4 \chapter{Bacula Console}
5 \label{_ConsoleChapter}
6 \index[general]{Console!Bacula}
7 \index[general]{Bacula Console}
8 \index[console]{Console!Bacula}
9 \index[console]{Bacula Console}
11 The {\bf Bacula Console} (sometimes called the User Agent) is a program that
12 allows the user or the System Administrator, to interact with the Bacula
13 Director daemon while the daemon is running.
15 The current Bacula Console comes in two versions: a shell interface (TTY
16 style), and a GNOME GUI interface. Both permit the administrator or authorized
17 users to interact with Bacula. You can determine the status of a particular
18 job, examine the contents of the Catalog as well as perform certain tape
19 manipulations with the Console program.
21 In addition, there is a wx-console built with wxWidgets that allows a graphic
22 restore of files. As of version 1.34.1 it is in an early stage of development,
23 but it already is quite useful. Unfortunately, it has not been enhanced for
26 Since the Console program interacts with the Director through the network, your
27 Console and Director programs do not necessarily need to run on the same
30 In fact, a certain minimal knowledge of the Console program is needed in order
31 for Bacula to be able to write on more than one tape, because when Bacula
32 requests a new tape, it waits until the user, via the Console program,
33 indicates that the new tape is mounted.
35 \section{Console Configuration}
36 \index[general]{Console Configuration}
37 \index[general]{Configuration!Console}
38 \index[console]{Console Configuration}
39 \index[console]{Configuration!Console}
41 When the Console starts, it reads a standard Bacula configuration file named
42 {\bf bconsole.conf} or {\bf gnome-console.conf} in the case of the GNOME
43 Console version. This file allows default configuration of the Console, and at
44 the current time, the only Resource Record defined is the Director resource,
45 which gives the Console the name and address of the Director. For more
46 information on configuration of the Console program, please see the
47 \ilink{Console Configuration File}{ConsoleConfChapter} Chapter of
50 \section{Running the Console Program}
51 \index[general]{Running the Console Program}
52 \index[general]{Program!Running the Console}
53 \index[console]{Running the Console Program}
54 \index[console]{Program!Running the Console}
56 The console program can be run with the following options:
59 Usage: bconsole [-s] [-c config_file] [-d debug_level]
60 -c <file> set configuration file to file
61 -dnn set debug level to nn
64 -t test - read configuration and exit
65 -? print this message.
70 After launching the Console program (bconsole), it will prompt you for the
71 next command with an asterisk (*). (Note, in the GNOME version, the prompt is
72 not present; you simply enter the commands you want in the command text box at
73 the bottom of the screen.) Generally, for all commands, you can simply enter
74 the command name and the Console program will prompt you for the necessary
75 arguments. Alternatively, in most cases, you may enter the command followed by
76 arguments. The general format is:
80 <command> <keyword1>[=<argument1>] <keyword2>[=<argument2>] ...
84 where {\bf command} is one of the commands listed below; {\bf keyword} is one
85 of the keywords listed below (usually followed by an argument); and {\bf
86 argument} is the value. The command may be abbreviated to the shortest unique
87 form. If two commands have the same starting letters, the one that will be
88 selected is the one that appears first in the {\bf help} listing. If you want
89 the second command, simply spell out the full command. None of the keywords
90 following the command may be abbreviated.
100 will list all files saved for JobId 23. Or:
108 will display all the Pool resource records.
110 \section{Stopping the Console Program}
111 \index[general]{Program!Stopping the Console}
112 \index[general]{Stopping the Console Program}
113 \index[console]{Program!Stopping the Console}
114 \index[console]{Stopping the Console Program}
116 Normally, you simply enter {\bf quit} or {\bf exit} and the Console program
117 will terminate. However, it waits until the Director acknowledges the command.
118 If the Director is already doing a lengthy command (e.g. prune), it may take
119 some time. If you want to immediately terminate the Console program, enter the
122 There is currently no way to interrupt a Console command once issued (i.e.
123 Ctrl-C does not work). However, if you are at a prompt that is asking you to
124 select one of several possibilities and you would like to abort the command,
125 you can enter a period ({\bf .}), and in most cases, you will either be
126 returned to the main command prompt or if appropriate the previous prompt (in
127 the case of nested prompts). In a few places such as where it is asking for a
128 Volume name, the period will be taken to be the Volume name. In that case, you
129 will most likely be able to cancel at the next prompt.
132 \section{Alphabetic List of Console Keywords}
133 \index[general]{Keywords!Alphabetic List of Console}
134 \index[general]{Alphabetic List of Console Keywords}
135 \index[console]{Keywords!Alphabetic List of Console}
136 \index[console]{Alphabetic List of Console Keywords}
137 Unless otherwise specified, each of the following keywords
138 takes an argument, which is specified after the keyword following
139 an equal sign. For example:
145 Please note, this list is incomplete as it is currently in
146 the process of being created and is not currently totally in
152 Permitted on the python command, and causes the Python
153 interpreter to be restarted. Takes no argument.
155 Permitted on the status and show commands to specify all components or
156 resources respectively.
158 Permitted on the update command to specify that all Volumes in the
159 pool (specified on the command line) should be updated.
161 Used in the restore command.
163 Used in the restore command.
165 Allowed in the use command to specify the catalog name
168 Used in the show command. Takes no arguments.
171 Used in the show, list, and llist commands. Takes no arguments.
173 Used in the show command. Takes no arguments.
175 Used in the restore command. Takes no argument.
177 Used to define the number of days the "list nextvol" command
178 should consider when looking for jobs to be run. The days keyword
179 can also be used on the "status dir" command so that it will display
180 jobs scheduled for the number of days you want.
182 Used in the show command. Takes no arguments.
183 \item [dir | director]
185 Used in the show command. Takes no arguments.
187 Used in the restore command. Its argument specifies the directory
190 This keyword can appear on the {\bf update volume} as well
191 as the {\bf update slots} commands, and can
192 allows one of the following arguments: yes, true, no, false, archived,
193 0, 1, 2. Where 0 corresponds to no or false, 1 corresponds to yes or true, and
194 2 corresponds to archived. Archived volumes will not be used, nor will
195 the Media record in the catalog be pruned. Volumes that are not enabled,
196 will not be used for backup or restore.
