Creating a move policy

As part of your backup plan, you need to manage media protection and rotation. Using Backup, Recovery, and Media Services (BRMS), you can create move policies to manage media movement.

To ensure the safety of your data, it is recommended that you keep at least the last two versions of your full system backups and the most current backed up version stored on media. In addition, you should duplicate the media for each backup and keep the copies in a safe, offsite location to ensure that in the event of a natural disaster, such as a fire, these versions of your data can be obtained.

You can use move policies to keep track of where your media is and when it is scheduled to be in each storage location. Move policies include information about the different storage locations that your media resides in during its lifecycle. For example, when you do weekly full backups of your system, you have a courier come to pick up your media and take it to a vault, where it stays for 21 days. At the end of the 21 days, the media is returned to your site and placed in a filing cabinet in your computer room. A move policy for your full backups would keep track of where your media was at each step of its journey, and would include information about each storage location, such as how long it would take to retrieve the media from this location in the event of an emergency.

Start of change To create a move policy, follow these steps: End of change

Select Backup, Recovery, and Media Services > Move Policies > New Policy action item.
Follow the wizard's instructions to create a new move policy.

Note: Media management and movement is a very important part of your backup strategy. If your media is lost or not adequately protected, you could lose data in the event of a disaster or system failure. If you would like help in implementing an effective backup strategy for your company, including media management, contact IBM® Business Continuity and Recovery Services.