Usage Note 34284: Backup and recovery process for SAS® IT Resource Management aggregations after applying hot fix 311IS04 or later
 |  |  |  |  |
Aggregation Transformation - Background
Note: SAS® IT Resource Management sites that have hot fix 311IS03 applied, should follow the steps described in SAS Note 32463
In SAS® IT Resource Management, an aggregation transformation summarizes data and prepares it for reporting. In this process, the user can request multiple output tables from any given input table. Each of these output tables summarizes and presents data from the input table in a distinct manner.
The Adapter Setup Wizard creates separate component jobs for each data transformation. When you run these jobs, they execute transformations that stage data, create information maps, and prepare raw data for IT performance data reporting. This wizard also creates an overall job that contains all of the component jobs.
Note: It is recommended that you NOT submit the overall job. Instead, you should use your local job scheduling facilities to schedule the staging job first, and then schedule the various aggregation jobs to run in parallel.
However, regardless of whether you execute aggregation jobs through SAS Data Integration Studio or by deploying the jobs on the server, there are circumstances (such as running out of disk space) that might cause an aggregation job to fail and not complete successfully. When an aggregation job fails, you should be aware that it is possible that some of the output tables for the aggregation transformation might not be updated.
Aggregation – Use of Libraries, Tables, and Table Data
As of Hot Fix 311IS04 and later, the SAS IT Resource management aggregation transformation uses the WORK library for all intermediate data sets. Nomenclature of these intermediate output tables follows the file type and metadata identifier of the output table. Hence, in the SAS Log, the output tables are assigned similar names, but with suffixes such as _STAT, _FLT, _PRANK, _DRANK, _CLASSIDVARS, _INDEXES, etc. The only data stored in the aggregation libraries is the data for the respective aggregations, and for each aggregation, a table of status information, which is used for controlling the aging of the aggregation. Formerly this status information was stored in the metadata repository. The first run of a redeployed aggregation job under Hot Fix 311IS04 will move the status information from the metadata repository to the status table.
Backup and Recovery
The deployed aggregation job is created from a given state of definition in the metadata server. Therefore, whenever a job or set of jobs is deployed, the metadata repositories should be backed up.
The scheduled execution of the deployed jobs is not otherwise dependent upon the metadata server (for example, to control aging). Therefore, prior to each run of an aggregation job, you only need to backup the libraries holding the aggregation tables.
If there is a problem with an aggregation job, the recovery process is to restore the aggregation libraries, correct the issue (typically a space problem), and rerun the job.
Note that is no longer necessary that the metadata server be available for an aggregation transformation to execute. However the metadata server must be available in order for the information map transformation to execute.
Note that the techniques explained in this note assume that ANY failure in processing of the aggregation job makes it necessary for you to restore the entire IT Data Mart.
Backup: Metadata Repository
See SAS Note 14450 for instructions and information on making a backup of a metadata repository.
Backup: SAS Libraries and Aggregation Tables
Use the following methods to back up the SAS libraries that contain your aggregation tables:
- COPY Prodecure
- external backup systems
- operating system commands at your site
Note: It is critical to restore these SAS libraries to their original library structure, in accordance with their Data Control Block (DCB) attributes.
By examining the header block comments of the aggregation job and the libname statements in the job, you can determine which libraries are used by a given aggregation job.
Your Course of Action After the Failure of Aggregation Jobs
If an aggregation job fails, you should perform the following steps:
- Resolve the root cause of the failure (such as insufficient disk space).
- Restore the aggregation libraries.
- Restart the aggregation transformation process, starting with the staging jobs.
Operating System and Release Information
| Product Family | Product | System | Reported Release | Fixed Release* |
| SAS System | SAS IT Resource Management-Server | z/OS | 3.1.1 | |
| Microsoft® Windows® for 64-Bit Itanium-based Systems | 3.1.1 | |||
| Microsoft Windows Server 2003 Datacenter 64-bit Edition | 3.1.1 | |||
| Microsoft Windows Server 2003 Enterprise 64-bit Edition | 3.1.1 | |||
| Microsoft Windows XP 64-bit Edition | 3.1.1 | |||
| Microsoft® Windows® for x64 | 3.1.1 | |||
| Microsoft Windows 2000 Advanced Server | 3.1.1 | |||
| Microsoft Windows 2000 Datacenter Server | 3.1.1 | |||
| Microsoft Windows 2000 Server | 3.1.1 | |||
| Microsoft Windows 2000 Professional | 3.1.1 | |||
| Microsoft Windows NT Workstation | 3.1.1 | |||
| Microsoft Windows Server 2003 Datacenter Edition | 3.1.1 | |||
| Microsoft Windows Server 2003 Enterprise Edition | 3.1.1 | |||
| Microsoft Windows Server 2003 Standard Edition | 3.1.1 | |||
| Microsoft Windows XP Professional | 3.1.1 | |||
| Windows Vista | 3.1.1 | |||
| 64-bit Enabled AIX | 3.1.1 | |||
| 64-bit Enabled HP-UX | 3.1.1 | |||
| 64-bit Enabled Solaris | 3.1.1 | |||
| HP-UX IPF | 3.1.1 | |||
| Linux | 3.1.1 | |||
| Tru64 UNIX | 3.1.1 |