198 Used in the restore command. Takes no argument.
200 Used in the restore command.
202 Used in the list and llist commands. Takes no arguments.
205 Used in the show command. Takes no arguments.
207 Used in the show command. Takes no arguments.
209 Used in the show, list and llist commands. Takes no arguments.
211 Used in the list and llist commands. Takes no arguments.
213 Used in the list and llist commands. Takes no arguments.
215 The JobId is the numeric jobid that is printed in the Job
216 Report output. It is the index of the database record for the
217 given job. While it is unique for all the existing Job records
218 in the catalog database, the same JobId can be reused once a
219 Job is removed from the catalog. Probably you will refer
220 specific Jobs that ran using their numeric JobId.
221 \item [job | jobname]
222 The Job or Jobname keyword refers to the name you specified
223 in the Job resource, and hence it refers to any number of
224 Jobs that ran. It is typically useful if you want to list
225 all jobs of a particular name.
228 Permitted on the estimate command. Takes no argument.
231 Used in the show command. Takes no arguments.
233 Used in the list and llist commands. Takes no arguments.
234 \item [nextvol | nextvolume]
235 Used in the list and llist commands. Takes no arguments.
242 Used in the show, list, and llist commands. Takes no arguments.
244 Used in the restore command. Takes no argument.
246 Used in the show command. Takes no arguments.
248 Used in the show command. Takes no arguments.
249 \item [sd | store | storage]
251 The ujobid is a unique job identification that is printed
252 in the Job Report output. At the current time, it consists
253 of the Job name (from the Name directive for the job) appended
254 with the date and time the job was run. This keyword is useful
255 if you want to completely identify the Job instance run.
258 Used in the list and llist commands. Takes no arguments.
260 Used in the restore command.
262 Used in the restore command. Takes no argument.
266 \section{Alphabetic List of Console Commands}
267 \index[general]{Commands!Alphabetic List of Console}
268 \index[general]{Alphabetic List of Console Commands}
269 \index[console]{Commands!Alphabetic List of Console}
270 \index[console]{Alphabetic List of Console Commands}
272 The following commands are currently implemented:
275 \item [{add [pool=\lt{}pool-name\gt{} storage=\lt{}storage\gt{}
276 jobid=\lt{}JobId\gt{}]} ]
278 This command is used to add Volumes to an existing Pool. That is,
279 it creates the Volume name in the catalog and inserts into the Pool
280 in the catalog, but does not attempt to access the physical Volume.
282 added, Bacula expects that Volume to exist and to be labeled.
283 This command is not normally used since Bacula will
284 automatically do the equivalent when Volumes are labeled. However,
285 there may be times when you have removed a Volume from the catalog
286 and want to later add it back.
288 Normally, the {\bf label} command is used rather than this command
289 because the {\bf label} command labels the physical media (tape) and
290 does the equivalent of the {\bf add} command. The {\bf add} command
291 affects only the Catalog and not the physical media (data on Volumes).
292 The physical media must exist and be labeled before use (usually with
293 the {\bf label} command). This command can, however, be useful if you
294 wish to add a number of Volumes to the Pool that will be physically
295 labeled at a later time. It can also be useful if you are importing a
296 tape from another site. Please see the {\bf label} command below for
297 the list of legal characters in a Volume name.
299 \item [autodisplay on/off]
300 \index[console]{autodisplay on/off}
301 This command accepts {\bf on} or {\bf off} as an argument, and turns
302 auto-display of messages on or off respectively. The default for the
303 console program is {\bf off}, which means that you will be notified when
304 there are console messages pending, but they will not automatically be
305 displayed. The default for the gnome-console program is {\bf on}, which
306 means that messages will be displayed when they are received (usually
307 within five seconds of them being generated).
309 When autodisplay is turned off, you must explicitly retrieve the
310 messages with the {\bf messages} command. When autodisplay is turned
311 on, the messages will be displayed on the console as they are received.
313 \item [automount on/off]
314 \index[console]{automount on/off}
315 This command accepts {\bf on} or {\bf off} as the argument, and turns
316 auto-mounting of the tape after a {\bf label} command on or off
317 respectively. The default is {\bf on}. If {\bf automount} is turned
318 off, you must explicitly {\bf mount} the tape after a label command to
321 \item [{cancel [jobid=\lt{}number\gt{} job=\lt{}job-name\gt{} ujobid=\lt{}unique-jobid\gt{}]}]
322 \index[console]{cancel jobid}
323 This command is used to cancel a job and accepts {\bf jobid=nnn} or {\bf
324 job=xxx} as an argument where nnn is replaced by the JobId and xxx is
325 replaced by the job name. If you do not specify a keyword, the Console
326 program will prompt you with the names of all the active jobs allowing
329 Once a Job is marked to be canceled, it may take a bit of time
330 (generally within a minute) before it actually terminates, depending on
331 what operations it is doing.
333 \item [{create [pool=\lt{}pool-name\gt{}]}]
334 \index[console]{create pool}
335 This command is not normally used as the Pool records are automatically
336 created by the Director when it starts based on what it finds in
337 the conf file. If needed, this command can be
338 to create a Pool record in the database using the
339 Pool resource record defined in the Director's configuration file. So
340 in a sense, this command simply transfers the information from the Pool
341 resource in the configuration file into the Catalog. Normally this
342 command is done automatically for you when the Director starts providing
343 the Pool is referenced within a Job resource. If you use this command
344 on an existing Pool, it will automatically update the Catalog to have
345 the same information as the Pool resource. After creating a Pool, you
346 will most likely use the {\bf label} command to label one or more
347 volumes and add their names to the Media database.
349 When starting a Job, if Bacula determines that there is no Pool record
350 in the database, but there is a Pool resource of the appropriate name,
351 it will create it for you. If you want the Pool record to appear in the
352 database immediately, simply use this command to force it to be created.
354 \item [{delete [volume=\lt{}vol-name\gt{} pool=\lt{}pool-name\gt{} job
355 jobid=\lt{}id\gt{}]}]
356 \index[console]{delete}
357 The delete command is used to delete a Volume, Pool or Job record from
358 the Catalog as well as all associated catalog Volume records that were
359 created. This command operates only on the Catalog database and has no
360 effect on the actual data written to a Volume. This command can be
361 dangerous and we strongly recommend that you do not use it unless you
362 know what you are doing.
