BackupExec

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BackupExec is a Windows 2000 and NetWare backup/restore solution from Veritas. Originally from the Arcada and Seagate Software companies, BackupExec has been used mostly in Windows NT and NetWare environments, with support for UNIX clients also available. BackupExec is the most common of the lower end backup/restore software solutions. A compact version is licensed to Microsoft and incorporated in Windows 2000.

An obvious flaw in BackupExec is that it uses only one processor during the course of the backup. While excellent performance is achieved out of the box, the employment of only a single processor makes it a poor choice for multiprocessor servers.

The minimum hardware configuration for a BackupExec environment should be 256 MB of RAM (512 MB or more is preferable) and a single fast processor (that is, 450 MHz or faster). Performance can also be improved up to 20 percent by increasing the block size to 64 Kb (the default is 32 Kb) and by increasing buffer size and count parameters for each tape device. Because data varies, you should experiment with the parameters and examine the results in conjunction with Windows 2000 Performance Monitor.