Preparing Host Servers to Recopy a Virtual Disk

NOTICE: Before you create a new copy of a source virtual disk, stop any data access (I/O) activity or suspend data transfer to the source virtual disk (and, if applicable, the target disk) to ensure that you capture an accurate point-in-time image of the source virtual disk. Close all applications, including Windows Internet Explorer, to make sure all I/O activity has stopped.

NOTE: Removing the drive letter of the associated virtual disk(s) in Windows or unmounting the virtual drive in Linux will help to guarantee a stable copy of the drive for the virtual disk copy.

Before creating a new virtual disk copy for an existing copy pair, both the host server and the associated virtual disk you are recopying have to be in the proper state. Perform the following steps to prepare your host server and virtual disk:

1Stop all I/O activity to the source and target virtual disk.

2Using your Windows system, flush the cache to both the source and the target virtual disk (if mounted). At the host prompt, type

SMrepassist -f<filename-identifier>

and press <Enter>. See "SMrepassist Utility" on page 102 for more information.

3Click the Summary tab, then click Disk Groups & Virtual Disks to ensure that the virtual disk is in Optimal or Disabled status.

4Remove the drive letter(s) of the source and (if mounted) virtual disk in Windows or unmount the virtual drive(s) in Linux to help guarantee a stable copy of the drive for the virtual disk. If this is not done, the copy operation will report that it has completed successfully, but the copied data will not be updated properly.

5Follow any additional instructions for your operating system. Failure to follow these additional instructions can create unusable virtual disk copies.

NOTE: If your operating system requires additional instructions, you can find those instructions in your operating system documentation.

Virtual Disk Copy

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Computer Drive specifications

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