Use the following procedure when creating FlashCopy logical drives on a host running Windows 2000, using basic disks
For a process overview of the FlashCopy logical drive creation process, refer to Create FlashCopy Logical Drive Wizard: Process Overview - Windows 2000 and Windows NT.
FlashCopy logical drives may be reused (for frequent or nightly backups), or may be created for one-time usage (speculative change or upgrade testing). For instructions on how to reuse a disabled FlashCopy logical drive, see Reusing FlashCopy Logical Drives.
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Start the storage management software. Result: The Enterprise Management Window is displayed. |
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Launch an Subsystem Management Window, using one of the following methods:
Result: The Subsystem Management Window is opened in a separate window. |
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Within the Logical View of the Subsystem Management Window, select a standard logical drive and create a FlashCopy logical drive using one of the following methods:
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Disable the FlashCopy logical drive. FlashCopy logical drives may be disabled using one of the following methods:
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Assign a logical drive-to-LUN mapping between the FlashCopy logical drive and the host that will access the FlashCopy logical drive. Logical Drive-to-LUN mappings can be defined using one of the following methods:
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Important: All I/O activity to the base logical drive should be stopped at this point (or data transfer suspended). This will ensure that an accurate point-in-time image of the base logical drive is captured. Close all applications (including Windows Explorer) to ensure all I/O activity has been stopped. |
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Run the SMsnapassist At a host prompt, type the following then press Enter: SMsnapassist -f <filesystem-identifier> where <filesystem-identifier> is the drive letter assigned to the base logical drive. Example: If the new disk drive (for the base logical drive) was assigned drive letter "E" using the Create Partition Wizard , you would enter the command: SMsnapassist -f e: and press Enter. Result: The write buffers for the disk drive are flushed. |
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In the storage management software, re-create the FlashCopy logical drive using one of the following methods:
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Important: If I/O activity to the base logical drive was stopped or data transfer was suspended, resume I/O activity to the base logical drive at this time (or re-enable data transfer). |
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Run the hot_add Once logical drives have been created and logical drive-to-LUN mappings have been defined, the hot_add utility is run to ensure that the operating system is aware of the newly created logical drives, without having to reboot the host. For information on which operating systems support the hot_add utility, refer to the Storage Manager Software Installation Guide. |
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Run the SMdevices Once logical drives have been created and logical drive-to-LUN mappings have been defined, the SMdevices utility is run to ensure that the logical drive name and the operating system device name (assigned by the operating system) correlate. |
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Open Disk Management using one of the following methods:
Result: Disk Management is displayed with a graphical representation of all the physical disks connected to the host and their associated partitions. |
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In the Disk Management dialog, locate the disk and logical drive definition that represents the FlashCopy logical drive you re-created and ensure that a new drive letter has automatically been assigned. |
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Use the FlashCopy logical drive in conjunction with your backup application (reusing a FlashCopy logical drive), or for speculative change and upgrade testing (one-time usage). For information on how to reuse a disabled FlashCopy logical drive, see Reusing FlashCopy Logical Drives. |
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Once the FlashCopy logical drive is no longer required, disable or delete the FlashCopy logical drive. If you disable the FlashCopy logical drive instead of deleting it, you can retain the FlashCopy logical drive and its associated FlashCopy repository logical drive. Then, when you need to create a different FlashCopy of the same base logical drive, you can re-create the disabled FlashCopy logical drive. This takes less time than creating a new FlashCopy logical drive and will stop any reduction in performance that may occur if the FlashCopy logical drive remains available. For more information, see Disabling a FlashCopy Logical Drive or Deleting a Logical Drive. For command reference information on disabling or deleting a FlashCopy logical drive, refer to the Enterprise Management Window online help. |
Typically, once a FlashCopy logical drive has been created it is disabled until a new point-in-time image of the same base logical drive is required. To create a new point-in-time image of the same base logical drive, complete the following steps.
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Important: All I/O activity to the base logical drive should be stopped at this point (or data transfer suspended). This will ensure that an accurate point-in-time image of the base logical drive is captured. Close all applications (including Windows Explorer) to ensure all I/O activity has been stopped. |
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Run the SMsnapassist At the host prompt, type the following, then press Enter: SMsnapassist -f <filesystem-identifier> where <filesystem-identifier> is the drive letter assigned to the FlashCopy logical drive. Result: The write buffers for the disk drive are flushed. |
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Disable the FlashCopy logical drive. FlashCopy logical drives may be disabled using one of the following methods:
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Run the SMsnapassist At the host prompt, type the following, then press Enter: SMsnapassist -f <filesystem-identifier> where <filesystem-identifier> is the drive letter assigned to the base logical drive. Result: The write buffers for the disk drive are flushed. |
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In the storage management software, re-create the FlashCopy logical drive using one of the following methods:
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Important: If I/O activity to the base logical drive was stopped or data transfer was suspended, resume I/O activity to the base logical drive at this time (or re-enable data transfer). |
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Use the FlashCopy logical drive in conjunction with your backup application (or with another application). |
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Once the FlashCopy logical drive is no longer required, disable the FlashCopy logical drive. If you disable the FlashCopy logical drive instead of deleting it, you can retain the FlashCopy logical drive and its associated FlashCopy repository logical drive. Then, when you need to create a different FlashCopy of the same base logical drive, you can re-create the disabled FlashCopy logical drive. This takes less time than creating a new FlashCopy logical drive, and will stop any reduction in performance that may occur if the FlashCopy logical drive remains available. For more information, see Disabling a FlashCopy Logical Drive and Recreating a FlashCopy Logical Drive. For command reference information on disabling and recreating a FlashCopy logical drive, refer to the Enterprise Management Window online help. |
Create FlashCopy Logical Drive Wizard: Additional Instructions
Learn About Creating FlashCopy Logical Drives
Creating a FlashCopy Logical Drive Using the FlashCopy Logical Drive Wizard