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Virtual Machine Backup GuideESX 4.0, ESXi 4.0 Installable and vCenter Server 4.0,
Update 2 and later for
ESX Server 3.5, ESX Server 3i version 3.5, VirtualCenter 2.5
This document supports the version of each product listed and
supports all subsequent versions until the document is replacedby a new edition. To check for more recent editions of thisdocument, see http://www.vmware.com/support/pubs.
EN-000036-07
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VMware, Inc.3401 Hillview Ave.Palo Alto, CA 94304www.vmware.com
2 VMware, Inc.
Virtual Machine Backup Guide
You can find the most up-to-date technical documentation on the VMware Web site at:
http://www.vmware.com/support/
The VMware Web site also provides the latest product updates.
If you have comments about this documentation, submit your feedback to:
Copyright 20072011 VMware, Inc. All rights reserved. This product is protected by U.S. and
international copyright and intellectual property laws. VMware products are covered by one or morepatents listed at http://www.vmware.com/go/patents.
VMware is a registered trademark or trademark of VMware, Inc. in the United States and/or otherjurisdictions. All other marks and names mentioned herein may be trademarks of their respectivecompanies.
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Contents
AboutThisBook 7
1 BackingUpwithVMwareInfrastructure 11BackupConcepts 11
WhattoBackUp 12
VirtualMachineContents 13
AccessingandManagingVirtualDiskFiles 13
BackupComponentsandApproaches 14
UsingTraditionalBackupMethods 15
TraditionalBackupConsiderations 16
BackingUptheESXServiceConsole 16
BackingUpVirtualMachines 17
RunningtheBackupClientinaVirtualMachine 17
RunningtheBackupClientintheESXServiceConsole 19
RunningtheBackupServerinaVirtualMachine 20
TreatingVirtualMachinesasFilesonSharedStorage 21
UsingVMwareConsolidatedBackup 22
2 VMwareConsolidatedBackup 23VMwareConsolidatedBackupOverview 23
HowVMwareConsolidatedBackupWorks 24
VMwareConsolidatedBackupUsageModels 24
VMwareConsolidatedBackupWorkflow 28
Typesof
Backups 29
PerformingImageLevelVirtualMachineBackups 30
PerformingFileLevelVirtualMachineBackups 30
VMwareConsolidatedBackupLimitations 30
ConsolidatedBackupSoftwareandHardwareRequirements 31
SettingUpVMwareConsolidatedBackup 32
ConfiguringVMwareESXServerandVirtualMachines 32
Setting
Up
a
VCB
Proxy 33ConfiguringWindowsontheVCBProxy 34
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ConfiguringNetworkingontheVCBProxy 35
ConfiguringThirdPartySoftwareontheVCBProxy 35
InstallingVMwareConsolidatedBackup 36
InstallingaBackupSoftwareIntegrationModule 36
ConfiguringVMwareConsolidatedBackup 37
ConfiguringUSERNAMEandPASSWORD 40
EnablingSSLCertificateVerification 41
ConfiguringSAN 43
UsingVMwareConsolidatedBackup 43
CreatingaVCBHelperVirtualMachine 44
AssigningBackupPrivilegestoaConsolidatedBackupUser 45
CreatingaVMwareConsolidatedBackupUserRole 45
CreatingaVMwareConsolidatedBackupProxyRole 46
GroupingVirtualMachines 47
ConfiguringBackup Jobs 48
FirstTimeBackup 48
QuiescingMechanisms 49
UsingVMwareVSSComponents 50
UsingSYNCDriver 51
RunningCustomQuiescingScripts 51
AdvancedConfigurations 53
CancelingaBackup Job 53
CleaningUpAfteraFailedBackup Job 53
UpgradingConsolidatedBackup 54
3 RestorationandDisasterRecovery 55RestoringVirtualMachinesUsingVMwareConsolidatedBackup 55
UsingVMwareConvertertoRestoreVirtualMachineImages 56
UsingthevcbRestoreUtilitytoRestoreVirtualMachines 56
CentralizedRestore 56
PerGroupRestore 57
DirectRestoretoaVirtualMachine 57
DataRecovery 57
4 BackupScenariosandTroubleshooting 59BackupUsageScenarios 59
TypicalConsolidatedBackupUsageScenario 60
Troubleshooting 61ChangingBackupPoliciesafterESXServer2.xUpgrades 61
IdentifyingVMFSVolumesinBackupGUI 61
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Contents
A UsingServiceConsoletoBackUpandRestoreVirtualMachines 63GeneralConfigurationSettingsforConsolidatedBackupUtilities 64
ConfigurationFile
Settings 64
BackingUpVirtualMachines 66
PerformingBackups 66
IdentifyingVirtualMachines 67
IdentifyingVirtualMachinesbyDNSNameorIPAddress 67
IdentifyingVirtualMachinesbyBIOSUUID 68
IdentifyingVirtualMachinesbyMoRef 68
DisplayingVirtualMachineInformation 69SpecifyingBackupDestinations 69
BackingUptoaLocalDirectory 69
BackingUptoaRemoteServer 69
ArchivingVirtualMachines 70
RestoringVirtualMachines 71
RestoringVirtualMachinestoOriginalLocations 71
RestoringVirtual
Machines
to
Alternative
Locations 71
CopyingaCatalogFile 72
EditingaCatalogFile 72
RestoringVirtualMachinesUsinganAlternateCatalog 74
NonInteractiveUseofthevcbRestoreUtility 74
RestoringVirtualMachinesfromArchives 75
B RestoringVirtualMachinesfromESXServer2.5.xtoESXServer3.x 77SettingConfigurationParameters 77
RestoringESX2.5.xServerVirtualMachines 78
Index 79
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Thismanual,theVirtualMachineBackupGuide,providesinformationondifferentmethodsyoucanusetoperformbackupandrestoretasks.Italsodescribeshowtoset
upanduseVMwareConsolidatedBackup,abackupsolutionofferedbyVMware
Infrastructure3andrecommendedtoperformdailybackupsforvirtualmachinesresidingonaFibreChanneloriSCSISAN,oronalocalstore.
TheVirtualMachineBackupGuidecoversESX4.0,ESXi4.0,ESXServer3.5,andESXServer3iversion3.5.Foreaseofdiscussion,thisbookusesthefollowingproduct
namingconventions:
FortopicsspecifictoESX4.0,thisbookusesthetermESX4.
FortopicsspecifictoESXi4.0,thisbookusesthetermESXi4.
FortopicsspecifictoESXServer3.5,thisbookusesthetermESXServer3.
FortopicsspecifictoESXServer3iversion3.5,thisbookusestheterm
ESX Server 3.
Fortopicscommontobothproducts,thisbookusesthetermESXServer.
Whentheidentificationofaspecificreleaseisimportanttoadiscussion,thisbookreferstotheproductbyitsfull,versionedname.
WhenadiscussionappliestoallversionsofESXServerfor
VMware Infrastructure 3,thisbookusesthetermESXServer3.x.
ThisbookusesVirtualCenterindiscussionsthatalsoapplytovCenterServerin
VMwarevSphere4.
About This Book
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Intended Audience
Thismanualisintendedforanyonewhowantstoperformbackupandrestoretasks
usingVMwareInfrastructure.TheinformationinthismanualiswrittenforexperiencedWindowsorLinuxsystemadministrators whoarefamiliarwithvirtual
machinetechnologyanddatacenteroperations.
Document Feedback
VMwarewelcomesyoursuggestionsforimprovingourdocumentation.Ifyouhave
comments,send
your
feedback
to:
VMware vSphere Documentation
TheVMwarevSpheredocumentationconsistsofthecombinedVMwarevCenter
ServerandESX/ESXidocumentationset.
Abbreviations Used in Figures
ThefiguresinthisbookusetheabbreviationslistedinTable 1.
Table 1. Abbreviations
Abbreviation Description
database VirtualCenterdatabase
datastore Storageforthemanagedhost
dsk# Storagediskforthemanagedhost
hostn VirtualCentermanagedhosts
SAN Storageareanetworktypedatastoresharedbetweenmanagedhosts
tmplt Template
user# Userwithaccesspermissions
VC VirtualCenterServer
VM# Virtualmachinesonamanagedhost
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About This Book
Technical Support and Education Resources
Thefollowingsectionsdescribethetechnicalsupportresourcesavailabletoyou.To
accessthecurrentversionsofthisbookandotherbooks,goto:
http://www.vmware.com/support/pubs.
Online and Telephone Support
Useonlinesupporttosubmittechnicalsupportrequests,viewyourproductand
contractinformation,andregisteryourproducts.Goto:
http://www.vmware.com/support
Customerswithappropriatesupportcontractsshouldusetelephonesupportforthe
fastestresponseonpriority1issues.Goto:
http://www.vmware.com/support/phone_support.html
Support Offerings
FindouthowVMwaresupportofferingscanhelpmeetyourbusinessneeds.Goto:
http://www.vmware.com/support/services
VMware Education Services
VMwarecoursesofferextensivehandsonlabs,casestudyexamples,andcourse
materialsdesignedtobeusedasonthejobreferencetools.FormoreinformationaboutVMwareEducationServices,goto:
http://mylearn1.vmware.com/mgrreg/index.cfm
http://www.vmware.com/support/pubshttp://www.vmware.com/supporthttp://www.vmware.com/support/phone_support.htmlhttp://www.vmware.com/support/serviceshttp://mylearn1.vmware.com/mgrreg/index.cfmhttp://mylearn1.vmware.com/mgrreg/index.cfmhttp://www.vmware.com/support/serviceshttp://www.vmware.com/support/phone_support.htmlhttp://www.vmware.com/supporthttp://www.vmware.com/support/pubs8/6/2019 Vsp Vcb 15 u1 Admin Guide
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Virtual Machine Backup Guide
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1
Backup,restoration,anddisasterrecoveryareamongthemostcriticalprocessesof
datacentermanagement.VMwareInfrastructureandVMwareESXServerprovide
manydifferentsolutions,eachsuitableforaspecificenvironment,toperformbackup
andrestoretasks.
ThisintroductiondescribeswhichresourcesshouldbebackeduponanESXServer
systemandexplainsoptionsavailableforthatbackup.
Thischapterincludesthefollowingsections:
BackupConceptsonpage 11
WhattoBackUponpage 12
BackupComponentsandApproachesonpage 14
UsingTraditionalBackupMethodsonpage 15
UsingVMwareConsolidatedBackuponpage 22
Backup Concepts
Thefollowingconceptsareessentialforyourunderstandingofbackupprocedures:
Differentialbackup.Backsuponlythosefilesthathavechangedsincethelast
full backup.
Filelevelbackup.Atypeofbackupthatisdefinedattheleveloffilesandfolders.
Fullbackup.Backsupallselectedfiles.
Fullvirtualmachinebackup.Backsupallfilesthatcomprisetheentirevirtual
machine.Thesefilesincludediskimages,.vmxfiles,andsoon.
Imagelevel(volumelevel)backup.Backsupanentirestoragevolume.
Backing Up with VMware
Infrastructure
1
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Incrementalbackup.Backsuponlyfilesthathavechangedsincethelastbackup,
whetheritisafullorincrementalbackup.
Quiescing.A
process
of
bringing
the
on
disk
data
of
aphysical
or
virtual
computerintoastatesuitableforbackups.Thisprocessmightincludesuch
operationssuchasflushingdirtybuffersfromtheoperatingsystemsinmemory
cachetodisk,orotherhigherlevelapplicationspecifictasks.
