How To:Install Amanda Server on AIX

How to install amanda 2.5.0p2 on AIX 5.2

In this article is described how amanda server can be made to run using an old AIX 5.2 system and a non-IBM tape library.

Description of the system

IBM p-Server 7026-B80 with four cpu's

6 * 10/100 ethernetcards

4* 36 Gb scsi disk

HP Storageworks 1/8 Autoloader LTO2

Software

AIX 5.2 ML9 (5200-08)

Latest firmware upgrade for the hardware from IBM

amanda-2.5.0p2 (source)

mtx-1.3.11.tar.gz (source)

make-3.81.tar.gz (source)

gsc-1.1.tar.gz (source)

gcc.4.1.1.tar.Z (Precompiled set of binaries from UCLA AIX site)

no IBM xlC compiler

Getting amanda to work

In order to get amanda to work the following actions have to be taken: 0) Prerequisites

1) Install compiler

2) Install GNU make

3) Install GSC (generic scsi driver for AIX)

4) Install mtx for AIX

5) Connect the tapedrive

6) Test the tapedrive

7) Compile amanda

8) Configuration

Prerequisites

take care that /usr/local is sufficiently big (2 Gb).

PATH=/usr/local/bin:/usr/local/sbin:$PATH

Amanda amanda-2.5.0p2 is the most recent version that can be made to work on AIX. Never versions 2.5.1/2.5.2 do not pass the "configure", or strand on compilation errors. There seem to be issues with 32/64 bit.

Parameters for configure: ./configure --with-user=amanda --with-group=tapes --without-server --without-ipv6 --includedir=/usr/local/lib/gcc/powerpc-ibm-aix5.2.0.0/4.1.1/include --oldincludedir=/usr/local/lib/gcc/powerpc-ibm-aix5.2.0.0/4.1.1/include --disable-largefile --with-cflags=-DAIX_BACKUP

Install compiler

Thx to UCLA there is a recent GNU compiler for AIX, version 4.1.1.

Download this, and install the binaries: cat gcc.4.1.1.tar.Z | uncompress | (cd / ; tar xvf -)

Install GNU make

This is necessary for mtx to compile, they use GNU make specific statements. Compiling and installation is straightforward.

Install GSC

This is necessary to get any non-IBM autoloader to work. AIX only seems to support autoloaders when TSM is bought.

HP does not provide AIX autoloader support for its autoloaders.

GSC was tested with the standard xlC compiler from IBM, in order to compile with gcc the makefile has to be adapted:

- CC = gcc

- LDFLAGS = -b"I:/lib/kernex.exp I:/lib/syscalls.exp" -lcsys -lsys

- install bos.adt.syscalls (for libcsys)

Compiling gsc

- type "make"

Follow instructions in the README provided with gsc source code.

Important note: cp gscdds.h /usr/include/sys (otherwise compilation of mtx will fail).

Surviving reboots with GSC

In my case the autoloader device gets into state "defined" after a reboot:

catfish# lsdev -Cc generic

gsc0 Defined 10-89-00-5,1 Feral Software Generic SCSI Release 1.1

The following statements activate the autoloader, and the original device name will be preserved: During system boot (inittab runstate 2) run following statements:

1) rmdev -l gsc0 -d

2) When the autoloader is connected to scsi adapter P and has scsi-id Y and LUN Z type:

3) catfish# mkdev -c generic -s scsi -t gsc -pscsiP -wY,Z

gsc0 Available

4) Ownerships device nodes (amanda, group tapes):

chown amanda:tapes /dev/rmt* /dev/gsc*

chmod 660 /dev/rmt* /dev/gsc*

5) Check with: lsdev -Cs scsi

gsc0 Available 10-89-00-5,1 Feral Software Generic SCSI Release 1.1

rmt0 Available 10-89-00-5,0 Other SCSI Tape Drive

Note: Amanda will need the non-rewinding device in its amanda.conf. On Aix this is /dev/rmtX.1, where X=the number of the drive listed in lsdev

GSC and Atape driver

The "tapeutil" program packaged with Atape does not work with GSC scsi autoloader devices.

All actions result in the same error message: Operation failed with errno 25: Not a typewriter

Install mtx for AIX

MTX should now compile straighforward, except that during "make install" a strip command fails, this is solved by changing the install into:

install: $(BINS) #$(DBGS)

Then it runs fine