What is a IBM Storage Agent ?

You can configure the Tivoli Storage Manager client and server so that the client, through a storage agent can move its data directly to storage on a SAN. This function is called LAN-free data movement, it is provided by IBM Tivoli Storage Manager for Storage Area Networks

As part of the configuration, a storage agent is installed on the client system. Tivoli Storage Manager supports SCSI, 349X, and ACSLS tape libraries as well as FILE libraries for LAN-free data movement. The configuration procedure you follow will depend on the type of environment you implement; however in all cases you must do the following:
  1. Verify the network connection.
  2. Establish communications among client, storage agent, and Tivoli Storage Manager.
  3. Configure devices for the storage agent to access.
  4. If you are using shared FILE storage, install and configure IBM TotalStorage SAN File System, Tivoli     SANergy, or IBM General Parallel File System .
  5. Start the storage agent and verify the LAN-free configuration.


To help you tune the use of your LAN and SAN resources, you can control the path that data transfers take for clients with the capability of LAN-free data movement. For each client you can select whether data read and write operations use:
  • The LAN path only
  • The LAN-free path only
  • Either path
Example:

     register node nodename nodepasswd dom=lanfreedom datareadpath=any

     register node nodename nodepasswd dom=lanfreedom datareadpath=LANFree
     register node nodename nodepasswd dom=lanfreedom datareadpath=LAN

Validating your LANFree Configuration

Once you have configured your Tivoli Storage Manager client for LAN-free data movement, you can verify your configuration and server definitions by using the VALIDATE LANFREE command. The VALIDATE LANFREE command allows you to determine which destinations for a given node using a specific storage agent are capable of LAN-free data movement. You can also issue this command to determine if there is a problem with an existing LAN-free configuration. You can evaluate the policy, storage pool, and path definitions for a given node using a given storage agent to ensure that an operation is working properly.

To determine if there is a problem with the client node NODEA using the storage agent NODEA_STA, issue the following:

                  validate lanfree NODEA NODEA_sta

The output will allow you to see which management class destinations for a given operation type are not LAN-free capable, and provide a brief explanation about why. It will also report the total number of LAN-free destinations.

SAN discovery functions for non-root users

To configure Tivoli Storage Manager for LAN-free data movement, you can use the QUERY SAN command to obtain information about devices that can be detected on a SAN. To allow both root and non-root users to perform SAN discovery, a special utility module, dsmqsan, is invoked when a SAN-discovery function is launched. 



The module performs as root, giving SAN-discovery authority to non-root users. While SAN discovery is in progress, dsmqsan runs as root. Note that SAN discovery on AIX requires root user authority. The dsmqsan module is installed by default when the Tivoli Storage Manager server is installed. It is installed with owner root, group system, and mode 4755.

The value of the SETUID bit is ON. If, for security reasons, you do not want non-root users to run SAN-discovery functions, set the bit to OFF. If non-root users are having problems running SAN-discovery functions, check the following:
  • The SETUID bit. It must be set to ON.
  • Device special file permissions and ownership. Non-root users need read-write access to device special files, for example, to tape and library devices.
  • The SANDISCOVERY option in the server options file. This option must be set to ON.
The dsmqsan module works only for SAN-discovery functions, and does not provide root privileges for other Tivoli Storage Manager functions.

NEXT Steps to configure TSM LANFree backup through Storage Agent

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