364 If the keyword {\bf Volume} appears on the command line, the named
365 Volume will be deleted from the catalog, if the keyword {\bf Pool}
366 appears on the command line, a Pool will be deleted, and if the keyword
367 {\bf Job} appears on the command line, a Job and all its associated
368 records (File and JobMedia) will be deleted from the catalog. The full
369 form of this command is:
372 delete pool=\lt{}pool-name\gt{}
378 delete volume=\lt{}volume-name\gt{} pool=\lt{}pool-name\gt{} or
382 delete JobId=\lt{}job-id\gt{} JobId=\lt{}job-id2\gt{} ... or
386 delete Job JobId=n,m,o-r,t ...
389 The first form deletes a Pool record from the catalog database. The
390 second form deletes a Volume record from the specified pool in the
391 catalog database. The third form deletes the specified Job record from
392 the catalog database. The last form deletes JobId records for JobIds
393 n, m, o, p, q, r, and t. Where each one of the n,m,... is, of course, a
394 number. That is a "delete jobid" accepts lists and ranges of
397 \item [disable job\lt{}job-name\gt{}]
398 \index[console]{enable}
399 This command permits you to disable a Job for automatic scheduling.
400 The job may have been previously enabled with the Job resource
401 {\bf Enabled} directive or using the console {\bf enable} command.
402 The next time the Director is restarted or the conf file is reloaded,
403 the Enable/Disable state will be set to the value in the Job resource
404 (default enabled) as defined in the bacula-dir.conf file.
406 \item [enable job\lt{}job-name\gt{}]
407 \index[console]{enable}
408 This command permits you to enable a Job for automatic scheduling.
409 The job may have been previously disabled with the Job resource
410 {\bf Enabled} directive or using the console {\bf disable} command.
411 The next time the Director is restarted or the conf file is reloaded,
412 the Enable/Disable state will be set to the value in the Job resource
413 (default enabled) as defined in the bacula-dir.conf file.
417 \index[console]{estimate}
418 Using this command, you can get an idea how many files will be backed
419 up, or if you are unsure about your Include statements in your FileSet,
420 you can test them without doing an actual backup. The default is to
421 assume a Full backup. However, you can override this by specifying a
422 {\bf level=Incremental} or {\bf level=Differential} on the command line.
423 A Job name must be specified or you will be prompted for one, and
424 optionally a Client and FileSet may be specified on the command line.
425 It then contacts the client which computes the number of files and bytes
426 that would be backed up. Please note that this is an estimate
427 calculated from the number of blocks in the file rather than by reading
428 the actual bytes. As such, the estimated backup size will generally be
429 larger than an actual backup.
431 Optionally you may specify the keyword {\bf listing} in which case, all the
432 files to be backed up will be listed. Note, it could take quite some time to
433 display them if the backup is large. The full form is:
437 estimate job=\lt{}job-name\gt{} listing client=\lt{}client-name\gt{}
438 fileset=\lt{}fileset-name\gt{} level=\lt{}level-name\gt{}
441 Specification of the {\bf job} is sufficient, but you can also override
442 the client, fileset and/or level by specifying them on the estimate
446 As an example, you might do:
451 estimate job=NightlySave listing level=Incremental
456 which will do a full listing of all files to be backed up for the Job {\bf
457 NightlySave} during an Incremental save and put it in the file {\bf
458 /tmp/listing}. Note, the byte estimate provided by this command is
459 based on the file size contained in the directory item. This can give
460 wildly incorrect estimates of the actual storage used if there are
461 sparse files on your systems. Sparse files are often found on 64 bit
462 systems for certain system files. The size that is returned is the size
463 Bacula will backup if the sparse option is not specified in the FileSet.
464 There is currently no way to get an estimate of the real file size that
465 would be found should the sparse option be enabled.
469 \index[console]{help}
470 This command displays the list of commands available.
473 \index[console]{label}
474 \index[console]{relabel}
475 \index[general]{label}
476 \index[general]{relabel}
477 This command is used to label physical volumes. The full form of this command
481 label storage=\lt{}storage-name\gt{} volume=\lt{}volume-name\gt{}
485 If you leave out any part, you will be prompted for it. The media type
486 is automatically taken from the Storage resource definition that you
487 supply. Once the necessary information is obtained, the Console program
488 contacts the specified Storage daemon and requests that the tape be
489 labeled. If the tape labeling is successful, the Console program will
490 create a Volume record in the appropriate Pool.
492 The Volume name is restricted to letters, numbers, and the special
493 characters hyphen ({\bf -}), underscore ({\bf \_}), colon ({\bf :}), and
494 period ({\bf .}). All other characters including a space are invalid.
495 This restriction is to ensure good readability of Volume names to reduce
498 Please note, when labeling a blank tape, Bacula will get {\bf read I/O
499 error} when it attempts to ensure that the tape is not already labeled. If
500 you wish to avoid getting these messages, please write an EOF mark on
501 your tape before attempting to label it:
511 The label command can fail for a number of reasons:
514 \item The Volume name you specify is already in the Volume database.
515 \item The Storage daemon has a tape already mounted on the device, in which
516 case you must {\bf unmount} the device, insert a blank tape, then do the
518 \item The tape in the device is already a Bacula labeled tape. (Bacula will
519 never relabel a Bacula labeled tape unless it is recycled and you use the
520 {\bf relabel} command).
521 \item There is no tape in the drive.
524 There are two ways to relabel a volume that already has a Bacula label. The
525 brute force method is to write an end of file mark on the tape using the
526 system {\bf mt} program, something like the following:
530 mt -f /dev/st0 rewind
535 Then you use the {\bf label} command to add a new label. However, this could
536 leave traces of the old volume in the catalog.
538 The preferable method to relabel a tape is to first {\bf purge} the volume,
539 either automatically, or explicitly with the {\bf purge} command, then use
540 the {\bf relabel} command described below.
