A request has been made to use a data mover to perform an operation involving the indicated node and file space. The indicated file space was either specified as the source for a backup operation or the destination location for a restore operation. However, a data mover operation involving that node and file space is already in progress; the indicated file space is either the source for a currently running backup operation or is the destination for a currently running restore operation. To avoid possible conflicts, the new operation is not performed.