Restoring a view from backup

About this task

Use the following procedure to restore a view from backup. This procedure applies to views stored on DevOps Code ClearCase® hosts and to views stored on NAS devices.

Procedure

  1. Log on to the host where the view storage directory (or, for a snapshot view, the snapshot view directory) resides.
  2. Check available disk space.
    Verify that the view's disk partition has enough free space to hold the backup copy. If necessary, delete the view storage directory (or, for a snapshot view, the snapshot view directory), or use other means to make enough space available.
  3. Stop the view server.
    Use endview –server view-tag to stop the view_server process for the view whose tag is view-tag.
  4. Remove the original view if it still exists.
    Unless the view is a UCM view, use the DevOps Code ClearCase Administration Console or the rmview command. If the view is a UCM view, use an operating system utility such as rm or rmdir to remove the entire view storage directory. (This alternative can be used for any view if you plan to restore it to its currently registered storage directory and re-use its current tag.)
    Note: If you are manually removing a snapshot view and its view storage directory is not a subdirectory of the snapshot view directory, remove both the snapshot view directory and the view storage directory.
  5. Ensure that the restored view has the correct ownership.
    Depending on your platform and your backup tool, you might have to take one or more precautions now to ensure that the view is restored with the correct owner and group identities.
    • On Linux and the UNIX system, if you use tar, specify the –p option when restoring the VOB. You must run the tar command as root. Otherwise, the –p flag is ignored. If you use cpio, no special options are required.
    • On Windows®, if your backup tool or copy utility does not preserve NTFS ACLs, you may need to fix them after the restore. See Repairing storage directory ACLS on NTFS for details.
    Note: When you restore a snapshot view, the utility you use to restore the backup must preserve the original modification times and ownership of all files and directories in the view. If it does not, all loaded files are reported as hijacked when the view is activated.
  6. Restore the backup.
    If you are restoring a snapshot view, you must restore both the snapshot view directory and the view storage directory, which may not be a subdirectory of the snapshot view directory. You can restore a view to its old location or to a new location on the same host or on another host. If you are restoring the view storage directory to a new location, you must re-register the view at its new location (Step 7).
  7. Register and create a tag for the view if necessary.
    If you have restored the view to its currently registered location, the existing view object and view tag remain valid. Otherwise, use the DevOps Code ClearCase Administration Console or the cleartool register and mktag commands to register the view and create a tag for it.
    Note: If you are restoring a view to a NAS device, you must use the –host, –hpath and –gpath options to register and mktag. See Restoring a VOB on network-attached storage for an example.
  8. Clean up any skew.
    The restored view database does not reflect any changes made in the VOB since the view was backed up. For a discussion of the problems that can arise and steps you might need to take to address them, see Synchronizing VOBs and views after you restore.

Results

The view is now ready for use.