Step 1. Use Carbon Copy Cloner to duplicate your server to an external drive. This will ensure that you have an exact copy of your server drive while you set up the rest.
This is because you are having problems and unsure of the process and will give you the security of knowing you have a proper snapshot. The reason to use CCC for this instead of Retrospect is simply that it is better at duplicating a disk (AFAIK at least). You can find CCC at
http://www.versiontracker.com
. It also seems that iMsafe is a misnomer and that it is the direct source of your problem. Toss it immediately if you haven't already.
Step 2. Sort out your Retrospect setup.
2A. Duplicate (mirror) the server drive(s) to an external hard drive hard drive every night and swap this drive once per week with an identical one. The inactive drive is taken offsite in case of fire etc. This can work with only one backup set and script. The two drives are setup identically so that Retrospect doesn't care which one is attached so it doesn't matter if you forget to do the swap on your regular day.
2B. Setup an archival (incremental) backup to CD or DVD. This will store every version of every file you ever have on the server overnight when the backup takes place. As the disks fill up take them offsite for added disaster security. If you want to be super-extra-careful you can use a second optical drive to make a duplicate archive to keep on site for those odd times when you need to search for an old version of a file.
2C. Toss the tape drive (or sell it to someone you don't like, or at least don't care about - of course there is always that karma problem). Seriously, I have never known anyone who has been saved by having a tape backup (except for a file I managed to extract for a client who couldn't cope with the ridiculous Windows backup software they were using). I'm sure it happens, I've just found tapes to be more hassle and trouble and less reliable than either of the above methods. Total disk (disaster) recovery is more troublesome from optical disks, but that is what the hard drives are for. And remember that tape is not a durable nor archival medium.
Take some time to get used to Retrospect. It's not really that difficult. The simplest thing is to make a separate backup set for each script. Another good idea is to make a regular backup of the backup sets themselves. I forget where the default location is, but you should be able to find them easily enough. Just back them up to another computer on the network so they are always up to date and available if you need them.