VCBproxy.InthecontextofVMwareConsolidatedBackup,VCBproxyisa
physicalorvirtualmachinerunningMicrosoftWindowsServer,Consolidated
Backup,andthirdpartybackupsoftware.Usedtoperformfileleveland
imagelevelvirtualmachinebackups.
What to Back Up
WithintheESXServerenvironment,youneedtobackupthefollowingmajoritems:
Virtualmachinecontents.Thevirtualmachinedatayoubackupcaninclude
virtualdisksorRawDeviceMappings(RDMs),configurationfiles,andsoon.
Aswithphysicalmachines,youmustbackupvirtualmachinedataperiodicallyto
preventitspotentialdamageandlossduetohumanortechnicalerrors.
Generally,usethefollowingbackupscheduleforyourvirtualmachines:
Attheimagelevel,performbackupsperiodicallyforWindowsandnightlyfor
Linux.Forexample,backupabootdiskimageofaWindowsvirtualmachine
onceaweek.
Atthefilelevel,performbackupsonceaday.Forexample,backupfileson
drivesD,E,andsooneverynight.
Forinformationonhowtoworkwiththefiles,seeAccessingandManaging
VirtualDiskFilesonpage 13.
ServiceConsole(ESXServer3andESX4only).Theserviceconsole,acustomized
versionofLinux,istheESXcommandlinemanagementinterface.Itprovidestools
andacommandpromptformoredirectmanagementofESX.WiththeVI ClientorvSphereClientbeingthemaininterfacetotheESXhost,usetheserviceconsoleto
performonlyadvancedadministrationoperations.
Duringitslifetime,theserviceconsoledoesnotexperienceanymajorchangesother
than
periodic
upgrades.
In
case
of
a
failure,
you
can
recover
the
state
of
your
service
consolebyreinstallingESX.Ifyoudecidetobackuptheserviceconsole,youdonot
needtobackitupasfrequentlyasthevirtualmachinesandtheirdata.
NOTE ESX4iandESXServer3idonothaveaserviceconsole.
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Chapter 1 Backing Up with VMware Infrastructure
Virtual Machine Contents
Tostorevirtualmachines,ESXServerusesVMwareVirtualMachineFileSystem(VMFS).VMFSisahighperformancefilesystemonphysicaldisksandLUNscapableofstoringlargefiles,suchasthevirtualdiskimagesforESXServervirtualmachinesandthe
memoryimagesofsuspendedvirtualmachines.
FormoreinformationonVMFS,seeESXServer3ServerConfigurationGuideorESX Server3iConfigurationGuide.SinceESXServer3.0,VMFS3supportsdirectories.Typically,aseparatesubdirectoryis
usedforeachvirtualmachineonVMFS.Thisdirectorycontainsallthefilesthat
comprisethevirtualmachine,suchas.vmdkvirtualdiskfiles,virtualmachine
configuration.vmxfiles,logfiles,andsoon.
Analternativetoavirtualdiskisarawdevicemapping(RDM)thatconnectsyour
virtualmachinetoarawSANLUN.RDMscanexistintwomodes,virtualcompatibilityandphysicalcompatibility.
FormoreinformationonRDMs,seetheESXServer3ServerConfigurationGuideorESX Server3iConfigurationGuide.
Accessing and Managing Virtual Disk Files
Typically,youuseVMwareInfrastructureClient(VIClient)toperformavarietyofoperationsonyourvirtualmachines.DirectmanipulationofyourvirtualdiskfilesonVMFSispossiblethroughtheservice
console(ESX)orcommandlineinterface(ESXi),althoughusingthevSphereClientor
VIClientisthepreferredmethod.
FromtheserviceconsoleorRemoteCommandLineInterface(RemoteCLI),youcan
viewandmanipulatefilesinthe/vmfs/volumesdirectoryinmountedVMFSvolumes
withordinaryfilecommands,suchaslsandcp.TheVMFSvolumeisprimarily
intendedtostorelargefiles,suchasdiskimageswiththesizeofupto2TB.Youcanuse
ftp,scp,andcpcommandsforcopyingfilestoandfromaVMFSvolumeaslongas
thehostfilesystemsupportstheselargefiles.
NOTE Alltheinformationtypicallybackedupintheenterpriseinfrastructure,
includingtheoperatingsystem,applications,anddata,isincludedinthevirtualdisks.
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Additionalfileoperationsareenabledthroughthevmkfstoolscommand.Usethis
commandtoperformthefollowing:
Creating,extending,anddeletingdiskimages.
Importing,exporting,andrenamingdiskimages.
Settingandqueryingpropertiesofdiskimages.
CreatingandextendingaVMFSfilesystem.
Formoreinformationonthevmkfstoolscommand,seetheESXServer3ServerConfigurationGuideorESXServer3iConfigurationGuide.
Backup Components and Approaches
Whenyouperformabackup,thefollowingthreecomponentsofbackupsoftwareare
involvedintheprocess:
BackupClient(BackupAgent).Aprogramthatscansvirtualmachinefilesystems
andtransfersdatatobebackeduptoabackupserver.Duringrestoreoperations,
thebackupclientwritesthedataintothefilesystems.
BackupServer.Aprogramthatwritesthedata,pushedbythebackupclient,toa
backupmedium,suchasarobotictapelibrary.Duringrestoreoperation,the
backupserverreadsthedatafromthebackupmediumandpushesittothebackup
client.
Scheduler.Aprogramthatallowsyoutoscheduleregularbackupjobsand
coordinatetheirexecution.Youcanschedulebackupsatperiodicintervals,oryou
canscheduleindividualfilestobebackedupimmediatelyaftertheyhavebeenupdated.
Eachofthebackupsoftwarecomponentscanberuninavirtualmachine,ontheservice
console(onlywithESX),oronaVCBproxyrunningMicrosoftWindowsServer.While
thelocationoftheschedulerisnotimportant,thelocationsofthebackupserverand
backupclientareimportant.
NOTE InLinux,importingalargediskfromaCommonInternetFileSystem(CIFS)
mountstallstheESXServerhost.Ifthishappens,yourhostmustberebooted.Move
largefiles
from
the
service
console
to
tape
backup.
To
do
this
effectively,
use
supported
programswithnoknownissues.Asaworkaround,usesmbclienttocopythelarge
fileontoalocaldirectoryontheserviceconsoleandimportfromthere.
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Chapter 1 Backing Up with VMware Infrastructure
Dependingonwhereyouwanttoruneachcomponent,chooseoneofthefollowing
approaches:
Traditional
backup
approach.You
deploy
abackup
client
to
every
system
that
requiresbackupservices.Youcanthenregularlyscheduleautomaticbackups.
Withthisapproach,severalmethodologiesexist.Chooseamethodthatbettersuits
yourneedsandrequirements.
SeeUsingTraditionalBackupMethodsonpage 15.
VMwareConsolidatedBackup.IfusedwithSANstorage,ConsolidatedBackup
enablesoffloadedandimpactfreebackupsforvirtualmachinesrunningonESX Server.Thisapproachletsyouusethevirtualmachinesnapshottechnology
andSANbaseddatatransferinconjunctionwithtraditionalfilebasedbackup
software.WhenrunningConsolidatedBackup,youcanbackupvirtualmachine
contentsfromacentralizedMicrosoftWindowsServerbackupproxyratherthan
directlyfromtheESXServersystem.Utilizingabackupproxyreducestheloadon
ESXServerallowingittorunmorevirtualmachines.
IfyoudonothaveSAN,youcanuseConsolidatedBackupintheLANmode.ThismodeletsyourunConsolidatedBackuponaphysicalmachineconnectedtoyour
ESXServersystemoverregularTCP/IPnetwork,orinoneofthevirtualmachines
onyourESXServerhost.
SeeVMwareConsolidatedBackuponpage 23.
Using Traditional Backup Methods
Withthetraditionalbackupmethods,youdeployabackupagentoneachhostwhose
dataneedstobeprotected.Regularbackupsareconductedautomatically.
Thebackupagentscansthefilesystemforchangesduringperiodsoflowsystem
utilizationandsendsthechangedinformationacrossthenetworktoabackupserver
thatwritesthedatatoabackupmedium,suchasarobotictapelibrary.
Withthe
traditional
methods,
you
can
back
up
your
virtual
machines
and,
if
you
are
usingESXServer3orESX4,theserviceconsole.
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Traditional Backup Considerations
Whenusingtraditionalmethodstobackupyoursystem,keepinmindthefollowing:
Tobeabletocapturethedatainitsconsistentstate,performbackupsatthetimes
ofthelowestactivityonthenetworkandwhenyourcomputerresourcesare
mostlyidle.Whileperformingbackups,youmightneedtotakecritical
applicationsoffline.
Makesurethatnetworkbandwidthbetweentheserveryouarebackingupandthe
backupserverissufficient.
Withalargenumberofservers,bothphysicalandvirtual,allocateenoughresourcestomanagebackupsoftwareoneachhost.Managingagentsinevery
virtualmachineistimeconsuming.
Backing Up the ESX Service Console
BecausetheESXserviceconsoledoesnotexperiencemajorchangesduringitslifetime
anditsstateiseasilyrecoverableincaseofafailure,youmightdecideagainstbacking
itup.Ifyouchoosetobackuptheserviceconsole,youdonotneedtodoitfrequently.
Usethefollowingmethodswhenbackingupserviceconsole:
FileBased.Treattheserviceconsoleasaphysicalmachinewithadeployed
backupagent.Torestoretheserviceconsole,reinstallit,reinstalltheagent,and
thenrestorethefilesthatyoubackedup.Thisapproachmakessenseif
managementagentsthatarehardtosetuphavebeendeployedintheservice
console.Otherwise,thisapproachprovidesnoadvantageovernotbackinguptheserviceconsole.
ImageBased.Usethirdpartysoftwaretocreateabackupimagethatyoucan
restorequickly.UseyourbootCDorwhateverthebackupsoftwarecreatedto
restoretheserviceconsole.
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Chapter 1 Backing Up with VMware Infrastructure
Backing Up Virtual Machines
Dependingonyourneedsandavailableresources,youmightchooseoneofthe
traditionalmethodsforbackingupyourvirtualmachines.TraditionalbackupmethodsdonotuseConsolidatedBackup.
Traditionalbackupmethodsofferthefollowingoptions:
Runbackupclientsfromwithinavirtualmachineperformingfilelevelor
imagelevelbackups.Aslongasyouarebackingupoverthenetwork,no
compatibilityguideisneeded.SeeRunningtheBackupClientinaVirtual
Machineonpage 17.
RunbackupclientsfromtheESXserviceconsole,backingupvirtualmachinesin
theirentiretyasfilesresidingintheVMFSfilesystem.SeeRunningtheBackup
ClientintheESXServiceConsoleonpage 19.
Backupvirtualmachinedatabyrunningabackupserverwithinavirtualmachine
thatisconnectedtoatapedriveorotherSCSIbasedbackupmediaattachedtothe
physicalsystem.SeeRunningtheBackupServerinaVirtualMachineonpage 20.
Whenvirtualmachinefilesresideonsharedstorage,usestoragebasedimagingon
storagesuchasSAN,NAS,oriSCSI,oranindependentbackupserver(aproxy
backupserverorNDMP)tobackupvirtualmachinefiles.SeeTreatingVirtual
MachinesasFilesonSharedStorageonpage 21.
Running the Backup Client in a Virtual Machine
Becauseavirtualmachineisjustaphysicalmachine,youcanbackitupinthesame
mannerasaphysicalmachine,usingbackupsoftwarerunninginsideavirtualmachine.
