*OBJ - Backup Object Lists

BRMS object lists can be used to backup sets of objects from libraries when they are specified on the following interfaces:

• Save Object List using BRM (SAVOBJLBRM)
• as an entry in control group that is specified on the Start Backup using the BRM (STRBKUBRM) command

To create new object lists or update existing object lists, use the Work with Lists using BRM (WRKLBRM) command. 

Object lists contain the following types of entries that will be used to backup objects:

1. Library entry - An object list entry where the Object, Type, Attribute and Member fields are all set to *ALL.
   
   In release IBM i 7.2 and later, the special value *ALLUSR can be specified for the Library field in an object list entry.  When *ALLUSR is specified for the Library field, *ALL must be specified for the Object, Type, Attribute, and Member fields and *INC must be specified for the Inc/Exc field.  Refer to the help text for the Library (*LIB) parameter on the Save Library using BRM (SAVLIBBRM) command for more information.
   
   NOTES:
   • In release IBM i 7.2, to use  *ALLUSR in an object list entry, the following PTF or superseding PTF is required is 7.2 SI53306
   • Object entry - An object list entry where the Object, Type, Attribute and Member fields are not all set to *ALL.

Object lists that use one save command

As expected, if an object list contains only one entry then only one save command will be used to backup the entry.

If the object list contains only library entries and the save type is *FULL, only one save command will be used to backup all the entries.  If the object list contains only library entries, the save type is *CUML or *INCR and the last save date/time for all the libraries is the same, only one save command will be used to backup.

NOTE: If the library list only contains library entries and there are more than 300 libraries, the backup will use more than one save command.

In release IBM i 7.2 and later, only one save command will be used to backup all the entries in an object list in the following situations:

Object lists that use multiple save commands

If the conditions for using one save command to backup an entire object list are not met as described in the Object lists that use one save command section, then multiple save commands will be used to backup object list entries.

NOTE: When doing a save while active backup of an object lists that uses multiple save commands, a checkpoint will be reached for the first save command. This results in the save while active message queue being deleted. Message CPF378A will be issued for the remaining save commands.

Parallel tape device utilization with object lists

Each tape drive attached to an IBM i system has an associated resource name.

Stand-alone tape device descriptions are each associated with one tape resource. 

Tape media libraries are associated with one or more tape resources. 

Stand-alone tape device descriptions and tape media libraries can be specified as devices on BRMS interfaces that use native save commands.   Additionally, minimum and maximum parallel resources can be specified on BRMS interfaces to indicate how to use tape resources in parallel.  The parallel resources will also be used, as specified, on each native save command that is issued.

The Parallel Type field in control group entries can be used to indicate what type of parallel processing to do:

1. *NONE - Parallel processing will not be done for the control group entry.
2. *DEFAULT - BRMS will determine which type of parallel processing to use for the control group entry.
3. *PARALLEL - Parallel-parallel backups write data for each library that is saved on all tape resources that are available during the save.  Since data for each library is written to all available tape resources, only one library will be written to media at any point during the save.
4. *SERIAL - Parallel-serial backups write data for each library that is being saved to one tape resource.  Since data for each library is written to one available tape resource, multiple libraries may be written to media concurrently during the save.  Native save commands may not use all available tape resources concurrently if it determines that it is more efficient to write data to a subset of the available tape resources.

The only way to ensure that all available tape resources will be used by a native save command is to specify *PARALLEL for parallel type.

Devices are used, as specified, on each native save command that is issued to save the entries in an object list. The number libraries being backed up by the save commands can influence the number of tape resources that are used during parallel-serial saves but the native save commands will determine the actual number of tape resources that will be used during parallel-serial saves.

Use object lists to dictate the order of library recoveries

It may be important to restore libraries in a specific order during a recovery due to dependencies between objects in different libraries.

In release IBM i 6.1 and later, an object list that contains library entries can be specified for the Recovery order list (RCYORDLST) parameter on the Start Recovery using BRM (STRRCYBRM) command to control the order in which libraries are restored.  The libraries from the object list will be listed prior to any other user libraries in the report/recovery.   If the save time of libraries from the object list is the same,  these libraries may not be listed in the same order they are specified in the object list.

Exclude objects from backups that use object lists

In release IBM i 7.2 and later, objects can be excluded from backups that use object lists by specifying *EXC for the Inc/Exc field on an object list entry.  Excluded objects will be applied to all commands that are issued for the object list that contains the excluded object list entry.

NOTE: In release IBM i 7.2, to enable the Inc/Exc field, the following PTF or superseding PTF is required is 7.2 SI53306

NOTES:

1. Generic libraries can be specified for the Name field in object lists.

2. When running cumulative (*CUML) or incremental (*INCR) backups of an object list, a *FULL save of  the object list is required. If any of the libraries do not have a *FULL save, then *CUML and *INCR backups for all new libraries in the object list will be changed to *FULL backups.

3. When an object list contains object entries and the object list is saved multiple times before a *FULL save is done of the library containing the objects, a recovery report (QP1ARCY) created with the Start Recovery using BRM (STRRCYBRM) command will include all of the saved items that were created by saving the object entries.  Once a *FULL save is done for the library that contains the objects, QP1ARCY will no longer include saved items that were created prior to the *FULL save.

4. If native commands will be used to recover objects from saves that were done using *IBM or *ALLUSR object list entries, the native restore commands will fail with message CPF3717 if *IBM or *ALLUSR is specified for the Saved library (SAVLIB) parameter.  In order to use native restore commands in this case, *ANY must be specified for the SAVLIB parameter.  In addition, if save data for document library objects (DLO) or integrated file system (IFS) objects follow the library save data on the media, *REWIND must be specified for the End option (ENDOPT) parameter.