542 If your autochanger has barcode labels, you can label all the Volumes in
543 your autochanger one after another by using the {\bf label barcodes}
544 command. For each tape in the changer containing a barcode, Bacula will
545 mount the tape and then label it with the same name as the barcode. An
546 appropriate Media record will also be created in the catalog. Any barcode
547 that begins with the same characters as specified on the
548 "CleaningPrefix=xxx" directive in the Director's Pool resource, will be
549 treated as a cleaning tape, and will not be labeled. However, an entry for
550 the cleaning tape will be created in the catalog. For example with:
556 Cleaning Prefix = "CLN"
562 Any slot containing a barcode of CLNxxxx will be treated as a cleaning tape
563 and will not be mounted. Note, the full form of the command is:
567 update storage=xxx pool=yyy slots=1-5,10 barcodes
572 \index[console]{list}
573 The list command lists the requested contents of the Catalog. The
574 various fields of each record are listed on a single line. The various
575 forms of the list command are:
580 list jobid=<id> (list jobid id)
582 list ujobid<unique job name> (list job with unique name)
584 list job=<job-name> (list all jobs with "job-name")
586 list jobname=<job-name> (same as above)
588 In the above, you can add "limit=nn" to limit the output to
593 list jobmedia jobid=<id>
595 list jobmedia job=<job-name>
597 list files jobid=<id>
599 list files job=<job-name>
609 list volumes jobid=<id>
611 list volumes pool=<pool-name>
613 list volumes job=<job-name>
615 list volume=<volume-name>
617 list nextvolume job=<job-name>
619 list nextvol job=<job-name>
621 list nextvol job=<job-name> days=nnn
626 What most of the above commands do should be more or less obvious. In
627 general if you do not specify all the command line arguments, the
628 command will prompt you for what is needed.
630 The {\bf list nextvol} command will print the Volume name to be used by
631 the specified job. You should be aware that exactly what Volume will be
632 used depends on a lot of factors including the time and what a prior job
633 will do. It may fill a tape that is not full when you issue this
634 command. As a consequence, this command will give you a good estimate
635 of what Volume will be used but not a definitive answer. In addition,
636 this command may have certain side effect because it runs through the
637 same algorithm as a job, which means it may automatically purge or
638 recycle a Volume. By default, the job specified must run within the
639 next two days or no volume will be found. You can, however, use the
640 {\bf days=nnn} specification to specify up to 50 days. For example,
641 if on Friday, you want to see what Volume will be needed on Monday,
642 for job MyJob, you would use {\bf list nextvol job=MyJob days=3}.
644 If you wish to add specialized commands that list the contents of the
645 catalog, you can do so by adding them to the {\bf query.sql} file.
646 However, this takes some knowledge of programming SQL. Please see the
647 {\bf query} command below for additional information. See below for
648 listing the full contents of a catalog record with the {\bf llist}
651 As an example, the command {\bf list pools} might produce the following
656 +------+---------+---------+---------+----------+-------------+
657 | PoId | Name | NumVols | MaxVols | PoolType | LabelFormat |
658 +------+---------+---------+---------+----------+-------------+
659 | 1 | Default | 0 | 0 | Backup | * |
660 | 2 | Recycle | 0 | 8 | Backup | File |
661 +------+---------+---------+---------+----------+-------------+
665 As mentioned above, the {\bf list} command lists what is in the
666 database. Some things are put into the database immediately when Bacula
667 starts up, but in general, most things are put in only when they are
668 first used, which is the case for a Client as with Job records, etc.
670 Bacula should create a client record in the database the first time you
671 run a job for that client. Doing a {\bf status} will not cause a
672 database record to be created. The client database record will be
673 created whether or not the job fails, but it must at least start. When
674 the Client is actually contacted, additional info from the client will
675 be added to the client record (a "uname -a" output).
677 If you want to see what Client resources you have available in your conf
678 file, you use the Console command {\bf show clients}.
681 \index[console]{llist}
682 The llist or "long list" command takes all the same arguments that the
683 list command described above does. The difference is that the llist
684 command list the full contents of each database record selected. It
685 does so by listing the various fields of the record vertically, with one
686 field per line. It is possible to produce a very large number of output
687 lines with this command.
689 If instead of the {\bf list pools} as in the example above, you enter
690 {\bf llist pools} you might get the following output:
701 VolRetention: 1,296,000
702 VolUseDuration: 86,400
718 VolUseDuration: 3,600
730 \index[console]{messages}
731 This command causes any pending console messages to be immediately displayed.
735 \index[console]{mount}
736 The mount command is used to get Bacula to read a volume on a physical
737 device. It is a way to tell Bacula that you have mounted a tape and
738 that Bacula should examine the tape. This command is normally
739 used only after there was no Volume in a drive and Bacula requests you to mount a new
740 Volume or when you have specifically unmounted a Volume with the {\bf
741 unmount} console command, which causes Bacula to close the drive. If
742 you have an autoloader, the mount command will not cause Bacula to
743 operate the autoloader unless you specify a {\bf slot} and possibly a
744 {\bf drive}. The various forms of the mount command are:
746 mount storage=\lt{}storage-name\gt{} [ slot=\lt{}num\gt{} ] [
747 drive=\lt{}num\gt{} ]
749 mount [ jobid=\lt{}id\gt{} | job=\lt{}job-name\gt{} ]
751 If you have specified {\bf Automatic Mount = yes} in the Storage daemon's
752 Device resource, under most circumstances, Bacula will automatically access
753 the Volume unless you have explicitly {\bf unmount}ed it in the Console
757 \index[console]{python}
758 The python command takes a single argument {\bf restart}:
762 This causes the Python interpreter in the Director to be reinitialized.
763 This can be helpful for testing because once the Director starts and the
764 Python interpreter is initialized, there is no other way to make it
765 accept any changes to the startup script {\bf DirStartUp.py}. For more
766 details on Python scripting, please see the \ilink{Python
767 Scripting}{PythonChapter} chapter of this manual.
769 \label{ManualPruning}
771 \index[console]{prune}
772 The Prune command allows you to safely remove expired database records
773 from Jobs and Volumes. This command works only on the Catalog database
774 and does not affect data written to Volumes. In all cases, the Prune
775 command applies a retention period to the specified records. You can
776 Prune expired File entries from Job records; you can Prune expired Job
777 records from the database, and you can Prune both expired Job and File
778 records from specified Volumes.
