Archiving generic data

This procedure runs from Core workstations. It will work if you remotely log on to those workstations. For system administrators, it also works from ds1, romulus and remus.

To get started, type the following and follow the instructions.

      setup robot

Follow the instructions.

The setup procedure will give instructions

Version 3 (September, 2008) adds the following features:

The first step scans the directory tree for folders containing filenames that are too long. In these cases, it prints a warning and exits.
The geniso step has better error handling. If it cannot create the .iso file, it will tell you how to find the error messages from mkisofs.

The July, 2007 procedure added the following features:

Includes a table of contents for the whole multi-DVD archive on each DVD
Allows for optional user-supplied text on the DVD labels
Allows for multiple copies of the backup set to be burned

Caveats

Softlinks will not be archived. If the files they point to are outside your directory tree, they will not be archived either.
If you have /very/long/path/and/file/names the entire pathname may not be preserved.
If you have filenames with strange characters embedded (possibly including blanks), the procedure will die with an error message. Also if softlinks point to non-existent files. The solution is to find remove or rename the offending file or link.

Procedure for Version 3

Gendvd is a 7-step procedure. Each step gives instructions for launching the next. An annotated example follows below, right. Text typed by the user is in boldface.

setup gendvd sets paths and aliases.
gendvd examines the requested directory tree for valid filenames.
gendvd1 decides how to split the requested directory tree over multiple DVDs. Note that the instructions it gives include both the JobID assigned for this job and the number of DVDs that will be generated (in this case, 1).
gendvd2 generates a table of contents that will appear in the top level directory of all DVDs written. The TOC contains a listing of all files in all DVDs for the job.
geniso builds the DVD images. It can take more than 5 minutes per DVD.
genlabels, as shown in the listing at right, will include optional text on the DVD labels. (Click to view label).
gendvd4 creates the .xml files used to tell the DVD robot what to do. In the listing at right, 2 copies were requested.
burnit Initiates the procedure to download the DVD images to the robot and initate burning and printing. A popup window is opened that tracks progress.

    coot> setup gendvd
    Gendvd setup for V3 2008.09.15
    To archive generic data onto DVDR, if rootdir is the root
    of the directory tree you want to archive, type:
      gendvd rootdir

    coot> gendvd /csb/group3/projectA/critical
    gendvd0 -- checking /csb/group3/projectA/critical for filenames that are too long.
    gendvd0 -- looks OK. Next step:
      gendvd1 /csb/group3/projectA/critical

    coot> gendvd1 /csb/group3/projectA/critical
    ...
    GenDVD.1: The next step is to create table of contents. Enter command:
      gendvd2 genericDVD-20070702-123155 1
    
    coot>   gendvd2 genericDVD-20070702-123155 1
    TOC will be in 00TOC-genericDVD-20070702-123155
    ...
    The next step is to build the .iso DVD images:
    geniso genericDVD-20070702-123155 1
    
    coot> geniso genericDVD-20070702-123155 1
    Starting work on disk 01 of 1. Be patient!
    ...
    The next step is to generate the labels and XML files
    where ncopies is the optional number of copies you want of each DVD:
      genlabels genericDVD-20070702-123155 1 [optional text for label]
      gendvd4 genericDVD-20070702-123155 1 [ncopies]

    coot> genlabels genericDVD-20070702-123155 1 Backup of my frames directory
    Creating annotation file for disk 01 of 01
   
    coot> gendvd4 genericDVD-20070702-123155 1 2
    Creating xml for disk 01 of 01 in /srv/images/1/perlo
    ...
    To initiate burning:
      burnit /srv/images/0/perlo/genericDVD-20070702-123155-??.xml

    coot> burnit /srv/images/0/perlo/genericDVD-20070702-123155-??.xml

If you decide later to make more copies, or to change the label, you do not have to start from the beginning. You can start with step 6, saving the time to rebuild the .iso files. However, you should not repeat step 8 without first repeating at least step 7. And you should not repeat step 4 without repeating from step 2.

Last Modified: Monday, 23-Mar-2009 14:19:15 EDT

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