Method1andMethod2illustratehowyoucaninstallabackupagentwithineach
virtualmachineandbackupdataoverthenetworktobackupservers,deployedin
othervirtualmachinesorinsidephysicalmachines.
Method 1: Backup Server in a Virtual Machine
Withthismethod,deployyourbackupclientinonevirtualmachinewhilethebackup
serverisinanothervirtualmachine.VMwarerecommendsthatyourunbothvirtual
machinesonthesameESXServersystem.Inthiscase,databetweenthetwovirtual
machinesmovesthroughthevirtualEthernetthatconnectsthesevirtualmachines,but
doesnothavetobetransferredoveraphysicalEthernetconnection.
WhenyouuseMethod1,thebackupagentperformsquiescingofavirtualmachinebeingbackedup.
NOTE RunningthebackupserverintheESXserviceconsoleisnotsupported.
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Method1isgenerallyusedforfilelevelbackupsofthedatastoredwithinthevirtual
machinesdiskimage.
Method 2: Backup Server in a Physical Machine
WithMethod
2,
you
deploy
the
backup
client
in
avirtual
machine
while
the
backup
serverrunsonaphysicalmachine.
UseMethod2forfilelevelbackupsofthedatastoredwithinthevirtualmachinesdisk
image.
Table 1-1. Backup Client in One Virtual Machine, Backup Server in Another VirtualMachine
Recommended: WhenhardwareforaVCBproxyorbackupserverisntavailable
File-level restore: Veryeasy
Full virtual machine restore: No
Quiescing: Excellent
Load on ESX Server: Extremelyhigh
LAN-free backup: No
Manageability: Verypoor
NOTE InsteadofMethod2,considerusingConsolidatedBackup.
Table 1-2. Backup Client in a Virtual Machine, Backup Server in a Physical MachineRecommended: VCBcanbeusedinstead
File-level restore: VeryEasy
Full virtual machine restore: No
Quiescing: Excellent
Load on ESX Server: High
LAN-free backup: No
Manageability: Verypoor
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Chapter 1 Backing Up with VMware Infrastructure
Running the Backup Client in the ESX Service Console
Becauseanentirevirtualmachineisencapsulatedinonlyafewfiles,youcantreat
virtual
machines
as
files
on
an
ESX
host
and
back
up
these
files
from
the
service
console.
AsMethod3andMethod4illustrate,withthisapproach,youdeployyourbackup
clientintheserviceconsoleandbackupthefilestobackupservers,deployedinother
virtualmachinesorinsidephysicalmachines.
Whenyourunbackupclientsintheserviceconsole,dooneofthefollowingtoperform
abackupofyourvirtualmachines:
Poweroffyourvirtualmachines.
Usesnapshotstobackuprunningvirtualmachines.
Method 3: Backup Server in a Virtual Machine
WithMethod3,youdeploythebackupclientintheESXserviceconsolewhilethe
backupserverrunsinthevirtualmachine.
Method3isusedtoperformimagelevellbackupsorbackupsofentirevirtual
machines.
NOTE UseMethod3onlywhenseparatehardwareforaVCBproxyorbackupserver
isnotavailable.
Table 1-3. Backup Client in a ESX Service Console, Backup Client in a Virtual Machine
Recommended: WhenhardwareforaVCBproxyorbackupserverisnt
available
File-level restore: No
Full virtual machine restore: Veryeasy
Quiescing: Excellent
Load on ESX Server: Extremelyhigh
LAN-free backup: No
Manageability: Verypoor
Vi t l M hi B k G id
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Method 4: Backup Server in a Physical Machine
WithMethod4,youdeploythebackupclientintheESXserviceconsolewhilethe
backupserverrunsonaphysicalmachine.
Method4isusedtoperformimagelevelbackups.
Running the Backup Server in a Virtual Machine
(SEEUPDATE)YoucanbackupvirtualmachinedatabyrunningabackupserverwithinavirtualmachinethatisconnectedtoatapedriveorotherSCSIbasedbackupmedia
attachedtothephysicalsystem.
Whenusingthismethod,keepinmindthefollowing:
VMwaresupportsattachingSCSIdrivestotheESXServerusingAdaptecSCSI
adapters.Usingotheradapters,suchasLSIMPTFusionSCSI,isnotsupported.
Ifyouareusingatapedrivelibrary(versususingastandalonetapedrive),the
librarymustbemultitarget,andnotmultiLUN.
SetthetapedrivesvirtualtargetIDinthevirtualmachinesconfigurationtobethe
sameasthephysicaltargetID.
ForinformationonattachingaSCSIbasedtapedrivetoyourvirtualmachine,seeBasicSystemAdministration.
NOTE InsteadofMethod4considerusingConsolidatedBackup.
Table 1-4. Backup Client in an ESX Service Console, Backup Server in a Physical
Machine
Recommended: VCBcanbeusedinstead.
File-level restore: No
Full virtual machine restore: VeryEasy
Quiescing: Excellent
Load on ESX Server: High
LAN-free backup: No
Manageability/Scalability: Verypoor
Chapter 1 Backing Up with VMware Infrastructure
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Chapter 1 Backing Up with VMware Infrastructure
Treating Virtual Machines as Files on Shared Storage
Whenvirtualmachinefilesresideonsharedstorage,itispossibletousestoragebased
imagingonstoragesuchasSAN,NAS,oriSCSI,oranindependentbackupserver
(a proxybackupserverorNDMP)tobackupvirtualmachinefileswithoutcreatingan
additionalloadontheESXServerhostthatrunsthevirtualmachines.
SAN Backups
IfyourvirtualdiskfilesarestoredonaSAN,usefeaturessuppliedbyyourSANvendor
tocreateacopyofyourproductionLUNcontainingallvirtualdiskfilesandthensend
thesecopiestoyourbackupmedia.Withthismethod,youdonothavetousevirtual
machinesnapshotfunctionalityduringthebackupprocessbecausetheSANhardware
providesthesnapshotfunctionality.
WhenusingSANsnapshotstobackupyourdata,keepinmindthefollowing:
SomevendorssupportsnapshotsforbothVMFSandRDMs.Ifbotharesupported,
youcanmakeeitherasnapshotofthewholevirtualmachinefilesystemforahost,
ormakesnapshotsofindividualvirtualmachines(oneperdisk).
SomevendorssupportsnapshotsforasetupusingRDMsonly.IfonlyRDMsare
supported,youcanmakesnapshotsofindividualvirtualmachines.
Seeyourstoragevendorsdocumentationforadditionalinformation.Formore
informationonSAN,seetheFibreChannelSANConfigurationGuideortheiSCSISANConfigurationGuide.NFS Backups
Ifyourvirtualmachinesarestoredonexternalnetworkattachedstorage(NAS)systems
usingtheNFSprotocol,youcanperformimagelevelbackupsofthevirtualmachines.
Seeyourstoragevendordocumentationforadditionalinformation.
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Using VMware Consolidated Backup
Inamoderndatacenterenvironment,preformingtraditionalbackupsmightcause
problems,someofwhicharedescribedinTraditionalBackupConsiderationsonpage 16.Toavoidmanyoftheproblems,considerusingVMwareConsolidatedBackup.
VMwareConsolidatedBackupaddressesmostoftheproblemsyouencounterwhen
performingtraditionalbackups.ConsolidatedBackuphelpsyouto:
ReducetheloadonyourESXServersystemsbymovingthebackuptaskstooneor
morededicatedbackupproxies.
Eliminatetheneedforabackupwindowbymovingtoasnapshotbasedbackup
approach.
Simplifybackupadministrationbymakingoptionalthedeploymentofbackup
agentsineachvirtualmachineyoubackup.
Backupvirtualmachinesregardlessoftheirpowerstate.
NOTE TotakeadvantageoftheConsolidatedBackupoffloadingcapabilities,you
arerequiredtouseFibreChanneloriSCSISANforyourvirtualmachinedata.
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2
VMwareConsolidatedBackupisabackupsolutionofferedbyVMwarevSphere4and
VMware Infrastructure 3.Itistherecommendedwaytoperformdailybackupsfor
virtualmachinesresidingonaFibreChanneloriSCSISAN.
YoucanalsouseConsolidatedBackuptobackupvirtualmachinesresidingon
ESX Serversystemsthatdonothaveanaccesstosharedstorage.
Thischapterincludesthefollowinginformation:
VMwareConsolidatedBackupOverviewonpage 23
ConsolidatedBackupSoftwareandHardwareRequirementsonpage 31
SettingUpVMwareConsolidatedBackuponpage 32
UsingVMwareConsolidatedBackuponpage 43
QuiescingMechanismsonpage 49
AdvancedConfigurationsonpage 53
UpgradingConsolidatedBackuponpage 54
VMware Consolidated Backup Overview
YouuseConsolidatedBackupalongwithathirdpartysoftwaretoperformbackupsof
virtualmachinedisks.ConsolidatedBackupcentralizesbackupontheVCBproxy,
whichcanbeusedtoprotectmanyvirtualmachines.
VMware Consolidated
Backup
2
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ThefollowingarethekeyfeaturesofConsolidatedBackup:
MostmajorbackupapplicationsintegratewithConsolidatedBackupproviding
youwithafastandefficientwayofbackingupdatainvirtualmachines.
ConsolidatedBackupeliminatestheneedforhavingabackupagentinstalledin
eachvirtualmachineyouwanttoprotect.
ConsolidatedBackupcanreadvirtualdiskdatadirectlyfromyourSANstorage
deviceusingFibreChanneloriSCSI,orthroughtheESXServerI/Ostackorusea
networkconnectiontoanESXServerhosttoaccessvirtualdiskdata.
Consolidated
Backup
can
run
in
a
virtual
machine.
ConsolidatedBackupsupportsfilelevelfullandincrementalbackupsforvirtual
machinesrunningMicrosoftWindowsoperatingsystemandimagelevelbackups
forvirtualmachinesrunninganyoperatingsystem.
YoucanuseConsolidatedBackupagainstasingleESXServerhostorwitha
VirtualCenterServerthatmanagesanumberofESXServers.
How VMware Consolidated Backup Works
ConsolidatedBackupconsistsofasetofutilitiesandscriptsthatworkinconjunction
withathirdpartybackupsoftware.ToensurethatConsolidatedBackupworkswith
thespecificbackupsoftware,eitherVMwareoryourbackupsoftwarevendorprovide
integrationmodulescontaininganyrequiredprebackupandpostbackupscripts.
Thethirdpartysoftware,integrationmodule,andConsolidatedBackuprunonthe
VCBproxy,aphysicalorvirtualmachinethathasMicrosoftWindowsoperatingsysteminstalled.
ForspecificversionsofMicrosoftWindows,seeConfiguringWindowsontheVCB
Proxyonpage 34.
VMware Consolidated Backup Usage Models
Tostoreandmanagevirtualdiskfiles,ESXServerusesavarietyofphysicalstoragedevices,includinglocaldisks,NASstorage,FibreChannelSANs,oriSCSISANs.
Forinformationondifferenttypesofstorage,seetheESXServer3ConfigurationGuide,ESXServer3iConfigurationGuide,ESXConfigurationGuide,orESXiConfigurationGuide.ThetypeofstoragedeviceyourESXServersystemhasaccesstodetermineshowyou
setuptheVCBproxyandthetransportationmethodConsolidatedBackupusesto
accessvirtualdiskdata.
