Midrange Stuff, OS/400 Edition--Manage Windows Backups from iSeries with New LXI Software

LXI officially launched new software last week that lets organizations manage backup and recovery operations for Windows, Unix, and Linux servers from their OS/400 server, and vice versa. The new product, called the Universal Client Backup, works with LXI's backup and recovery software for OS/400 and open systems, called MMS and TMS/ix respectively, and lets those two products function as either a client or a server to the other.

For years, the IT industry at large touted technology that was supposed to resolve the problems associated with managing storage on different platforms, such as storage area networks. However, the unique nature of the OS/400 platform--particularly its single level storage architecture--has kept it a step apart from its open-system brethren, even on the lowest rung of the storage ladder: the tape backup (see "Software Must Catch Up to Hardware for Multiplatform Tape Backups," in The Four Hundred).

While some vendors, such as IBM, have attempted to resolve this gap with network based solutions, experts agree that OS/400 shops inclined to automate their backups are still best served with a "best of breed" approach that employs one product to manage backup and recoveries for their AS/400 or iSeries servers and another for their Unix, Linux, or Windows systems.

LXI, the Irving, Texas, software company that specializes in back up and recovery software, maintains two separate product suites to serve these needs. Its flagship product, Media Management System (MMS), manages all aspects of automated backups, recoveries, and vault and tape management for OS/400 servers. Its other product suite, TMS/ix, provides similar, although not as extensive, capabilities for servers running the Windows, Unix, and Linux operating systems.

With its new Universal Client Backup, LXI is providing a direct link between its MMS and TSM/ix product lines. In a nutshell, the new product lets management and control of MMS or TSM/ix environments be performed from a single server, running either MMS or TSM/ix. It operates over TCP/IP, features auto-discovery device detection, and doesn't cache backup data on OS/400 disk.

The Universal Client Backup offers centralization of control, which has several benefits, says Tim Kormos, LXI product manager. First, organizations no longer need to setup and maintain two separate backup systems, which saves time and money on training, he says. Universal Client Backup also benefits users by simplifying the recovery process and letting users find specific detail files of documents. The chance of an accidental overwrite is also diminished as a result of centralized control, and users can consolidate backups on the same tape media. It also eliminates the duplication of effort when maintaining two separate products that control the movement of tapes for OS/400 and open systems platforms.

Because it connects existing products, users won't benefit as directly on license fees for backup software with Universal Client Backup. While users may be able to eliminate the requirement for an open system backup utility, from vendors such as Legato or VERITAS Software, they will need to replace it with LXI's TMS/ix. Of course, those vendors don't offer an OS/400 backup utility, much less one that also works with Windows, Unix, or Linux backup software, which is what LXI has done--and that is unique.

Getting a handle on Windows sprawl may be Universal Client Backup's biggest benefit. "The real strength of Universal Client is for people who have AS/400s and Windows servers," Kormos says. "In my experience, a lot of the small and midsized shops don't have Unix. They just have Windows and a '400. We're positioning the Universal Client so the customer can centralize control and management [of Windows backups] on the '400, which is typically the more mission-critical server."

The Lincoln Public School District, in Lincoln, Nebraska, was a beta tester of Universal Client Backup, and has since put the software into production. Before the installation, the district used MMS to back up its OS/400 data and used another utility to backup its Windows 2000 data. After replacing its Windows 2000 backup utility with TSM/ix, and letting MMS manage TSM/ix via the Universal Client, backup times started to drop, says Mike Bolhen, a system programmer with the district.

"Including the save and verify, it was taking approximately 15 hours and required an operator to come into the office to mount a second tape," Bolhen says. "After installing and converting the backup to LXI MMS and the Universal Client for Windows, we are now able to backup the same amount of data in approximately seven hours, and we no longer require staff to come in."

Universal Client Backup is available now. It requires MMS 5.1 and TMS/ix 3.2 and is available in packs of five. It's available as an optional component for both MMS and TMS/ix. Licenses for additional five-packs are available for $2,500. For more information, go to www.lxicorp.com.