded in the applicable XenData tape catalogs and will immediately appear in the Windows Explorer view of the LTO contents. However, the empty folders will only be written to LTO when the tape is finalized.
Consequently, when you are copying files to LTO using one system running XenData6 Workstation and wish to restore them on another XenData6 Workstation system, if you want to retain empty folders, it is important to finalize the tape before transferring it to the restore station.
XenData6 Workstation Version 6.10
XenData Workstation version 6.10 introduced the option to format LTO cartridges using the LTFS exchange format. When a folder structure is archived to LTO formatted with LTFS, all folders containing files will be copied to LTO but any empty folders will be ignored in the copy process. Whereas when a folder structure is archived to an LTO cartrdige formatted with the TAR format, all folders containing files will be copied to LTO immediately and any empty folders will be recorded in the applicable XenData tape catalogs and will immediately appear in the Windows Explorer view of the LTO contents. The empty folders will be written to LTO when the tape is finalized.
XenData6 Workstation Version 6.11
XenData Workstation version 6.11 has improved such that directories are now written to tape. Now when a directory is copied, if it is empty or not, the directory will be written to tape. This means that for TAR tapes you no longer have to finalise a tape to ensure it contains the empty directories.
XenData6 Server Version 6.01 & 6.10
XenData6 Server versions 6.01 and 6.10 have the same behavior as all previous versions of Archive Series software when it comes to management of empty folders. Empty folders are preserved when copying folder structures to the archive computer running the XenData6 Server software. They are written to the managed disk cache but are not written to LTO at any time.
When you are copying files to LTO using a system running XenData6 Workstation 6.01 or 6.10 and wish to restore them on a system running XenData6 Server, empty folders will be ignored and will not be restored.
XenData Server Version 6.11
XenData Server version 6.11 has improved such that directories are now written to tape, both for Xendata TAR and LTFS format tapes. Now when a directory is created or copied, if it is empty or not, the directory will be written to tape.
Applicable Operating Systems
- Windows 7
- Windows Server 2008 R2
- Windows Server 2012 R2
Applicable XenData Software
This technical note is applicable to:
- Version 6 – Server Editions of Archive Series software and XenData Workstation (x64 and x32)
PBS
XenData’s fully supported clustered server meets all the requirements for our disaster recovery site. We have been very pleased with the SX-525 product and XenData’s technical team who have provided system design and integration services above and beyond expectations.
James Cutright, Director, Project Management
PBS
Crew Cuts
I did my research, and the best archive solution was from XenData which manages a robotic LTO library behind the scenes. This helps to minimize our total costs and allows us to focus on producing great content for our customers.
Chris Keenan, CTO
Crew Cuts
Ideal Systems Singapore
We partnered with XenData for the GlobeCast Broadcast facility rollout, because it offers one of the most cost effective, robust digital video archives on the market and a great migration alternative to some of the more expensive digital video archive vendor offerings.
Fintan Mc Kiernan, CEO
Ideal Systems Singapore
North Shore Automation
Having completed over 25 joint installations of XenData archive systems, we have found everyone on the XenData team to be both highly professional and super responsive and their technology to be rock solid. They are truly a pleasure to work with.
Bryson Jones, Founder
North Shore Automation
This is Just a Test
With over 558 TB of content and growing, conventional backup solutions just don’t work for us. Our XenData system allows us to maintain an ongoing mirrored copy of our shared storage while creating replica LTO copies for offsite storage.
Nathan Flom
This is Just a Test
Excelencia
We have now installed over 170 XenData archive systems across Mexico and they have proven to be very reliable. In addition, the technical support from XenData has been outstanding.
Jorge Castaneda, President
Excelencia en Comunicaciones y Tecnología