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ConsolidatedBackupprovidesthefollowingmethodsofaccessingvirtualmachine
diskdata:
SANModeUsewithFibreChannelandiSCSIstoragetocompletelyoffload
backupstoaphysicalVCBproxy.
HotAddModeUsewithanytypeofstoragetoperformbackupsbyaVCBproxy
setupinavirtualmachine.
LANMode(NBDMode)Usewhenyourenvironmentdoesnotpermittheuseof
theSANorHotAddmodes.
SAN Mode
YouselectthismodewhenyourESXServerstoresitsvirtualmachinedisksonFibre
ChannelSANoriSCSISAN.Whenusingthismode,youcancompletelyoffload
backupstoaphysicalVCBproxy.
InadditionwithFibreChannel,youavoidmovingdataacrossthenetwork.Inthiscase,
iftheVCBproxyisyourmediaserver,youcangetcompletelyLANfreebackupsof
yourvirtualmachines.
Figure 21illustrateshowConsolidatedBackupworksintheSANmode.
Figure 2-1. VMware Consolidated Backup in the SAN mode
Fibre Channel/iSCSI storage
VMFS
LAN
Fibre Channel SAN/storage LAN
ESX Server
VMware Tools
virtual machine
VCB proxy
integration module
backup software
Consolidated
Backup
virtual
disk
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SCSI Hot-Add Mode
IntheSCSIHotAddmode,yousetuponeofyourvirtualmachinesasaVCBproxy
anduseittobackupothervirtualmachinesresidingonstoragevisibletothe
ESX ServerthathoststheVCBproxyvirtualmachine.Thismodeeliminatestheneedof
havingadedicatedphysicalmachineforyourVCBproxyanddoesnotrequireyouto
exposeSANLUNstotheWindowsVCBproxy.
Inthismode,youcanuseConsolidatedBackuptoprotectanyvirtualdisksonanytype
ofstorageavailabletoyourESXServerhost,includingNASorlocalstorage.
(SEEUPDATE)Theonlyexceptionisthatitdoesnotbackupanydisksofthevirtualmachinethathasanyindependentdisk,PhysicalCompatibilityRDM,orIDE(ThisisapplicabletoESX4andESXi4.)
ConsolidatedBackupcreatesasnapshotofthevirtualdisktobeprotectedandhotadds
thesnapshottotheVCBproxy,allowingittoaccessvirtualmachinediskdata.TheVCB
proxyreadsthedatathroughtheI/OstackoftheESXhost.
Figure 2-2. VMware Consolidated Backup in the Hot-Add Mode
TobeabletorunConsolidatedBackupintheSCSIHotAddmode:
YouneedtohaveESXServer3.5orESXServer3iversion3.5orlater.
Ifyouareusingonlythelocalstoragedevices,youneedaVCBproxyvirtual
machineon
each
ESX
Server
host.
IfyouareusingVirtualCenter,makesuretohaveversion2.5orlaterinstalled.
shared storage
VMFS
LAN
shared storagenetwork
ESX Server
VMware Tools
virtual machine
VMware Tools
virtual machine
VCB Proxyvirtual machine
ESX Server
integration module
backup software
Consolidated
Backup
virtual
disklocal storage
VMFS
virtual
disk
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RunningConsolidatedBackupintheSCSIHotAddmodeprovidestheLANfree
capabilitiesoftheSANmodebecausethevirtualdiskdataistransferredfromthe
ESX ServerI/Ostack.AlthoughthismodeisnotasefficientastheSANmode,which
doesnotcauseanyoverheadontheESXServerhost,itisstillmoreefficientthantheLANmode.
LAN Mode (NBD Mode)
YouselectthismodewhenyourESXServerdoesnothaveaccesstoaSAN,butuses
localstoragedevicesorNAStostoreitsvirtualmachinedisks.
Inthismode,ConsolidatedBackupusesanoverthenetworkprotocoltoaccessthe
virtualdisk.TheESXServerhostreadsthedatafromthestoragedeviceandsendsitacrossanetworkchanneltotheVCBproxy.
TobeabletorunConsolidatedBackupintheLANmode:
YouneedtohaveESXServer3.5orESXServer3iversion3.5orlater.
IfyouareusingVirtualCenter,makesuretohaveversion2.5orlaterinstalled.
Yourvirtualdiskscannotbelargerthan1TBeach.
Figure 23illustrateshowConsolidatedBackupworksintheLANmode.
Figure 2-3. VMware Consolidated Backup in the LAN mode
local storage
LAN
ESX Server
VMware Tools
virtual machine
VCB proxy
integration module
backup software
Consolidated
Backup
VMFS
virtual
disk
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BecausethevirtualdiskdataistransferredfromtheESXServerhostacrosstheLAN,
thismodedoesnotprovidetheLANfreecapabilitiesoftheSANmode.However,
runningConsolidatedBackupintheLANmodeoffersyouthefollowingadvantages:
YouarenotrequiredtostorevirtualdisksonaSAN.Youcanuseanystorage
device,includingNAS,thatESXServercanaccess.
YouarenotrequiredtohaveadedicatedphysicalserverforyourVCBproxy.In
additiontosettingupaphysicalserverastheVCBproxy,youhaveanoptionof
configuringoneofyourvirtualmachinesastheVCBproxy.
WhilethisconfigurationdoesnotcompletelyoffloadbackupprocessesfromtheESX
Serverhost,itstillhasanadvantageoverusingabackupagentintheserviceconsoleorintheproductionvirtualmachine.Youcanusetheadvancedresourcescheduling
capabilitiesofVMwareInfrastructuretopreventthevirtualmachinerunningyour
backupsfromimpactingtheperformanceofyourproductionworkloads.Forexample,
youcanputthevirtualmachineperformingyourbackupsandyourproductionvirtual
machinesindifferentresourcepools.SeetheResourceManagementGuide. IfyourESXServerhostandtheVCBproxyareonasecureisolatednetwork,you
canuseanunencrypteddatatransfer,whichisfasterandtakeslessresourcesoftheESXServerhostandtheproxy.Whenyouneedtoprotectsensitiveinformation,
youhaveanoptionoftransferringvirtualmachinedatainanencryptedform.
VMware Consolidated Backup Workflow
BeforeusingConsolidatedBackup,youneedtoconfigureandscheduleabackupjob
foreachvirtualmachineoragroupofvirtualmachines.
Atthescheduledtime,thebackupsoftwarestartsthebackupjobontheVCBproxy.
Whenthebackupjobislaunched,thefollowingstepstakeplace:
1 Thebackupsoftwarecallstheprebackupscript,whichperformsthesetasks:
a (Optional)Runsyourcustomprefreezescriptinthevirtualmachine.
Theprefreezescriptpreparesthecriticalsoftwarecomponentsinthevirtual
machineforabackup.SeeRunningCustomQuiescingScriptsonpage 51.
b Quiescesthevirtualmachine.
SeeQuiescingMechanismsonpage 49.
c Putsthevirtualmachineintosnapshotmode.
Changestovirtualdisksarestoredforlaterwriting.Thevirtualmachinecan
continuetooperateduringthisprocess.
d UnquiescesthevirtualmachinethatwasquiescedinStep b.
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e (Optional)Runsyourcustompostthawscriptinthevirtualmachine.
ThepostthawscriptreversesanychangesmadebytheprefreezescriptinStep a.
f Makesthevirtualmachinesnapshotavailabletothethirdpartysoftware:
Forimagelevelvirtualmachinebackups,seePerformingImageLevel
VirtualMachineBackupsonpage 30.
ForfilelevelbackupsofMicrosoftWindowsvirtualmachines,see
PerformingFileLevelVirtualMachineBackupsonpage 30.
2 Thebackupsoftwareperformsanordinarybackupofthevirtualmachine
snapshotmovingthedatatoabackupmedium.Thevirtualmachinecancontinuetooperateduringthisprocess.
3 Thebackupsoftwarecallsthepostbackupscript,whichperformsthefollowing
tasks:
a Unmountsthevirtualmachinesnapshotfromthebackupproxy.
b Takesthevirtualmachineoutofsnapshotmode,committingtodiskany
changesmadewhilethemachinewasinsnapshotmode.
Types of Backups
ConsolidatedBackupsupportsimagelevelbackupsforvirtualmachinesrunningany
guestoperatingsystemandfilelevelbackupsforvirtualmachinesrunningMicrosoft
Windowsoperatingsystems.
Imagelevelbackupallowsbackupclientstomakeacopyofallvirtualdisksandconfigurationfilesassociatedwithaparticularvirtualmachine.Thistypeofbackup
issuitableforrestoringanentirevirtualmachineintheeventofahardwarefailureor
asystemadministratorerror,suchastheaccidentaldeletionofthevirtualmachine.
Filelevelbackupallowsbackupclientstomakecopiesofindividualfiles
containedwithinthevirtualdisks.Filelevelbackupscanbeofthefollowingtypes:
Fullfile
backup
Backs
up
all
files.
DifferentialbackupBacksuponlyfilesthathavechangedsincethelastfull
filebackup.
IncrementalbackupBacksuponlyfilesthathavechangedsincethelast
backup,whetherthelastbackupwasfullorincremental.
Filelevelbackupsallowfilesordirectoriestoberestoredindividually.Usethe
filelevelbackupstopreventdatalossduetousererrors,suchasaccidentalfiledeletion.
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Performing Image-Level Virtual Machine Backups
Animagelevelvirtualmachinebackupisoperatingsystemneutralandcanbe
performedregardlessoftheguestoperatingsystem.
Whenyouruntheimagelevelvirtualmachinebackup,ConsolidatedBackupfirst
createsasnapshotofyourvirtualmachine.Thenthefollowingstepstakeplace:
1 ConsolidatedBackupexportsthevirtualmachinesnapshottoalocaldirectoryon
theVCBproxy.Forexample:
C:\mnt\mytestvm.foo.com-fullVM
2 Thethirdpartybackupsoftwarepicksupthevirtualmachinediskimagesandconfigurationfilesandmovesthemtothebackupmedium.
Performing File-Level Virtual Machine Backups
ForvirtualmachinesrunningWindows,ConsolidatedBackupsupportsfilelevel
backups.
Whenyourunfilelevelbackups,youfirstcreateasnapshotofyourvirtualmachine.
Thenthefollowingstepstakeplace:
1 ConsolidatedBackupdiscoversvolumeswithinvirtualmachinesnapshotsand
mountsdiscoveredvolumesontheVCBproxyatpredefinedjunctionpoints.
Eachjunctionpointcorrespondstoadriveletterassignedtoeachvolumeinthe
virtualmachine.Forexample:
C:\mnt\mytestvm.foo.com\letters\D
2 Thethirdpartybackupsoftwaremakesfilelevelbackupsfromthesevolumes.
VMware Consolidated Backup Limitations
Undercertaincircumstances,youcannotuseConsolidatedBackupforbackingupdata
inavirtualmachine.
ConsolidatedBackupinSANmodecannotbackupvirtualmachineswithdisk
imagesstoredonastoragedevicethattheVCBproxycannotaccess.
ConsolidatedBackupcannotbackupRDMsinphysicalcompatibilitymode.
CAUTION BecausetheVCBproxycanrecognizeonlyvolumesthathavedrive
lettersassignedtothem,makesurethateachvolumeonavirtualdiskhasadrive
letter.
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BackupsoftwarethatsupportsConsolidatedBackup.Foralistofsupporting
thirdpartybackuppackages,seetheVMwareInfrastructure3BackupSoftwareCompatibilityGuide.
