When you install an integrated server, i5/OS™ creates a network server description and predefined disk drives for your server that you need to back up. See Predefined disk drives for integrated Windows servers. Some of the disk drives are system-related (the installation and system drives); others are user-related. Because Windows server considers them a unified system, you need to save all the disk drives and the network server description to restore properly.
The Microsoft® Windows operating system and the files that are required to start the integrated server are located on the C and D drives of the server. Windows environment on iSeries™ allows you to save and restore these drives as i5/OS network server storage space objects. These objects are saved as part of the i5/OS system when you perform a full i5/OS system backup. You can also specifically save the network server description and associated storage spaces. Daily backup of the system drive is a good idea.
Saving storage spaces is the fastest but least flexible method for backing up your integrated server because you cannot restore individual files. Alternatively, you can back up specific individual files and directories to eliminate the BOOT disk, RDISK, and registry backups that you would take with a PC-based Windows server. See Back up individual integrated Windows server files and directories.
To back up the network server description and the disk drives that are associated with integrated servers, see these topics: