Technical Note: XTN406
Introduction
Often an administrator will setup a server running XenData Archive Series software and want to experiment with the system before production use. Prior to "going live", it is desirable to restore the system to its initial setup state. The steps necessary to restore the system are described in this technical note.
XenData Archive Series software saves data to both magnetic disk and to tape. The XenData software records all changes to the file system by storing metadata that describes all old file versions and deleted files. This metadata is stored on the magnetic disk logical drive that is under XenData control. Consequently, one of the steps necessary to restore the system is to reformat this magnetic disk logical drive.
The following operations should be performed to restore the system to its initial setup state:
- Reformat all rewritable tapes and replace all WORM tapes with unused media.
- Reformat the magnetic disk logical drive under XenData control.
- Delete the XML file that contains the File Group and Volume Set settings that were made using the XenData Management Console.
- Optionally clear the XenData Logs.
- Reboot the server.
These operations are described in the sections below.
Reformat / Replace Tape Cartridges
Use the XenData Management Console to reformat all rewritable tape cartridges and export any WORM tape cartridges. The quickest reformatting option is "quick erase", but you may chose any reformat operation except "mark as blank".
Reformat the Magnetic Disk Logical Drive
De-activate the drive letter controlled by the XenData Archive Series software using Windows Explorer to open <boot drive>\Program Files\XenData\Archive Series\Drives.msc. Select the drive to be controlled and click "De-activate". Reboot the server.
Launch Windows Explorer and right-click on the drive letter that was under XenData control; select "format" and perform a quick format using the NTFS file system.
Activate the drive letter controlled by the XenData Archive Series software using Windows Explorer to open <boot drive>\Program Files\XenData\Archive Series\Drives.msc. Select the drive to be controlled and click "Activate".
Restore the Volume Sets and File Groups to their Default Settings
Use Windows Explorer to delete the XML file that contains the volume set and file group settings. With Windows Server 2008, Windows 7 and Windows Server 2003, this is located at <boot drive>\WINDOWS\system32\XenDataState.xml. For a Windows 2000 Server, the file is at <boot drive>\WINNT\system32\XenDataState.xml. Following deletion of this file, reboot the server. (On rebooting, the XenDataState.xml file will be recreated with its default settings.)
Clear Event Logs and Diagnostic Logs
Optionally, the XenData Event Logs may be cleared as follows:
- Right-click on "My Computer" and select "Manage"
- Expand "System Tools" and "Event Viewer" in the left pane and right click on "XenData".
- Select "Clear all Events".
Optionally, the XenData diagnostic logs may also be cleared by deleting all files in the directory <boot drive>\XenDataLog\.
The system has now been restored to its initial setup state.
Applicable Operating Systems
- Windows Server 2003
- Windows Server 2008 R2
- Windows Server 2012 R2
Applicable XenData Software
This technical note is applicable to:
- Version 5 – Server Editions of Archive Series software
- Version 6 – Server Editions of Archive Series software
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