Networkadapter(NIC).
TouseConsolidatedBackupintheSANmode,additionalrequirementsinclude:
FibreChanneloriSCSISANstoragehostingvirtualmachinesyouplantobackup.
IfyouuseFibreChannelSAN,youcanuseadedicatedphysicalsystemforaVCB
proxywithaFibreChannelhostbusadapter(HBA)installedoruseavirtual
machineasVCBproxy.
Setting Up VMware Consolidated BackupFollowthesestepstoconfigureallthecomponentsthatworkwithConsolidated
Backup:
1 ConfigureyourESXServerormultipleservers.SeeConfiguringVMwareESX
ServerandVirtualMachinesonpage 32.
2 SetupyourVCBproxyandinstallyourbackupsoftware,ConsolidatedBackup,
andcorrespondingintegrationmoduleontheVCBproxy.SeeSettingUpaVCBProxyonpage 33.
3 Ifneeded,enableSSLcertificateverification.SeeEnablingSSLCertificate
Verificationonpage 41.
4 IfyouuseSAN,configureyourSANfabric.SeeConfiguringSANonpage 43.
Configuring VMware ESX Server and Virtual MachinesYoushouldhaveanexistingESXServerhostormultipleESXServerhostsand
VirtualCentertomanagethem.
NOTE IfyouuseConsolidatedBackupinconjunctionwithaVMwaresupported
thirdpartysoftware,makesurethattheversionsofMicrosoftWindowsandyour
backupsoftwarematch.Forexample,ifyourunthe64bitversionofMicrosoft
Windows,installthe64bitversionofthebackupsoftware.
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UsingVIClient,configurestorageforyourESXServerandcreatevirtualmachines.
The followingarerequirementsforConsolidatedBackuptorunsuccessfully:
VirtualmachinesyouareplanningtobackuphavetheirvirtualdisksonVMFS
datastorescreatedonlocalstorage,oroniSCSIorFCSAN.Virtualmachinescan
alsouseRDMsinvirtualcompatibilitymode.ConsolidatedBackupdoesnot
supportRDMsinphysicalcompatibilitymode.
IfyouplantouseConsolidatedBackupintheLANmode,thesizeofyourvirtual
diskfilesshouldnotexceed1TB.
ThelatestversionofVMwareToolsisinstalledineachvirtualmachineyouare
planningtobackup.WithoutthelatestversionofVMwareTools,thesnapshotsthatConsolidatedBackupcreatesforbackupsarecrashconsistentonly.Thatis,no
filesystemsynchronizationisperformed.
Forfilelevelbackups,yourvirtualmachinesrunMicrosoftWindowsNT4.0,
Windows2000Server,WindowsXPProfessional,WindowsServer2003,
Windows Vista,orWindowsServer2008operatingsystems.
Image
level
virtual
machine
backups
are
supported
for
all
guest
operating
systems.
ForinformationonconfiguringstorageandRDMs,seetheESXServer3ConfigurationGuide,ESXServer3iConfigurationGuide,ESXConfigurationGuide,orESXiConfigurationGuideatwww.vmware.com.ForinformationaboutcreatingvirtualmachinesandinstallingVMwareTools,seeBasicSystemAdministrationalsoatwww.vmware.com.
Setting Up a VCB ProxyTheVCBproxyisamachine,eitherphysicalorvirtual,thatrunsConsolidatedBackup,
yourthirdpartybackupsoftware,andanintegrationmoduleforthebackupsoftware.
WhetheryourVCBproxyisaphysicaloravirtualmachine,followthesestepsto
configureit.
To configure your VCB proxy
1 OntheVCBproxy,installandconfigureMicrosoftWindows.SeeConfiguring
WindowsontheVCBProxyonpage 34.
2 ConfigurenetworkingontheVCBproxy.SeeConfiguringNetworkingonthe
VCBProxyonpage 35.
3 Installandconfigurethethirdpartybackupsoftwaretobeusedwith
ConsolidatedBackup.SeeConfiguringThirdPartySoftwareontheVCBProxy
onpage 35.
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4 InstallConsolidatedBackup.SeeInstallingVMwareConsolidatedBackupon
page 36.
5 Installanintegrationmodulecorrespondingtoyourthirdpartybackupsoftware.
SeeInstallingaBackupSoftwareIntegrationModuleonpage 36.
6 ConfigureConsolidatedBackup.SeeConfiguringVMwareConsolidated
Backuponpage 37.
Configuring Windows on the VCB Proxy
OnyourVCBproxy,installasupportedversionofMicrosoftWindows.See
ConsolidatedBackupSoftwareandHardwareRequirementsonpage 31.
AllversionsofWindows,exceptWindowsServer2003EnterpriseEditionand
WindowsServer2003DatacenterEdition,assigndriveletterstoeachvisiblenew
technologyfilesystem (NTFS)andfileallocationtable(FAT)volumes.Tobeabletouse
ConsolidatedBackup,youneedtoclearanyunuseddriveletterassignments.
To disable assignment of drive letters
1 ShutdowntheVCBproxy.
2 DisconnecttheVCBproxyfromtheSANormaskalltheLUNscontainingVMFS
volumesorRDMs.
3 Boottheproxyandloginasadministrator.
4 Openacommandlineinterface.
5 RuntheDiskpartutilitybytyping:
diskpart
TheDiskpartutilitystartsupandprintsitsowncommandprompt.
6 DisableautomaticdriveletterassignmenttonewlyseenvolumesbytypingattheDiskpartcommandprompt:
automount disable
7 Cleanoutentriesofpreviouslymountedvolumesintheregistrybytypingatthe
Diskpartcommandprompt:
automount scrub
CAUTION Ifyoudonotperformthisconfigurationstep,datacorruptionforvirtual
machinesusingRDMcanoccur.
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8 ExittheDiskpartutilitybytyping:
exit
9 Shut
down
Windows.10 ReconnecttheVCBproxytotheSAN,orunmaskallpreviouslymaskedLUNs
containingeitherVMFSvolumesorRDMs.
11 Boottheproxy.
Configuring Networking on the VCB Proxy
YourVCB
proxy
needs
to
establish
aconnection
to
the
VirtualCenter
managing
your
ESXServerclusterortoasingleESXServersystemifyoudonothaveacluster.
ToconfigurenetworkingforyourVCBproxy,followtheseguidelines:
IfthereisafirewallbetweentheVCBproxyandtheVirtualCenter,thefirewall
mustpermitTCP/IPconnectionstoVirtualCenter.Bydefault,theVirtualCenter
expectsincomingconnectionsatTCP/IPport443.
EstablishTCP/IPconnectionstoport902forallESXServerhoststhatrunvirtualmachinesyouplantobackupfromtheVCBproxy.
ForinformationonconfiguringNetworking,seetheESXServer3ConfigurationGuide,ESXServer3iConfigurationGuide,ESXConfigurationGuide,orESXiConfigurationGuide.Configuring Third-Party Software on the VCB Proxy
ThethirdpartybackupsoftwarethatyouuseinconjunctionwithConsolidatedBackup
runsontheVCBproxy.Currently,notallthirdpartybackupsoftwaresupports
WindowsServer2008.
AfilelevelmountmightfailiftheversionofVCBProxysoperatingsystemisearlier
thantheversionofthebackupvirtualmachinesoperatingsystem.Forexample,
backingupaWindowsServer2003virtualmachineonWindowsServer2003VCB
proxysucceeds.However,backingupaWindowsServer2008virtualmachineon
Windows
Server
2003
VCB
proxy
fails.
Afteryouinstallthebackupsoftware,youneedtoconfigureit,soitisabletousethe
ConsolidatedBackupscriptsandutilities.
Toconfigureyourbackupsoftware,followdirectionsthatyourvendorprovides.
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Foranyspecificrequirementsandinstructions,consulttheREADME.htmlfileincluded
intheintegrationmodulethatcorrespondstoyourbackupsoftware.Youmightbe
requiredtodothefollowingforyourbackupsoftware:
Turnonthecrossjunctions(mountpoints)optionforyourbackupsoftware.
TurnofftheWindowsarchivebitandchangejournalfunctionsifyourthirdparty
backupsoftwareperformsincrementalordifferentialbackups.Bothfunctions
requirethebackupsoftwaretoalterthefilesystembeingbackedup,whichisnot
possibleinasnapshotbasedbackup.
Windowsarchivebit.Thearchivebitisanattributeofafilethatsomebackup
productsusetodeterminewhetherthefilehaschangedsinceitspreviousbackupandwhetheritshouldbebackedup.Configurethebackupclientto
usetimestampsinstead.
Windowschangejournalcannotbeusedforincrementalbackupsin
snapshotbasedbackupscenarios.
Afteryouinstallandconfigureyourthirdpartybackupsoftware,youcanverifyitby
runningabackupandrestorationjobonalocaldirectoryontheVCBproxy.
Installing VMware Consolidated Backup
InstallConsolidatedBackupbasepackageontheVCBproxy.
To install the basic Consolidated Backup
1 LogintotheVCBproxyusinganaccountwithadministratorprivileges.
2 InstalltheConsolidatedBackuppackagebyrunningsetup.exefromyour
CDROMorelectronicdistribution.
3 Duringtheinstallation,chooseaninstallationdirectoryforConsolidatedBackup
oracceptthedefaultone.ThedefaultdirectoryisC:\Program
Files\VMware\VMware Consolidated Backup Framework.
Installing a Backup Software Integration Module
OntheVCBproxy,youmustinstallaConsolidatedBackupintegrationmodulethat
matchesyourthirdpartybackupsoftware.Foreachsupportedthirdpartybackup
software,eitherthebackupsoftwarevendororVMwareprovidesanintegration
module.
NOTE IfthirdpartybackupsoftwareisnotinstalledonVCBproxyonWindows
Server 2008,youneednotinstallConsolidatedBackupintegrationmoduleon
WindowsServer2008.
Chapter 2 VMware Consolidated Backup
I i d l id d b VM di ib d ZIP fil U k h ZIP
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IntegrationmodulesprovidedbyVMwarearedistributedasZIPfiles.UnpacktheZIP
fileintoyourVMwareConsolidatedBackupinstallationdirectory.Thiswillcreatea
subdirectorycontainingaREADME.htmlfilethatdescribeshowtoinstalltheintegration
module.In
addition,
the
README.html
file
provides
any
specific
instructions
you
need
toconfigureyourbackupsoftwareforConsolidatedBackup.
Configuring VMware Consolidated Backup
TheConsolidatedBackupconfigurationfileconfig.jsislocatedatthefollowing
defaultlocation:
C:\Program Files\VMware\VMware Consolidated Backup Framework\config.
WhenconfiguringConsolidatedBackup,makesuretospecifyalloptionsinthe
config.js filethatdonothaveanydefaultvalues.
Table 21providesanoverviewofalltheconfigurationsettingsinthisfile.
Table 2-1. Consolidated Backup Configuration Settings
Option Default Description
BACKUPROOT C:\\mnt Directoryinwhichallthevirtualmachinebackupjobsreside.Makesurethisdirectoryexistsbeforeyoustartvirtualmachinebackups.
Foreachbackupjob,asubdirectorywithauniquenamederivedfromthebackuptypeandthevirtualmachinenameiscreatedhere.
Forimagelevelvirtualmachinebackups,thevolumecontainingthismountpointmustbelargeenoughto
holdtheexporteddiskimagesofthelargestvirtualmachinetobehandled.