780 prune files|jobs|volume client=\lt{}client-name\gt{}
781 volume=\lt{}volume-name\gt{}
783 For a Volume to be pruned, the {\bf VolStatus} must be Full, Used, or
784 Append, otherwise the pruning will not take place.
787 \index[console]{purge}
788 The Purge command will delete associated Catalog database records from
789 Jobs and Volumes without considering the retention period. {\bf Purge}
790 works only on the Catalog database and does not affect data written to
791 Volumes. This command can be dangerous because you can delete catalog
792 records associated with current backups of files, and we recommend that
793 you do not use it unless you know what you are doing. The permitted
794 forms of {\bf purge} are:
796 purge files jobid=\lt{}jobid\gt{}|job=\lt{}job-name\gt{}|client=\lt{}client-name\gt{}
798 purge jobs client=\lt{}client-name\gt{} (of all jobs)
800 purge volume|volume=\lt{}vol-name\gt{} (of all jobs)
802 For the {\bf purge} command to work on Volume Catalog database records the
803 {\bf VolStatus} must be Append, Full, Used, or Error.
805 The actual data written to the Volume will be unaffected by this command.
808 \index[console]{relabel}
809 \index[general]{relabel}
810 This command is used to label physical volumes. The full form of this
813 relabel storage=\lt{}storage-name\gt{} oldvolume=\lt{}old-volume-name\gt{}
814 volume=\lt{}newvolume-name\gt{}
816 If you leave out any part, you will be prompted for it. In order for
817 the Volume (old-volume-name) to be relabeled, it must be in the catalog,
818 and the volume status must be marked {\bf Purged} or {\bf Recycle}.
819 This happens automatically as a result of applying retention periods, or
820 you may explicitly purge the volume using the {\bf purge} command.
822 Once the volume is physically relabeled, the old data previously written
823 on the Volume is lost and cannot be recovered.
826 \index[console]{release}
827 This command is used to cause the Storage daemon to rewind (release) the
828 current tape in the drive, and to re-read the Volume label the next time
831 release storage=\lt{}storage-name\gt{}
833 After a release command, the device is still kept open by Bacula (unless
834 Always Open is set to No in the Storage Daemon's configuration) so it
835 cannot be used by another program. However, with some tape drives, the
836 operator can remove the current tape and to insert a different one, and
837 when the next Job starts, Bacula will know to re-read the tape label to
838 find out what tape is mounted. If you want to be able to use the drive
839 with another program (e.g. {\bf mt}), you must use the {\bf unmount}
840 command to cause Bacula to completely release (close) the device.
843 \index[console]{reload}
844 The reload command causes the Director to re-read its configuration
845 file and apply the new values. The new values will take effect
846 immediately for all new jobs. However, if you change schedules,
847 be aware that the scheduler pre-schedules jobs up to two hours in
848 advance, so any changes that are to take place during the next two
849 hours may be delayed. Jobs that have already been scheduled to run
850 (i.e. surpassed their requested start time) will continue with the
851 old values. New jobs will use the new values. Each time you issue
852 a reload command while jobs are running, the prior config values
853 will queued until all jobs that were running before issuing
854 the reload terminate, at which time the old config values will
855 be released from memory. The Directory permits keeping up to
856 ten prior set of configurations before it will refuse a reload
857 command. Once at least one old set of config values has been
858 released it will again accept new reload commands.
860 While it is possible to reload the Director's configuration on the fly,
861 even while jobs are executing, this is a complex operation and not
862 without side effects. Accordingly, if you have to reload the Director's
863 configuration while Bacula is running, it is advisable to restart the
864 Director at the next convenient opportunity.
866 \label{restore_command}
868 \index[console]{restore}
869 The restore command allows you to select one or more Jobs (JobIds) to be
870 restored using various methods. Once the JobIds are selected, the File
871 records for those Jobs are placed in an internal Bacula directory tree,
872 and the restore enters a file selection mode that allows you to
873 interactively walk up and down the file tree selecting individual files
874 to be restored. This mode is somewhat similar to the standard Unix {\bf
875 restore} program's interactive file selection mode.
877 restore storage=\lt{}storage-name\gt{} client=\lt{}client-name\gt{}
878 where=\lt{}path\gt{} pool=\lt{}pool-name\gt{} fileset=\lt{}fileset-name\gt{}
879 select current all done
881 Where {\bf current}, if specified, tells the restore command to
882 automatically select a restore to the most current backup. If not
883 specified, you will be prompted. The {\bf all} specification tells the
884 restore command to restore all files. If it is not specified, you will
885 be prompted for the files to restore. For details of the {\bf restore}
886 command, please see the \ilink{Restore Chapter}{RestoreChapter} of this
891 This command allows you to schedule jobs to be run immediately. The full form
894 run job=\lt{}job-name\gt{} client=\lt{}client-name\gt{}
895 fileset=\lt{}FileSet-name\gt{} level=\lt{}level-keyword\gt{}
896 storage=\lt{}storage-name\gt{} where=\lt{}directory-prefix\gt{}
897 when=\lt{}universal-time-specification\gt{} yes
899 Any information that is needed but not specified will be listed for
900 selection, and before starting the job, you will be prompted to accept,
901 reject, or modify the parameters of the job to be run, unless you have
902 specified {\bf yes}, in which case the job will be immediately sent to
905 On my system, when I enter a run command, I get the following prompt:
909 A job name must be specified.
910 The defined Job resources are:
920 Select Job resource (1-9):
925 If I then select number 5, I am prompted with:
931 FileSet: Minou Full Set
936 When: 2003-04-23 17:08:18
937 OK to run? (yes/mod/no):
942 If I now enter {\bf yes}, the Job will be run. If I enter {\bf mod}, I will
943 be presented with the following prompt.
947 Parameters to modify:
955 Select parameter to modify (1-7):
960 If you wish to start a job at a later time, you can do so by setting the When
961 time. Use the {\bf mod} option and select {\bf When} (no. 6). Then enter the
962 desired start time in YYYY-MM-DD HH:MM:SS format.
