6.3 Accessing Archived Files

Novell Archive and Version Services provides a convenient and cost-effective way for you to instantly restore previous versions of your modified, deleted, or lost files.

IMPORTANT:You can use NetStorage to access previous versions of archived files, but NetStorage cannot be used to restore archived deleted directories. You must use the NSS File Version Utility to restore archived directories that have been deleted. You can access file versions from anywhere, at any time, using a Web browser and an active network without the help of your administrator.

For information on accessing and restoring archived file versions, see the OES 11 SP3: Novell Archive and Version Services User Guide.

6.3.1 What Files Are Versioned

Your administrator sets criteria to determine which files are eligible for versioning. Files can be included or excluded according to the path, file extension, or filename patterns. If your files meet the inclusion criteria, they are eligible for versioning.

Versioning occurs for eligible files at scheduled intervals, called epochs. It does not matter how many changes users make to a file during an epoch; only those files that exist at the end of the epoch are saved. If a user creates and deletes a file within the epoch, it cannot be versioned. This means that a file’s lifetime must span to the end of an epoch to be versioned.

Versioned files might have a limited life in the archive, depending on the delete policies your administrator sets. The administrator sets the maximum keep time and the maximum number of versions to retain. The delete policy for some volumes can allow indefinite retention of versioned files.

For information about the versioning policies for your files, contact your Archive and Version Services administrator.

6.3.2 Accessing File Versions

You can access previous versions of your files whenever you need to by using the NetStorage interface.

  1. Log in to NetStorage.

  2. Select a file or directory that you want to see previous versions of.

  3. Right-click to open the pop-up menu.

  4. Click Archive.

To restore a previous version of the file:

  1. Navigate through the Archive dialog boxes to find the file you want to see previous versions of.

  2. Review the time stamps of the file versions, then select the version of the file that you want to restore.

  3. In the Restore To field, type the path and filename where you want to restore the version, or browse to that location, type a filename, then click OK.

  4. Click Restore.

WARNING:The restored version overwrites any file by that name in the Restore To location.