HOST (nodefault)
HostnameoftheVirtualCenterserverortheESXServerhostusedbytheVCBproxy.
PORT 443 PortnumbertoconnecttotheVirtualCenterorESX Serverhost.
USERNAME (no
default)
SeeConfiguringUSERNAMEandPASSWORDon
page 40.PASSWORD (no
default)SeeConfiguringUSERNAMEandPASSWORDonpage 40.
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Chapter 2 VMware Consolidated Backup
Table 2-1 Consolidated Backup Configuration Settings (Continued)
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SNAPSHOT_POLICY automatic Validoptions:
automatic ConsolidatedBackupcreatesanddeletesbackupsnapshotsforvirtualmachinesondemand.
manual ConsolidatedBackupdoesnotcreateordeleteanysnapshotsbutdetectsabackupsnapshotnamed_VCB-BACKUP_andusesthissnapshotfor
backup.Thisoptionisusefulforcreativescripting.
createonly ConsolidatedBackupcreatesa
backupsnapshotwhentheprebackupscriptisbeingrun,butitdoesnotremovethesnapshotafterbackup.Thisoptionisusedtorunaverificationjob.Yourverificationscriptwouldberesponsiblefortearingdownthemount.
deleteonly ConsolidatedBackupdetectsthatabackupsnapshotnamed_VCB-BACKUP_existsanddoesnotattempttocreateone.However,thesnapshotisdeletedbythepostbackupscript.Thisoptionisusefulforcreativescripting.
VM_LOOKUP_METHOD ipaddr UseoneofthefollowingoptionstospecifyhowConsolidatedBackupidentifiesvirtualmachines:
ipaddr IdentifiesvirtualmachinesbasedonDNS name/IPaddress.
name IdentifiesvirtualmachinesbasedonnamesasshowninVirtualCenter.Usethisoptionifyou
have
multiple
virtual
machines
with
the
same
IP address,butwithdifferentnames.Eachvirtualmachinemusthaveauniquename,otherwisea
backupjobfails.
PREEXISTING_MOUN
TPOINT1fail Useoneofthefollowingoptionstospecifywhethera
backupjobshouldproceedorfailifConsolidatedBackupdiscoversapreexistingmountpointforavirtualmachine:
fail InstructsConsolidatedBakcuptofailthebackupjob.
delete InstructsConsolidatedBackuptoremovethepreexistingmountpointandbackupsnapshotsassociatedwithit.
Ifthisoperationissuccessful,thebackupjobproceeds.Ifthisoperationfails,thebackupjobfails.
Table 2-1. Consolidated Backup Configuration Settings (Continued)
Option Default Description
Virtual Machine Backup Guide
Table 2-1. Consolidated Backup Configuration Settings (Continued)
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40 VMware, Inc.
Configuring USERNAME and PASSWORD
TobeabletouseConsolidatedBackup,youneedtospecifyausername.Youcansetit
totheIDusedforloggingintotheVirtualCenterhostorESXServerhost.UsethesamepasswordyouuseforloggingintotheVirtualCenterhostorESXServerhost.
Ifyoudonotspecifythepassword,ConsolidatedBackupchecksifthepasswordisset
intheregistryatthefollowinglocations:
OnWindowsx86HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\VMware, Inc.\VMware
Consolidated Backup\Password
OnWindowsx64HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Wow6432Node\VMware,Inc.\VMware Consolidated Backup\Password
Ifthepasswordisnotspecifiedintheregistry,ConsolidatedBackuppromptsforthe
password.
PREEXISTING_VCB_
SNAPSHOT1fail Useoneofthefollowingoptionstospecifywhethera
backupjobshouldproceedorfailifConsolidatedBackupdiscoversapreexistingbackupsnapshotofavirtualmachine:
fail InstructsConsolidatedBackuptofailthebackupjob.
delete InstructsConsolidatedBackuptoremovethepreexistingbackupsnapshot.
Ifthisoperationissuccessful,thebackupjob
proceeds.Ifthisoperationfails,thebackupjobfailsaswell.
MAX_RETRIES 0 Thenumberoftimestoretryanoperationafteritfails.Usethisoptionifmultiplebackupjobsfailwithresource busyerrors.
BACKOFF_TIME 10 Thetimeinterval(inseconds)betweenretrialsofafailedoperation.ThissettingisvalidonlywhenMAX_RETRIESislargerthan0.
1. WhenTRANSPORT_MODEissettohotadd,thevalueforPREEXISTING_MOUNTPOINTand
PREEXISTING_VCB_SNAPSHOTmustbethesame,sinceitisnotpossibletoreliablyremoveapreexistingsnapshotinthiscasewithoutcleaningupthemountpoint.
Table 2 1. Consolidated Backup Configuration Settings (Continued)
Option Default Description
Chapter 2 VMware Consolidated Backup
YoucanconfigureConsolidatedBackuptouseSecuritySupportProvider
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Interface (SSPI)forauthentication.TheadvantageofusingSSPIisthatitdoesnot
requirethepasswordtobestoredinthisconfigurationfileinplaintextorintheregistry.
Inorder
to
be
able
to
use
SSPI,
the
following
conditions
must
be
met:
ConsolidatedBackupmustconnectdirectlytoaVirtualCenterServerversion2.5
orlater.MakesurethatHOSTintheconfig.jsconfigurationfilepointstoyour
VirtualCenterServer.
AlwaysuseConsolidatedBackupfromausercontextwiththesameusernameand
passwordcredentialsonboththeVCBproxyandtheVirtualCenterServer,orbea
domainuser.ThebackupapplicationserviceprocesswhichcallsVCBmustbe
configuredtorununderthisusercontext.ConsolidatedBackupandthebackup
applicationthatcallsitmustnotbeusedintheLocalSystemaccountcontext.
TheConsolidatedBackupusermusthaveadministratorprivilegesontheVCB
proxyandhavetheVCBBackupUserroleassignedinVirtualCenter.
Ifyoursetupmeetsalltheseconditions,youcanenableSSPIauthenticationbysetting
USERNAMEto__sspi__.ForSSPI,thepasswordneedstobeset,butitisignored.Itcan
besetto"".
Enabling SSL Certificate Verification
WhenConsolidatedBackupcommunicateswiththeVirtualCenterserverorESXServer
host,itcantransferdataoveranencryptedSSLconnectionoruseanunencrypted
networkchannel.
UseunencryptedchannelonlyifyoucreateatrustedenvironmentwithfullyisolatedtransmissionsbetweenyourESXServerhostandVCBproxy.DisablingSSLcan
improveperformancebecauseyouavoidtheoverheadrequiredtoperformencryption.
However,tosecurethecommunicationchannelandpreventpotential
maninthemiddleattacks,enabletheSSLcertificateverificationinyourConsolidated
Backupenvironment.TheSSLcertificateverificationisnotenabledbydefault.
NOTE YoucanusetheSSLcertificateverificationonlywithmatchingESXversions.EnablingtheSSLcertificateverificationinamixedenvironment,forexample,when
yourunESXServer3.0.xandESXServer3.5,cancausebackupoperationstofail.
Virtual Machine Backup Guide
FortheSSLcertificateverificationtosucceed,thehostnameonthecertificatemust
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matchthecurrentfullyqualifieddomainnameofthehostthatpresentsthecertificate.
Ifyouusethedefaultselfsignedcertificate,thesenamesdonotmatchandthecertificate
verificationfails.
To
address
this
issue,
add
acertificate
that
is
signed
by
arecognized
certificateauthority.SeetheReplacingVirtualCenterServerCertificateswhitepaper.To enable SSL certificate verification on a VCB proxy
1 UsingtheMicrosoftRegistryEditor(regedit.exe),locatethefollowingkey:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\VMware, Inc.\VMware Consolidated Backup
2 MakesurethattheDWORDentrywiththefollowingnameispresent.Otherwise,
createanewone.
VerifySSLCertificates
3 ToenableSSLcertificateverification,setthevalueforthisentryto1.
4 ConnecttoyourESXServerhostorVirtualCenterserverthroughtheVIClient,
enteringthenamesexactlyasyouspecifiedintheconfig.jsfile,the
ConsolidatedBackupconfigurationfile.
IfyourESXServerhostorVirtualCenterserverusethedefaultselfsigned
certificate,youwillreceiveasecurityalertaskingyoutoverifytheSSLthumbprint.
5 Afterverifyingthethumbprint,clickYestoaddthecertificatetotheWindows
certificatestore.
YoucanalsoenabletheSSLcertificateauthenticationfortheESXcommandlineutilities
ontheserviceconsole.
To enable SSL certificate verification on an ESX service console
1 ObtainthethumbprintoftheESXServerhostbyenteringthefollowingcommand
ontheserviceconsole:
openssl x509 -noout -in /etc/vmware/ssl/rui.crt -fingerprint -sha1
2 Openthe/etc/vmware/backuptools.conffileinaneditor.
3 SetHOST_THUMBPRINTtothethumbprintoftheESXServerhost.
Thethumbprintiscasesensitiveandyoumustenteritintheexactsamewayas
displayed.TheformatofthethumbprintisXX:XX:XX:XX:XX:...,whereXXare
hexadecimaldigits.
Chapter 2 VMware Consolidated Backup
Configuring SAN
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IfyouareusingSANtostoreyourvirtualmachinedata,configuretheSANfabricto
whichboththeESXServerandtheVCBproxyareconnected.
ForConsolidatedBackup,yourSANconfigurationmustmeetthefollowing
requirements:
TheVCBproxyhasareadwriteaccesstotheSANLUNsthatstoreyourvirtual
machines.Toachievethis,addtheVCBproxytothesamefabriczoneswherethe
ESXServersystembelongs.
Thehostmode(connectiontype)settingsontheVCBproxyandontheESXServer
match.Forexample,ifyouhaveanIBMarrayandthehostmodesettingisLNXCL,
setthesamefortheVCBproxy.Forinstructionsonconfiguringhostmodesettings
forHPstoragearrays,refertovendordocumentation.
SeedocumentationprovidedbyyourSANstoragearrayandswitchvendors,aswellas
theFibreChannelSANConfigurationGuideandiSCSISANConfigurationGuide.
Using VMware Consolidated BackupBecauseConsolidatedBackupworksinconjunctionwithathirdpartysoftware,details
onhowyouuseConsolidatedBackupdependonthespecificsoftware.Refertothe
README.htmlfilethatcomeswithyourbackupsoftwareintegrationmodule.
FollowtheseguidelineswhenusingConsolidatedBackup:
IfyouuseConsolidatedBackupintheHotAddmode,createaVCBproxyhelper.
SeeCreatingaVCBHelperVirtualMachineonpage 44.
Createabackuproleandassociateaspecificuserwiththisrole.SeeAssigning
BackupPrivilegestoaConsolidatedBackupUseronpage 45.
Ifyouhavemultiplevirtualmachinestobackup,groupthesevirtualmachinesand
managethatgroupasasingleentityinyourbackupsoftwarebyconfiguringDNS
aliasesfortheproxy.SeeGroupingVirtualMachinesonpage 47.
NOTE ConsolidatedBackupsupportsamaximumof60concurrentlymounted
virtualmachines.Forexample,youcanconcurrentlymount60virtualmachines
thathaveaC:drive,or30virtualmachinesthathaveaC:andaD:each.
Virtual Machine Backup Guide
Afteryouhaveassociatedagroupofvirtualmachineswithonehostname,youcan
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setupabackupjobforeachaliasusingthealiasastheclientnameforthejob.See
ConfiguringBackupJobsonpage 48.
