How Do I Restore Backups of Lost Files?

Introduction

We provide several strategies to help you recover lost, deleted, or overwritten files. Follow the following procedures depending on how recently you lost your files.

IBM Tivoli Storage Manager (TSM)

CSE backs up its Linux and UNIX systems to disk via CIT's Tivoli Storage Manager (TSM) service once per day sometime between 9:00 PM (?) and 4:00 AM. We can restore files as long as the backup server has had a chance to back them up at least once (i.e., you did not lose them on the same day that you created them).

Request files be restored by emailing the following information to cse-consult@buffalo.edu from your UBIT email account.

  1. Your UBITName (if you are sending the email from a non-UBIT email address).
  2. The hostname of the server that hosted the files when you lost them (if you know it).
  3. The full pathname of the file(s) or directory to be restored.
  4. The point-in-time date of the files to be restored (that is, you're asking us to restore the files as they were on the point-in-time date).

CSE IT staff are typically available to perform file restores Monday - Friday from 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM. File backup restore jobs are slow. They often take about an hour to complete.

File Storage Duration Values

Summary

Backups of your active files are stored in perpetuity. Backups of up to 14 previous versions of your files (if that many exist) are stored for 180 days. Backups of deleted files are stored for 740 days.

Detail

Policy Name Versions Data Exists (# versions) Versions Data Deleted (# versions) Retain Extra Versions (# days) Retain Only Version (# Day)
Default 14 14 180 740

Where:

  • Policy Name: The name given to a policy to reflect its use in the TSM system.
  • Versions Data Exists: The number of versions of a file kept within the TSM system. This includes both active and inactive versions.
  • Versions Data Deleted: The number of versions retained after a file has been deleted from the client system (i.e. there is no longer an active version).
  • Retain Extra Versions: The number of days that inactive versions of a file are retained for.
  • Retain Only Versions: The number of days that the inactive versions of a file are retained after the file is no longer being backed up (i.e. there are no active versions).