How to Customize Label Templates

To customize label templates, display the Label Template resource and specify values for the following attributes:

• Name

  Keep the label Name consistent with the pool Name so you and your users can easily see how the data is organized. You can use the same or similar names. For example, you can create a label template called "AcctFull" for volumes that belong to a pool called "Accounting Full."

  You can only use alphanumeric characters when you create label templates. Backup does not allow the following characters in label template names:

  / \ * [ ] ( ) $ ! ^ ' ; ` ~ < > & | { }

  In addition, you cannot use the following four characters, because they are used as separators in label templates:

  • colon (:)

  • dash (-)

  • period (.)

  • underscore (_).

• Fields

  A label template is made up of one or more fields. Each field, or component, provides a layer of specificity to your organizational structure. You can have as many components as you want, but it is best to keep the template simple, with few components. The total length of the label cannot exceed 64 characters.

  You can use four types of components:

  • Range of numbers (for example, 001-999)

  • Range of lowercase letters (for example, aa-zz)

  • Range of uppercase letters (for example, AA-ZZ)

  • Character string (for example, Accounting)

  Each range includes a start value, a dash (-), and an end value. The start value and the end value must have the same number of characters. For example, use 01-99, not 1-99, or aaa-zzz, not aa-zzz. (This rule does not apply to a list of character strings or words; character strings are separated by a blank space.)

  The order in which you enter each component of the Fields template is important. Backup applies each component in a left-to-right order, starting with the first one you enter. Table 4-1 illustrates how label templates use components to create a number sequence for volume labels.

Table 4-1 Examples: Number Sequences for Volume Labels

Type of Components	Fields	Number Sequence Result	Total Number of Labels
Range of numbers	001-100	001, 002, 003,...100
Character string  Range of numbers	SalesFull  001-100	SalesFull.001, ...SalesFull.100
Range of lowercase letters  Range of numbers	aa-zz 00-99	aa.00,...aa.99, ab.00,...ab.99, ac.00,...ac.99, : az.00...az.99, ba.00,...ba.99 : zz.00,...zz.99	67,600 (262 times 102)

Your label template should allow for expansion of your backup media storage system. For example, it is better to create a template for 100 tapes and not use all of them than to create a template for only 10 tapes and run out of labels. When Backup reaches the end of the template number sequence, Backup wraps around to the start value. In Table 4-1, for example, after Backup uses zz.99 for the 67,600th label, Backup uses aa.00 for the 67,601st label.

• Separator

  Choose which character symbol you want to appear between component entries. You can use the period, dash, colon, or underscore to separate each component of the label template. If you do not select a separator, the label components do not have separators (for example, AA00aa), which makes the labels difficult to read.

• Next

  Choose the next sequence number to write on the label Backup places on a volume (according to the template). If you want to force a label to start the label scheme at a particular point, enter the start label value you want. Backup continues to generate labels from that point on, according to the rules of the template. If you want Backup to generate the first label for you, leave this attribute blank.

  When Backup recycles a storage volume, the volume label does not change as long as the volume remains in the same pool. That is, if a storage volume labeled Dev.006 is recycled, it retains the volume label Dev.006 and does not receive a new label with the next sequence number.