Whenyouperformafirstbackupforaparticularvirtualmachine,poweronthisvirtualmachine.SeeFirstTimeBackuponpage 48.
Creating a VCB Helper Virtual Machine
IfyouuseConsolidatedBackupintheHotAddmode,youneedtocreateashadow
virtualmachineforConsolidatedBackuptouseinternally.Theshadowvirtualmachine
hasthesamenameasyourvirtualVCBproxywiththe(VCB-HELPER)suffixadded.
Forexample,ifthenameofyourvirtualbackupproxyis
BackupProxyVMWAREBACKUP,thenameoftheshadowvirtualmachineshouldbe
BackupProxyVMWAREBACKUP(VCB-HELPER).
To create VCB helper virtual machine
1 RightclickanESXhostandselectNewVirtualMachine.
2 SelecttheconfigurationasCustomandclickNext.
3 Enternameofthevirtualmachineas(VCBHELPER)andclickNext.
4 SelectadatastorethatisvisibletoallESXhostscontainingVCBproxyvirtualmachineandbackupvirtualmachines.ClickNext.
5 SelecttheappropriateVirtualMachineVersionandclickNext.
6 SelectGuestOperatingSystemasOther,andVersionasOther(32bit)andclick
Next.
7 Selectnumberofvirtualprocessorsas1andclickNext.
8 SelectMemorysizeas256MBandclickNext.
9 SelectHowmanyNICsdoyouwanttoconnect?asNoneandclickNext.
10 SelectSCSIcontrollerasLSILogicParallelandclickNext.
NOTE YoucannotuseConsolidatedBackuptobackupvirtualmachinesinacluster.
ThesevirtualmachinesshareanSCSIcontrollerandsnapshotoperationscannotbe
performedonthem.
Chapter 2 VMware Consolidated Backup
11 SelectDisktypeasDonotcreatediskandclickNext.Thesettingsforthenew
i t l hi di l d
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virtualmachinearedisplayed.
12 ClickFinish.
Assigning Backup Privileges to a Consolidated Backup User
VCBusersarethoseusersthathavetheirusernameandpasswordconfiguredinthe
VCBconfigurationfileand,tobeabletoperformbackups,needtohavebackup
privilegesforthevirtualmachinesbeingprotected.
Forallvirtualmachinesthatneedtobebackedup,setbackupprivilegesassociatingthe
VCBuserwiththeVMwareConsolidatedBackupUserrole.InVirtualCenter2.5or
later,usethepredefinedVMwareConsolidatedBackupUserrole.Ifyouarerunning
anearlierversionofVirtualCenter,createanewrolewiththebackupprivileges.
WhenusingConsolidatedBackupintheHotAddmode,theVCBusermusthavean
abilitytoperformadditionaltasks,suchasaddingandremovingvirtualdisks,ontheVCBproxyandVCBhelpervirtualmachines.YouneedtocreateanadditionalVMware
ConsolidatedBackupProxyroleandassociatethisrolewiththeVCBuser.
Formoreinformationoncreatingrolesandaddingpermissionstovirtualmachines,see
theBasicSystemAdministration.Creating a VMware Consolidated Backup User Role
InVirtualCenter2.5orlater,useapredefinedrolecalledVMwareConsolidatedBackup
User.IfyouarerunninganearlierversionofVirtualCenter,createanewrolewiththe
backupprivileges.
To create a VCB User role
1 LogintothevCenterServerwithAdministratorcredentialsusingvSphereClient.
2 FromthevCenterServer,selectView>Administration>Roles.
3 RightclicktheexistingVMwareConsolidatedBackupuser(sample)roleand
selectClone.
AnewroleCloneofVMwareConsolidatedBackupuser(sample)iscreated.
4 RenametheCloneofVMwareConsolidatedBackupuser(sample)roleto
VMwareConsolidatedBackupUser.
CAUTION DonotpowerontheVCBhelpervirtualmachineasitcausesthebackup
tofail.
Virtual Machine Backup Guide
5 (Optional)Ifthegrantedprivilegesarenotenabled,enabletheroleby
right clicking on the VMware Consolidated Backup User role and selecting
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rightclickingontheVMwareConsolidatedBackupUserroleandselecting
Edit Role.
6 SelectthefollowingprivilegesfortheVMwareConsolidatedBackupUserrole.Clicktheplussigns(+)toexpandthelists,asneeded.
Datastore>AllocateSpace
VirtualMachine>Configuration>DiskLease
VirtualMachine>Provisioning>AllowReadonlyDiskAccess
Virtual
Machine>Provisioning
>Allow
Virtual
Machine
Download VirtualMachine>State>CreateSnapshot
VirtualMachine>State>RemoveSnapshot
7 Toenablehotaddtransportmode,addthefollowingprivileges:
Datastore>Browseadatastore
VirtualMachine>Provisioning>Clonevirtualmachine
8 ClickOK.
9 Setpermissionsonalltheprotectedvirtualmachines,associatingtheVCBuser
withtheVCBuserrole.Forvirtualmachinebackup,permissionsaresetatESX
hostlevel.(SEEUPDATE)Creating a VMware Consolidated Backup Proxy Role
IfyouareusingConsolidatedBackupintheHotAddmode,inadditiontotheVCB
Userrole,youneedtocreatetheVMwareConsolidatedBackupProxyrole.Afteryou
createtheVCBProxyrole,setpermissionsindividuallyontheVCBproxyandVCB
helpervirtualmachinesassociatingtheVCBuserwiththeVCBProxyrole.
To create a VCB Proxy role
1 Log
in
to
the
vCenter
Server
with
Administrator
privileges
using
vSphere
Client.2 FromthevCenterServer,selectView>Administration>Roles.
3 RightclicktheexistingVMwareConsolidatedBackupUserroleandselectClone.
AnewroleCloneofVMwareConsolidatedBackupUseriscreated.
4 RenametheroleCloneofVMwareConsolidatedBackupUsertoVMware
ConsolidatedBackupProxy.
Chapter 2 VMware Consolidated Backup
5 (Optional)Ifthegrantedprivilegesarenotenabled,enabletheroleby
rightclicking on the VMware Consolidated Backup Proxy role and selecting
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rightclickingontheVMwareConsolidatedBackupProxyroleandselecting
Edit Role.
6 SelectthefollowingprivilegesfortheVMwareConsolidatedBackupProxyrole.Clicktheplussigns(+)toexpandthelists,asneeded.
VirtualMachine>Configuration>AddexistingDisk
VirtualMachine>Configuration>ChangeResource
VirtualMachine>Configuration>RemoveDisk
Virtual
Machine>Configuration
>Settings
7 ClickOK.
8 SetpermissionsontheVCBproxyandVCBhelpervirtualmachinesassociating
theVCBuserwiththeVCBProxyrole.
Grouping Virtual Machines
Ifyouhavemultiplevirtualmachinestobackup,assignthevirtualmachinestogroupsandsetupdifferentaliasesforthegroups,allpointingtothesameIPaddressofthe
VCBproxy.Fordetailsandinstructionsongroupingyourvirtualmachines,referto
documentationforyourbackupsoftware.
Forexample,youcancreateseparategroupsforvirtualmachinesbelongingtothe
Accounting,Engineering,andMarketingdepartmentsofyourcompany,assignthe
followingaliases,andmanageeachgroupasasingleentityinyourbackupsoftware:
vcbaccounting.company.com
vcbengineering.company.com
vcbmarketing.company.com
Settingupdifferentaliasesletsyou:
Associatedifferentpermissionswitheachgroupofvirtualmachines.Forexample,
Accounting,Engineering,andMarketinggroupscaneachhavetheirownsetof
permissionsthatmightgrantbackupandrestoreprivilegestodifferentusers.
Easilymoveagroupofvirtualmachinestoadifferentproxy.Forexample,ifyour
datacentergrows,youcanaddanewproxyandmovejobsforthegroupby
pointingthealiastothenewproxy.
Virtual Machine Backup Guide
Configuring Backup Jobs
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Therulesthatyourbackupsoftwarefollowswhenbackingupvirtualmachinesare
organizedintobackupjobs.Backupjobsdescribetheprocessofbackingupvirtual
machinedataandincludechoosinganameforthebackupprocesstodistinguishitfromotherjobs,selectingthefilesforbackingup,choosingbackuptype,settingupthe
schedule,andsoon.
Directionsonhowtoconfigurebackupjobsforyourvirtualmachinesaredifferentfor
eachbackupsoftwareandarelistedintheREADME.htmlfileprovidedwiththe
integrationmoduleforyourthirdpartybackupsoftware.
Whenconfiguringbackupjobs,followtheseguidelines:
AssignalljobstotheVCBproxy.
Usealiasesasthenamesforthejobs.
Associatethejobswithoneofthefollowingdirectories:
filelevel:C:\mnt\mytestvm.foo.com\letters\D
imagelevel:C:\mnt\mytestvm.foo.com-fullVM
Scheduleeachjobtorunataspecifictime.
IfyourunmultiplebackupjobsonthesameVCBproxyatthesametime,
rememberthatbackupproductsmighthavelimitationsonthenumberofjobsyou
canruninparallel.
First-Time Backup
Whenyouperformafirstbackupforavirtualmachine,thevirtualmachinehastobe
poweredon,otherwisethebackupfails.
Afteryouhavecompletedthefirstbackupofthevirtualmachine,ConsolidatedBackup
canperformbackupsofthevirtualmachineregardlessofitspowerstateatbackup
time.
NOTE
You
cannot
perform
a
file
level
backup
simultaneously
with
an
image
level
backupforthesamevirtualmachine.
NOTE YoudonotneedtopoweronavirtualmachineifyourintegrationmoduleisconfiguredtousevirtualmachinedisplaynamesinsteadofIPaddressesorDNS
names.
Chapter 2 VMware Consolidated Backup
Quiescing Mechanisms
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WhenyoustartthebackupprocessusingConsolidatedBackup,yourvirtualmachines
areautomaticallyquiescedtoguaranteetheconsistencyofthevirtualmachine
snapshots.
Tonothaveaquiescingmechanism,append-Q 0tovcbMounter.
Touseprebackupjobs,addNO_QUIESCE=1attheendoftheconfig.jsconfiguration
file.Allprebackupjobswillnothavequiescingsnapshotsifconfig.jsconfiguration
fileiseditedasabove.
DependingonthequiescingmechanismthatConsolidatedBackupuses,thesnapshot
canbe:
Crashconsistent
Filesystemconsistent
Applicationconsistent
AsTable 22demonstrates,thequiescingmechanismsdependontheguestoperating
systemthatyouruninyourvirtualmachines,theversionsofESXServerthathostsyourvirtualmachines,andtheversionofVMwareToolsyouinstallinthevirtualmachines.
Table 2-2. Quiescing Mechanisms Used by VMware Consolidated Backup
Guest Operating System
ESX Server 3.5 U1 or
Earlier and Corresponding
VMware Tools
ESX Server 3.5 U2 or Later and
Corresponding VMware Tools
Windows2000
Server
32bit
WindowsXP32bit
SYNCdriver
Filesystemconsistentquiescing
SYNCdriver
Filesystemconsistentquiescing
WindowsServer200332bit
SYNCdriver
Filesystemconsistentquiescing
VMwareVSScomponent
Applicationconsistentquiescing
WindowsServer200364bit
Crashconsistentquiescing VMwareVSScomponent
Applicationconsistent
quiescing
WindowsVista32bit/64bit
Crashconsistentquiescing VMwareVSScomponent
Filesystemconsistentquiescing
WindowsServer200832bit/64bit
Crashconsistentquiescing VMwareVSScomponent
Filesystemconsistentquiescing
Otherguestoperating
systems
Crashconsistentquiescing Crashconsistentquiescing
Virtual Machine Backup Guide
Thefollowingvirtualmachinesgetonlycrashconsistentbackups:
Virtual machines migrated from ESX Server 3 5 Update 2 to an earlier version of
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VirtualmachinesmigratedfromESX Server 3.5 Update2toanearlierversionof
ESXServer.