965 \index[console]{setdebug}
966 \index[dir]{setdebug}
967 \index[dir]{debugging}
968 \index[dir]{debugging Win32}
969 \index[dir]{Windows!debugging}
970 This command is used to set the debug level in each daemon. The form of this
973 setdebug level=nn [trace=0/1 client=\lt{}client-name\gt{} | dir | director |
974 storage=\lt{}storage-name\gt{} | all]
976 If trace=1 is set, then tracing will be enabled, and the daemon will be
977 placed in trace mode, which means that all debug output as set by the
978 debug level will be directed to the file {\bf bacula.trace} in the
979 current directory of the daemon. Normally, tracing is needed only for
980 Win32 clients where the debug output cannot be written to a terminal or
981 redirected to a file. When tracing, each debug output message is
982 appended to the trace file. You must explicitly delete the file when
986 \index[console]{show}
988 The show command will list the Director's resource records as defined in
989 the Director's configuration file (normally {\bf bacula-dir.conf}).
990 This command is used mainly for debugging purposes by developers.
991 The following keywords are accepted on the
992 show command line: catalogs, clients, counters, devices, directors,
993 filesets, jobs, messages, pools, schedules, storages, all, help.
994 Please don't confuse this command
995 with the {\bf list}, which displays the contents of the catalog.
998 \index[console]{sqlquery}
999 The sqlquery command puts the Console program into SQL query mode where
1000 each line you enter is concatenated to the previous line until a
1001 semicolon (;) is seen. The semicolon terminates the command, which is
1002 then passed directly to the SQL database engine. When the output from
1003 the SQL engine is displayed, the formation of a new SQL command begins.
1004 To terminate SQL query mode and return to the Console command prompt,
1005 you enter a period (.) in column 1.
1007 Using this command, you can query the SQL catalog database directly.
1008 Note you should really know what you are doing otherwise you could
1009 damage the catalog database. See the {\bf query} command below for
1010 simpler and safer way of entering SQL queries.
1012 Depending on what database engine you are using (MySQL, PostgreSQL or
1013 SQLite), you will have somewhat different SQL commands available. For
1014 more detailed information, please refer to the MySQL, PostgreSQL or
1015 SQLite documentation.
1019 This command will display the status of the next jobs that are scheduled
1020 during the next 24 hours as well as the status of currently
1021 running jobs. The full form of this command is:
1023 status [all | dir=\lt{}dir-name\gt{} | director |
1024 client=\lt{}client-name\gt{} | storage=\lt{}storage-name\gt{} |
1027 If you do a {\bf status dir}, the console will list any currently
1028 running jobs, a summary of all jobs scheduled to be run in the next 24
1029 hours, and a listing of the last ten terminated jobs with their statuses.
1030 The scheduled jobs summary will include the Volume name to be used. You
1031 should be aware of two things: 1. to obtain the volume name, the code
1032 % TODO: use bullets here or be consistent with numbering items
1033 goes through the same code that will be used when the job runs, which
1034 means that it may prune or recycle a Volume; 2. The Volume listed is
1035 only a best guess. The Volume actually used may be different because of
1036 the time difference (more durations may expire when the job runs) and
1037 another job could completely fill the Volume requiring a new one.
1039 In the Running Jobs listing, you may find the following types of
1045 2507 Catalog MatouVerify.2004-03-13_05.05.02 is waiting execution
1046 5349 Full CatalogBackup.2004-03-13_01.10.00 is waiting for higher
1047 priority jobs to finish
1048 5348 Differe Minou.2004-03-13_01.05.09 is waiting on max Storage jobs
1049 5343 Full Rufus.2004-03-13_01.05.04 is running
1053 Looking at the above listing from bottom to top, obviously JobId 5343
1054 (Rufus) is running. JobId 5348 (Minou) is waiting for JobId 5343 to
1055 finish because it is using the Storage resource, hence the "waiting on
1056 max Storage jobs". JobId 5349 has a lower priority than all the other
1057 jobs so it is waiting for higher priority jobs to finish, and finally,
1058 JobId 2508 (MatouVerify) is waiting because only one job can run at a
1059 time, hence it is simply "waiting execution"
1061 If you do a {\bf status dir}, it will by default list the first
1062 occurrence of all jobs that are scheduled today and tomorrow. If you
1063 wish to see the jobs that are scheduled in the next three days (e.g. on
1064 Friday you want to see the first occurrence of what tapes are scheduled
1065 to be used on Friday, the weekend, and Monday), you can add the {\bf
1066 days=3} option. Note, a {\bf days=0} shows the first occurrence of jobs
1067 scheduled today only. If you have multiple run statements, the first
1068 occurrence of each run statement for the job will be displayed for the
1071 If your job seems to be blocked, you can get a general idea of the
1072 problem by doing a {\bf status dir}, but you can most often get a
1073 much more specific indication of the problem by doing a
1074 {\bf status storage=xxx}. For example, on an idle test system, when
1075 I do {\bf status storage=File}, I get:
1079 Connecting to Storage daemon File at 192.168.68.112:8103
1081 rufus-sd Version: 1.39.6 (24 March 2006) i686-pc-linux-gnu redhat (Stentz)
1082 Daemon started 26-Mar-06 11:06, 0 Jobs run since started.
1088 Jobs waiting to reserve a drive:
1092 JobId Level Files Bytes Status Finished Name
1093 ======================================================================
1094 59 Full 234 4,417,599 OK 15-Jan-06 11:54 kernsave
1098 utochanger "DDS-4-changer" with devices:
1100 Device "DDS-4" (/dev/nst0) is mounted with Volume="TestVolume002"
1102 Slot 2 is loaded in drive 0.
1103 Total Bytes Read=0 Blocks Read=0 Bytes/block=0
1104 Positioned at File=0 Block=0
1105 Device "Dummy" is not open or does not exist.
1106 No DEVICE structure.
1108 Device "DVD-Writer" (/dev/hdc) is not open.
1109 Device "File" (/tmp) is not open.
1112 In Use Volume status:
1117 Now, what this tells me is that no jobs are running and that none of
1118 the devices are in use. Now, if I {\bf unmount} the autochanger, which
1119 will not be used in this example, and then start a Job that uses the
1120 File device, the job will block. When I re-issue the status storage
1121 command, I get for the Device status:
1128 Autochanger "DDS-4-changer" with devices:
1130 Device "DDS-4" (/dev/nst0) is not open.
1131 Device is BLOCKED. User unmounted.
1132 Drive 0 is not loaded.
1133 Device "Dummy" is not open or does not exist.
1134 No DEVICE structure.
1136 Device "DVD-Writer" (/dev/hdc) is not open.
1137 Device "File" (/tmp) is not open.
1138 Device is BLOCKED waiting for media.
1144 Now, here it should be clear that if a job were running that wanted
1145 to use the Autochanger (with two devices), it would block because
1146 the user unmounted the device. The real problem for the Job I started
1147 using the "File" device is that the device is blocked waiting for
1148 media -- that is Bacula needs you to label a Volume.
