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FAQs

Frequently asked questions...

  • What is a snapshot image?
    A snapshot image is a logical copy of volume content, captured at a particular point in time. Snapshot images use minimal storage space.
  • Why use snapshot images?
    You can use snapshots to protect against and allow recovery from accidental or malicious loss or corruption of data.
  • What kinds of volumes can be used for snapshots?
    Standard volumes and thin volumes are the only types of volumes that can be used to store snapshot images. Non-standard volumes cannot be used. The base volume can reside on either a pool or volume group.
  • Why would I create a snapshot consistency group?
    You create a snapshot consistency group when you want to make sure snapshot images are taken on multiple volumes at the same time. For example, a database made up of multiple volumes that need to stay consistent for recovery purposes would require a snapshot consistency group to collect coordinated snapshots of all volumes and use them to restore the entire database.
  • What is a snapshot volume and when does it need reserved capacity?
    A snapshot volume allows the host to access data in the snapshot image. The snapshot volume contains its own reserved capacity, which saves any modifications to the base volume without affecting the original snapshot image. Snapshot images are not read- or write-accessible to hosts. If you want to read or write to snapshot data, create a snapshot volume and assign it to a host.
  • What is a snapshot group?
    A snapshot group is a collection of point-in-time snapshot images of a single associated base volume.
  • Why would I disable a snapshot volume?
    You disable a snapshot volume when you want to assign a different snapshot volume to the snapshot image. You can reserve the disabled snapshot volume for later use.
  • What is the Disabled state?
    A snapshot volume in Disabled status is not currently assigned to a snapshot image. To enable the snapshot volume, you must use the re-create operation to assign a new snapshot image to the disabled snapshot volume.
  • Why would I suspend a snapshot schedule?
    When a schedule is suspended, the scheduled snapshot image creations do not occur. You can pause a snapshot schedule to conserve storage space, and then resume the scheduled snapshots at a later time.