Three procedures can be used to back up files and file systems: the Web-based System Manager fast path wsm fs, the SMIT fast paths smit backfile or smit backfilesys, and the backup command.
You can use the SMIT interface for backing up single and small file systems by name, such as /home on your local system. Note that SMIT cannot make archives in any other format than that provided by the backup command. Also, not every flag of the backup command is available through SMIT, as that makes the SMIT dialog convoluted and confusing. SMIT might hang if multiple tapes or disks are needed during the backup. See "Backing Up by Name" in the backup command.
Use the backup command when you want to back up large and multiple file systems. You can sepcify a level number to control how much data is backed up (full, 0; incremental, 1-9). Using the backup command is the only way you can specify the level number on backups.
The backup command creates copies in one of the two following backup formats:
Attention: Backing up by i-node does not work correctly for files that have a user ID (UID) or a group ID (GID) greater than 65535. These files are backed up with UID or GID truncated and will, therefore, have the wrong UID or GID attributes when restored. Backing up by name works correctly for files that have a UID or GID greater than 65535.