VirtualmachinesthathavetheversionofVMwareToolsshippedwith
ESX Server 2.5.x.
Using VMware VSS Components
IfyouareusingESXServer3.5Update2orlater,theVMwareVolumeShadowCopy
Service(VSS)componentsgetinstalledbydefaultwhenyouinstallVMwareToolson
your
virtual
machines.
TobeabletousetheVSScomponent,thevirtualmachinesshouldhavethefollowing
guestoperatingsystems:
WindowsServer200332bit/64bit
WindowsVista32bit/64bit
WindowsServer200832bit/64bit
ConsolidatedBackupusestheVMwareVSScomponenttocreatequiescedsnapshotsof
thevirtualmachinevolumes.
ForvirtualmachinesrunningWindowsServer2003astheguestoperatingsystem,theVSScomponentusesapplicationVSSwritersmakingsurethattheVSSsnapshotsare
applicationconsistent.ThesnapshotrepresentstheentirestateoftheVSSaware
applicationsregardlessoftheirbackuphistoryanddoesnotmodifythebackuphistory.
ForvirtualmachinesrunningWindowsVistaandWindowsServer2008,theVSS
componentdoesnotuseapplicationwritersand,asaresult,thesnapshotsare
filesystemconsistent.
NOTE TheVSScomponentgetsinstalledbydefaultwhenyoudoafreshinstallation
ofVMwareToolsshippedwithESXServer3.5Update2.Ifyouupgradefromanearlier
version,youneedtoinstalltheVSScomponentmanually.
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Virtual Machine Backup Guide
Table 2-3. Locations of Custom Quiescing Scripts
Guest Location on Virtual Machines
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Whenrunningthescripts,ConsolidatedBackupperformsthefollowingsteps:
1 Runstheprefreezescriptinsidethevirtualmachinebeingbackedup.
Forthescriptslocation,seeTable 23.
Iftheprefreezescriptreturnsanonzeroexitcode,thesnapshotcreateoperation
fails.
2 (Optional)
Engages
either
the
SYNC
driver
or
VSS
components.
ForinformationonthevirtualmachinesthatsupporttheSYNCdriverandVSS
components,seeTable 22.
Ifthisstepfails,ConsolidatedBackupproceedstoStep 5.
3 Createsasnapshot.
Guest
Operating
System Script
Location on Virtual Machines Hosted
by ESX Server 3.5 U1 and Earlier
Location on Virtual Machines
Hosted by ESX Server 3.5 U2
and LaterWindows(SEEUPDATE)
Prefreeze C:\Windows\pre-freeze-script.bat C:\ProgramFiles\VMware\VMware
Tools\backupScripts.d
backupScripts.disafoldertobecreatedbytheuser,andisnotthenameofafile.
Allscriptsareinvokedin
ascendingalphabeticalorderwithfreezeasthefirstargument.
Postthaw C:\Windows\post-thaw-script.bat C:\ProgramFiles\VMware\VMware
Tools\backupScripts.d
backupScripts.disafoldertobecreatedbytheuser,andisnotthenameofafile.
AllscriptsareinvokedindescendingalphabeticalorderwiththaworfreezeFailasthefirstargument.
Other Prefreeze /usr/sbin/pre-freeze-script /usr/sbin/pre-freeze-script
Postthaw /usr/sbin/post-thaw-script /usr/sbin/post-thaw-script
Chapter 2 VMware Consolidated Backup
4 DisengagestheSYNCdriverortheVSScomponents.
ThisstepcanfailifthesnapshotcreationinStep 3tooktoolongandtimedout.
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5 Runsthepostthawscriptinsidethevirtualmachine.
Ifsuccessful,theexitstatusofthisscriptis0.
Advanced Configurations
YoumightneedtoperformadvancedconfigurationswhenusingConsolidatedBackup.
Forexample,youmightneedtorunapostbackupcommandforyourvirtualmachines
to
cancel
backup
jobs.
Canceling a Backup Job
Ifabackupoperationiscanceledfromyourthirdpartysoftwarewhilethebackupisin
process,thevirtualmachinemightnotbeunmountedfromthebackupproxy,andthe
snapshotmightnotbedeleted.Thisisexpectedbecausethecleanupscriptwasunable
torun.Tofixtheproblem,youmustmanuallyrunthepostbackupcommandforeach
virtualmachine.Asanalternative,runvcbCleanupasdescribedinCleaningUpAfteraFailedBackupJobonpage 53.
To run the post-backup command
1 OntheVCBproxy,checkthefoldersinthe C:\\mntdirectorytodeterminethe
virtualmachinehostnames.
2 Foreachvirtualmachinehostname,runthefollowingcommandfromthe
genericsubdirectoryintheConsolidatedBackupinstallationdirectory.
cscript /nologo post-command.wsf
Cleaning Up After a Failed Backup Job
WhenyouuseConsolidatedBackupwithaVMwareprovidedintegrationmoduletoperformfilelevelvirtualmachinebackups,aftercompletingthebackup,abackup
softwarecallsthepostbackupscripttounmountthevirtualmachinesnapshotfromthe
backupproxyandtakethevirtualmachineoutofsnapshotmode.
However,ifabackupjobfails,somebackupapplicationsneverrunthepostbackup
script.Asaresult,virtualmachinescanstillremainmountedandinthesnapshotmode
attheendofthebackupcycle.
Virtual Machine Backup Guide
Tocleanupsnapshotsandunmountvirtualmachinesfromthedirectoryspecifiedin
BACKUPROOToftheconfig.jsfile,runvcbCleanupattheendofyourbackupcycle.
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YoucanrunvcbCleanupinteractively,withoutacommandoption.Ifyouenterthe-y
option,theutilityperformsthecleanupwithoutyourinteraction.Thisallowsyouto
automatecleaningupafterabackupcycle.
Upgrading Consolidated BackupWhenyouupgradeConsolidatedBackupfromitsearlierversions,performthe
followingprocedureontheVCBproxy.
To upgrade to VMware Consolidated Backup version 1.5
1 RestarttheVCBproxymachine.
2 UpgradetothelatestConsolidatedBackupversionbyrunningtheVMware
ConsolidatedBackupinstaller.
3 OpenCommandPromptandenternet stop vmount2tostopanyrunning
vmountservices.
4 OntheCommandPrompt,enterDiskparttoopentheDiskpartutilityandissue
theautomount scrubcommandtoremoveregistrysettingsforanypreviously
mountedvirtualmachines.
5 CleantheC:\Windows\Tempdirectorytoremoveanyaccumulatedtemporary
files.
CAUTION DonotrunvcbCleanupwhilebackupsarestillinprogressontheVCB
proxy.Thiscancausecurrentlyrunningbackupstofail.
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Virtual Machine Backup Guide
Filelevelrestoration
Nobackupsoftwareinthevirtualmachine.Restorationisdonebythe
d b k k h h bl b h
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administratoronabackupproxynetworksharethatisaccessiblebythe
protectedvirtualmachine.SeeCentralizedRestoreonpage 56
Backupsoftwareindedicatedvirtualmachinesanddatamovedtotarget
virtualmachines.SeePerGroupRestoreonpage 57.
Backupsoftwaredeployedineveryprotectedvirtualmachine.Restorationis
donedirectlybythesystemadministratorortheuser.SeeDirectRestoretoa
VirtualMachineonpage 57.
Using VMware Converter to Restore Virtual Machine Images
YoucanuseVMwarevCenterConverterStandaloneversion4.0.1andlatertorestore
VCBimagesofvirtualmachinestorunningvirtualmachines.UsingtheVMware
ConverterintegratedintovCenterServer,youcanrestoreyourvirtualmachinefilesto
adifferentdatastore,host,orResourcePooldirectlythroughthevSphereClient.
ForinformationonVMwareConverter,seewww.vmware.com/products/converter/.
Using the vcbRestore Utility to Restore Virtual Machines
ThevcbRestoreutilityisacommandlineutilitythatyouusetorestoredatathathas
beenbackedupusingimagebasedbackup.ThevcbRestoreutilityrunsontheESX
Server3andESX4serviceconsole.
Forinformationonhowtousethisutility,seeUsingServiceConsoletoBackUpand
RestoreVirtualMachinesonpage 63.
Centralized Restore
Whenperformingacentralizedrestore,youhaveagroupofvirtualmachineson
ESX Server,aproxy,andabackupagentontheproxyinadedicatedvirtualmachine
thatyouplantousetorestoreyourdata.Usethebackupsoftwaretogetthedatatothe
proxythatisrunningtheagent.Aftertheadministratorrestoresthedatatothecentralserver,copyitbacktothevirtualmachineusingtheCommonInternet
File System (CIFS)remoteaccessfilesharingprotocol.
Advantages:Thenumberofagentstomaintainisminimal.
Disadvantages:Becausedatarestorationiscentralized,anadministratormustbe
involvedinfilelevelrestoration.
Chapter 3 Restoration and Disaster Recovery
Per-Group Restore
Whenperformingapergrouprestoration,onevirtualmachinehasabackupagentfor
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eachgroup,suchasaccounting,engineering,andmarketing.Thegroupadministrator
restoresworkflowstoapergrouprestorehost.FilesarecopiedtoatargetvirtualmachineusingCIFSfileshare.
Advantages:
Restorationscanbedelegated.
Thistypeofrestorationisagoodcompromisebetweenthenumberofagentsand
easeofrestoration.
Disadvantages:Thisprocessisnotacompleteselfservicerestoration.
Direct Restore to a Virtual Machine
Backupagentsaredeployedineveryvirtualmachine.Theusercanusetheagentto
backupdatatoatapeandrestorethesameway.Thebackupagentinthevirtual
machineisusedtorestorethedata.
Advantages:Thisprocessisaselfservicerestoration.
Disadvantages:Agentsarerequiredineachvirtualmachine.
Data Recovery
Thefollowingguidelinescanhelpyourecoveryourdata:
Makesureyouhaveimagelevelvirtualmachinebackups.
BackupyourVirtualCenterdatabase.
Makesureyouhaveyourlicensekeys.
Makesureyouhaveenoughserverstorunallthevirtualmachinesyouplanto
restore.
EnablingmigrationwithVMotionorusingDRSenhancesyourdisasterrecoverycapabilities.
Virtual Machine Backup Guide
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Thischapterdescribesrealworldscenariosthatcanhelpyouplanyourbackup
strategies.
Thischapterincludesthefollowinginformation:
BackupUsageScenariosonpage 59
TypicalConsolidatedBackupUsageScenarioonpage 60
Troubleshootingonpage 61
Backup Usage Scenarios
Thefollowingarethemostrecommendedusecases:
Datacenter
Atthefilelevel,performbackupseverynight.
Attheimagelevel,performbackupsperiodicallyforWindows,andnightly
forLinux.Thisisadisasterrecoveryscenario.
Agentsinvirtualmachines.PerformincrementalbackupsforLinux.
Backupserverinavirtualmachine.Forbranchoffices,d
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