1151 \index[console]{unmount}
1152 This command causes the indicated Bacula Storage daemon to unmount the
1153 specified device. The forms of the command are the same as the mount command:
1156 unmount storage=<storage-name> [ drive=\lt{}num\gt{} ]
1158 unmount [ jobid=<id> | job=<job-name> ]
1162 Once you unmount a storage device, Bacula will no longer be able to use
1163 it until you issue a mount command for that device. If Bacula needs to
1164 access that device, it will block and issue mount requests periodically
1167 If the device you are unmounting is an autochanger, it will unload
1168 the drive you have specified on the command line. If no drive is
1169 specified, it will assume drive 1.
1171 \label{UpdateCommand}
1173 \index[console]{update}
1174 This command will update the catalog for either a specific Pool record, a Volume
1175 record, or the Slots in an autochanger with barcode capability. In the case
1176 of updating a Pool record, the new information will be automatically taken
1177 from the corresponding Director's configuration resource record. It can be
1178 used to increase the maximum number of volumes permitted or to set a maximum
1179 number of volumes. The following main keywords may be specified:
1182 media, volume, pool, slots
1186 In the case of updating a Volume, you will be prompted for which value you
1187 wish to change. The following Volume parameters may be changed:
1193 Volume Retention Period
1196 Maximum Volume Files
1197 Maximum Volume Bytes
1204 All Volumes from Pool
1209 For slots {\bf update slots}, Bacula will obtain a list of slots and
1210 their barcodes from the Storage daemon, and for each barcode found, it
1211 will automatically update the slot in the catalog Media record to
1212 correspond to the new value. This is very useful if you have moved
1213 cassettes in the magazine, or if you have removed the magazine and
1214 inserted a different one. As the slot of each Volume is updated, the
1215 InChanger flag for that Volume will also be set, and any other Volumes
1216 in the Pool that were last mounted on the same Storage device
1217 will have their InChanger flag turned off. This permits
1218 Bacula to know what magazine (tape holder) is currently in the
1221 If you do not have barcodes, you can accomplish the same thing in
1222 version 1.33 and later by using the {\bf update slots scan} command.
1223 The {\bf scan} keyword tells Bacula to physically mount each tape and to
1224 read its VolumeName.
1226 For Pool {\bf update pool}, Bacula will move the Volume record from its
1227 existing pool to the pool specified.
1229 For {\bf Volume from Pool} and {\bf All Volumes from Pool}, the
1230 following values are updated from the Pool record: Recycle,
1231 VolRetention, VolUseDuration, MaxVolJobs, MaxVolFiles, and MaxVolBytes.
1233 The full form of the update command with all command line arguments is:
1237 update volume=xxx pool=yyy slots volstatus=xxx VolRetention=ddd
1238 VolUse=ddd MaxVolJobs=nnn MaxVolBytes=nnn Recycle=yes|no
1245 \index[console]{use}
1246 This command allows you to specify which Catalog database to use. Normally,
1247 you will be using only one database so this will be done automatically. In
1248 the case that you are using more than one database, you can use this command
1249 to switch from one to another.
1251 use \lt{}database-name\gt{}
1255 \index[console]{var name}
1256 This command takes a string or quoted string and does variable expansion on
1257 it the same way variable expansion is done on the {\bf LabelFormat} string.
1258 Thus, for the most part, you can test your LabelFormat strings. The
1259 difference between the {\bf var} command and the actual LabelFormat process
1260 is that during the var command, no job is running so "dummy" values are
1261 used in place of Job specific variables. Generally, however, you will get a
1262 good idea of what is going to happen in the real case.
1265 \index[console]{version}
1266 The command prints the Director's version.
1269 \index[console]{quit}
1270 This command terminates the console program. The console program sends the
1271 {\bf quit} request to the Director and waits for acknowledgment. If the
1272 Director is busy doing a previous command for you that has not terminated, it
1273 may take some time. You may quit immediately by issuing the {\bf .quit}
1274 command (i.e. quit preceded by a period).
1277 \index[console]{query}
1278 This command reads a predefined SQL query from the query file (the name and
1279 location of the query file is defined with the QueryFile resource record in
1280 the Director's configuration file). You are prompted to select a query from
1281 the file, and possibly enter one or more parameters, then the command is
1282 submitted to the Catalog database SQL engine.
1284 The following queries are currently available (version 1.24):
1290 2: List where a file is saved:
1291 3: List where the most recent copies of a file are saved:
1292 4: List total files/bytes by Job:
1293 5: List total files/bytes by Volume:
1294 6: List last 20 Full Backups for a Client:
1295 7: List Volumes used by selected JobId:
1296 8: List Volumes to Restore All Files:
1297 9: List where a File is saved:
1298 Choose a query (1-9):
1304 \index[console]{exit}
1305 This command terminates the console program.
1308 \index[console]{wait}
1309 The wait command causes the Director to pause until there are no jobs
1310 running. This command is useful in a batch situation such as regression
1311 testing where you wish to start a job and wait until that job completes
1312 before continuing. This command now has the following options:
1315 wait [jobid=nn] [jobuid=unique id] [job=job name]
1318 If specified with a specific JobId, ... the wait command will wait
1319 for that particular job to terminate before continuing.
1324 \section{Special dot Commands}
1325 \index[general]{Commands!Special dot}
1326 \index[general]{Special dot Commands}
1328 There is a list of commands that are prefixed with a period (.). These
1329 commands are intended to be used either by batch programs or graphical user
1330 interface front-ends. They are not normally used by interactive users. Once
1331 GUI development begins, this list will be considerably expanded. The following
1332 is the list of dot commands:
1336 .backups job=xxx list backups for specified job
1337 .clients list all client names
1338 .defaults client=xxx fileset=yyy list defaults for specified client
1339 .die cause the Director to segment fault (for debugging)
1340 .dir when in tree mode prints the equivalent to the dir command,
1341 but with fields separated by commas rather than spaces.
