The Four Hundred

When using an iSeries or AS/400 to support Domino servers, there is a major problem in backing up Domino databases while the server is active. Users demand 24/7 access to Domino e-mail and other databases. These files are incredibly dynamic, and you may have, for example, hundreds of e-mail databases changing by the hour. When restoring a Domino e-mail database, you need the freshest backups possible because of the timely nature of e-mail. New e-mails won't be on old backup tapes.

To help solve this problem, IBM has incorporated Domino for AS/400 database support into two versions of Backup, Recovery and Media Services software. This support is in BMRS V4R4 (product number 5769-BR1) and BRMS V5R1 (product number 5722-BR1). BRMS provides online backup capabilities for OS/400-based Domino databases, so you don't have to take down your Lotus servers to save your rapidly changing databases.

For Domino servers, BRMS can perform online backups for Lotus database files that have extensions of ns*, nt*, and .box. When Domino is installed on a system, BRMS creates the necessary control groups for online Lotus server backup when you run the Start Maintenance for BRMS (STRMNTBRM) command. Once these Lotus server control groups are created, you start your backup by using the Start Backup Using BRMS (STRBKUBRM) command for the control group containing the Domino server (or servers) you want to save. The BRMS Domino backup then saves your database as a BRMS package, which includes the active Domino database as well as a secondary file that contains all the changes that occurred during backup (such as transaction logs and journal-type information). For complete details on how to save and restore Domino databases using BRMS, go to IBM's BRMS online backup support for Lotus servers Web page.

If you need to restore a Domino database from media to its original location, you can use the Restore Object Using BRMS (RSTBRM) command, as shown below. RSTBRM restores the database, along with any journaled changes or transactional logs.

Note, however, that all of IBM's documentation on restoring Domino databases focuses on using RSTBRM to restore a database to its original Domino server location. There is also an option on the RSTBRM command to restore the database to a new object name or to a different location in OS/400 IFS. However, I have found this support to be a little spotty in OS/400 V5R1, so I use RSTBRM only to restore databases to their original locations. If I need to restore a Domino database to a different location, I usually use IBM's Restore Object (RST) command, as follows:

The RST command will bring back the database just fine from the BRMS backup media and dump it in the new location. Using RST has only one drawback: RST will not apply any journal changes or transactional logs that you saved with your STRBKUBRM command. Theoretically, you should be able to use RSTBRM to restore to another location, but if that doesn't work for you, RST will also do the job.

Aside from the quirks in using BRMS to restore Domino files to a different location, there are a few other drawbacks with using BRMS as an online backup solution for Domino databases. First, because this technique only backs up Domino databases, you still need to perform regular full system backups to save your system, user profiles, Domino programs, and all other related information. But note that the online Domino backup should not be used as a substitute for a complete and regular backup.

The second drawback of BRMS is that it isn't free. The base license fees for BRMS V4R4 and V5R1 range from $400 on an OS/400 server in the P05 class to $9,600 for a machine in the P50 class. The advanced features for BRMS V5R1 run an additional $300 to $7,200 per machine, depending on the software group.

Third, BRMS is quite different from regular OS/400 backup solutions using such commands as option 21 from the GO SAVE menu, or the various green-screen CL commands for file backup and restore. As a result, there is a moderate learning curve in mastering BRMS to not only backup your Domino backup, but to back up the rest of your system as well. You may need to spend some time learning BRMS in order to handle the configuration as efficiently as possible. BRMS is more difficult to learn than you might think.

Finally, please note that BRMS doesn't only support Domino for AS/400 databases. BRMS will also perform online backups for the OS/400 versions of IBM's QuickPlace collaboration software.