1343 .filesets list all fileset names
1344 .help help command output
1345 .jobs list all job names
1346 .levels list all levels
1347 .messages get quick messages
1348 .msgs return any queued messages
1349 .pools list all pool names
1351 .status get status output
1352 .storage return storage resource names
1353 .types list job types
1359 \section{Special At (@) Commands}
1360 \index[general]{Commands!Special At @}
1361 \index[general]{Special At (@) Commands}
1363 Normally, all commands entered to the Console program are immediately
1364 forwarded to the Director, which may be on another machine, to be executed.
1365 However, there is a small list of {\bf at} commands, all beginning with an at
1366 character (@), that will not be sent to the Director, but rather interpreted
1367 by the Console program directly. Note, these commands are implemented only in
1368 the tty console program and not in the GNOME Console. These commands are:
1372 \item [@input \lt{}filename\gt{}]
1373 \index[console]{@input \lt{}filename\gt{}}
1374 Read and execute the commands contained in the file specified.
1376 \item [@output \lt{}filename\gt{} w/a]
1377 \index[console]{@output \lt{}filename\gt{} w/a}
1378 Send all following output to the filename specified either overwriting the
1379 file (w) or appending to the file (a). To redirect the output to the
1380 terminal, simply enter {\bf @output} without a filename specification.
1381 WARNING: be careful not to overwrite a valid file. A typical example during a
1382 regression test might be:
1393 \item [@tee \lt{}filename\gt{} w/a]
1394 \index[console]{@tee \lt{}filename\gt{} w/a}
1395 Send all subsequent output to both the specified file and the terminal. It is
1396 turned off by specifying {\bf @tee} or {\bf @output} without a filename.
1398 \item [@sleep \lt{}seconds\gt{}]
1399 \index[console]{@sleep \lt{}seconds\gt{}}
1400 Sleep the specified number of seconds.
1403 \index[console]{@time}
1404 Print the current time and date.
1407 \index[console]{@version}
1408 Print the console's version.
1411 \index[console]{@quit}
1415 \index[console]{@exit}
1418 \item [@\# anything]
1419 \index[console]{anything}
1425 \section{Running the Console from a Shell Script}
1426 \index[general]{Script!Running the Console Program from a Shell}
1427 \index[general]{Running the Console Program from a Shell Script}
1429 You can automate many Console tasks by running the console program from a
1430 shell script. For example, if you have created a file containing the following
1435 ./bconsole -c ./bconsole.conf <<END_OF_DATA
1436 unmount storage=DDS-4
1442 when that file is executed, it will unmount the current DDS-4 storage device.
1443 You might want to run this command during a Job by using the {\bf
1444 RunBeforeJob} or {\bf RunAfterJob} records.
1446 It is also possible to run the Console program from file input where the file
1447 contains the commands as follows:
1451 ./bconsole -c ./bconsole.conf <filename
1455 where the file named {\bf filename} contains any set of console commands.
1457 As a real example, the following script is part of the Bacula regression
1458 tests. It labels a volume (a disk volume), runs a backup, then does a restore
1463 bin/bconsole -c bin/bconsole.conf <<END_OF_DATA
1466 @output /tmp/log1.out
1467 label volume=TestVolume001
1474 @output /tmp/log2.out
1485 The output from the backup is directed to /tmp/log1.out and the output from
1486 the restore is directed to /tmp/log2.out. To ensure that the backup and
1487 restore ran correctly, the output files are checked with:
1491 grep "^Termination: *Backup OK" /tmp/log1.out
1493 grep "^Termination: *Restore OK" /tmp/log2.out
1498 \section{Adding Volumes to a Pool}
1499 \index[general]{Adding Volumes to a Pool}
1500 \index[general]{Pool!Adding Volumes to a}
1502 If you have used the {\bf label} command to label a Volume, it will be
1503 automatically added to the Pool, and you will not need to add any media to the
1506 Alternatively, you may choose to add a number of Volumes to the pool without
1507 labeling them. At a later time when the Volume is requested by {\bf Bacula}
1508 you will need to label it.
1510 Before adding a volume, you must know the following information:
1513 \item The name of the Pool (normally "Default")
1514 \item The Media Type as specified in the Storage Resource in the Director's
1515 configuration file (e.g. "DLT8000")
1516 \item The number and names of the Volumes you wish to create.
1519 For example, to add media to a Pool, you would issue the following commands to
1520 the console program:
1525 Enter name of Pool to add Volumes to: Default
1526 Enter the Media Type: DLT8000
1527 Enter number of Media volumes to create. Max=1000: 10
1528 Enter base volume name: Save
1529 Enter the starting number: 1
1530 10 Volumes created in pool Default
1535 To see what you have added, enter:
1539 *list media pool=Default
1540 +-------+----------+---------+---------+-------+------------------+
1541 | MedId | VolumeNa | MediaTyp| VolStat | Bytes | LastWritten |
1542 +-------+----------+---------+---------+-------+------------------+
1543 | 11 | Save0001 | DLT8000 | Append | 0 | 0000-00-00 00:00 |
1544 | 12 | Save0002 | DLT8000 | Append | 0 | 0000-00-00 00:00 |
1545 | 13 | Save0003 | DLT8000 | Append | 0 | 0000-00-00 00:00 |
1546 | 14 | Save0004 | DLT8000 | Append | 0 | 0000-00-00 00:00 |
1547 | 15 | Save0005 | DLT8000 | Append | 0 | 0000-00-00 00:00 |
1548 | 16 | Save0006 | DLT8000 | Append | 0 | 0000-00-00 00:00 |
1549 | 17 | Save0007 | DLT8000 | Append | 0 | 0000-00-00 00:00 |
1550 | 18 | Save0008 | DLT8000 | Append | 0 | 0000-00-00 00:00 |
1551 | 19 | Save0009 | DLT8000 | Append | 0 | 0000-00-00 00:00 |
1552 | 20 | Save0010 | DLT8000 | Append | 0 | 0000-00-00 00:00 |
1553 +-------+----------+---------+---------+-------+------------------+
1558 Notice that the console program automatically appended a number to the base
1559 Volume name that you specify (Save in this case). If you don't want it to
1560 append a number, you can simply answer 0 (zero) to the question "Enter number
1561 of Media volumes to create. Max=1000:", and in this case, it will create a
1562 single Volume with the exact name you specify.