Storage Foundation 8.0 Quick Recovery Solutions Guide for Microsoft Exchange - Windows

Last Published:
Product(s): InfoScale & Storage Foundation (8.0)
Platform: Windows
  1. Introducing Quick Recovery for Microsoft Exchange
    1.  
      About Quick Recovery snapshot solutions
    2.  
      Advantages of Quick Recovery snapshots
    3.  
      Quick Recovery process
    4. About the components used in Quick Recovery
      1.  
        FlashSnap and FastResync
      2. Integration with Microsoft Volume Shadow Copy Service
        1.  
          The VSS framework
    5.  
      About the Solutions Configuration Center
    6.  
      Starting the Configuration Center
    7.  
      Solutions wizard logs
  2. Planning a Quick Recovery snapshot solution for Exchange
    1. System requirements
      1.  
        Storage requirements
    2. Methods of implementing Quick Recovery snapshots
      1.  
        About the Quick Recovery Configuration Wizard
      2.  
        About the VSS Exchange Snapshot Scheduler Wizard
      3.  
        About the VSS Snapshot and Snapback wizards and the vxsnap utility
    3.  
      Planning your Quick Recovery solution
    4.  
      Backup types for snapshot sets
    5.  
      About logs
    6. Recommendations and best practices
      1.  
        Recommendations for Exchange storage configuration
      2.  
        Recommendations for maintenance and backups
      3.  
        SFW cluster considerations
      4. Exchange 2010 Database Availability Group (DAG) considerations
        1.  
          Using snapshot schedules in a DAG
        2.  
          Guidelines for creating passive copy snapshots in a DAG
        3.  
          Recovery in a DAG
      5.  
        Microsoft cluster considerations
      6.  
        Volume Replicator considerations
  3. Configuring Exchange for Quick Recovery snapshots
    1.  
      Tasks for configuring Exchange storage
    2.  
      Reviewing the prerequisites
    3.  
      Reviewing the configuration for Exchange 2010
    4.  
      Creating dynamic disk groups
    5.  
      Creating dynamic volumes
    6.  
      Pointing the database and log paths to the SFW volumes
  4. Implementing Exchange snapshot sets with the configuration wizard
    1. About the Quick Recovery Configuration Wizard
      1.  
        About snapshot sets
      2. About snapshot templates
        1.  
          Templates and multiple components
        2.  
          Templates and schedule start dates
    2.  
      Tasks for implementing snapshot sets with the configuration wizard
    3.  
      Reviewing the prerequisites
    4. Scheduling Exchange snapshot sets
      1.  
        System Selection panel details
      2.  
        Instance Selection panel details
      3.  
        Mount Details panel details
      4.  
        Synchronizing Schedules panel details
      5.  
        Template Selection panel details
      6.  
        Number of Snapshot Sets panel details
      7.  
        Snapshot Volume Assignment panel details
      8.  
        Snapshot Schedule panel details
      9.  
        Specifying snapshot schedule details
      10.  
        Summary panel details
      11.  
        Template Implementation panel
    5.  
      Administering or troubleshooting scheduled snapshots
  5. Scheduling or creating an individual snapshot set for Exchange
    1.  
      About scheduling or creating an individual snapshot set
    2.  
      Tasks to schedule a new snapshot
    3.  
      Tasks to create a one-time snapshot set
    4.  
      Reviewing the prerequisites
    5.  
      Preparing the snapshot mirrors
    6.  
      Scheduling a snapshot set
    7.  
      Creating a one-time snapshot set
    8. Refreshing a snapshot set
      1.  
        Reattaching the split-mirror snapshots
  6. Maintaining or troubleshooting snapshots
    1.  
      Viewing the status of scheduled snapshots
    2.  
      Troubleshooting scheduled snapshots
    3.  
      Deleting or modifying schedules
    4.  
      Synchronizing schedules after adding a cluster node
  7. Recovering Exchange mailbox databases
    1.  
      About recovery using Quick Recovery snapshots
    2.  
      Tasks for recovery using Quick Recovery snapshots
    3.  
      Prerequisites for recovery
    4.  
      Recovery using an Exchange 2010 passive copy snapshot in a Database Availability Group (DAG)
    5.  
      Recovery for Exchange 2010 using the VSS Restore Wizard
    6.  
      Recovery for Exchange 2010 using the vxsnap utility
    7.  
      Post-recovery steps
  8. Recovering after hardware failure
    1. About recovery after hardware failure
      1.  
        Recovery scenarios
      2.  
        Recovery tasks
    2.  
      Tasks for recovering after hardware failure
    3.  
      Reviewing the prerequisites
    4.  
      Reviewing the sample configuration for Exchange 2010
    5. Scenario I: Database and transaction logs volumes are missing
      1.  
        Identifying the missing volumes (Scenario I)
      2.  
        Deleting missing volumes from Storage Foundation
      3.  
        Replacing hardware and adding disks to the dynamic disk group
      4.  
        Changing the drive letter or mount points of the snapshot volumes
      5.  
        Restoring the Exchange 2010 mailbox database to the point in time
      6.  
        Refreshing the snapshot set (Scenario I)
    6. Scenario II: Database volumes missing, transaction logs are available
      1.  
        Identifying the missing volumes (Scenario II)
      2.  
        Deleting missing volumes from Storage Foundation
      3.  
        Replacing hardware and adding disks to the dynamic disk group
      4.  
        Changing the drive letter or mount points of the snapshot volumes
      5.  
        Restoring the Exchange 2010 mailbox database to the point in time
      6.  
        Recovering the Exchange 2010 mailbox database to the point of failure
      7.  
        Refreshing the snapshot set (Scenario II)
    7.  
      Refreshing the snapshot set
    8. Refreshing the snapshot set on the current disks
      1.  
        Reattaching healthy snapshot volumes
      2.  
        Clearing the snapshot association for volumes whose drive letters or mount points were reassigned
      3.  
        Creating snapshot mirrors of volumes whose drive letters or mount points were reassigned
      4.  
        Creating the new snapshot set
    9. Moving the production volumes to different disks and refreshing the snapshot set
      1.  
        Reattaching healthy snapshot volumes
      2.  
        Clearing the snapshot association for volumes whose drive letters or mount points were reassigned
      3.  
        Adding mirrors to volumes whose drive letters or mount points were reassigned
      4.  
        Creating snapshot mirrors of volumes whose drive letters or mount points were reassigned
      5.  
        Creating the new snapshot set
  9. Vxsnap utility command line reference for Exchange
    1.  
      About the vxsnap utility
    2. Vxsnap keywords
      1.  
        vxsnap prepare
      2.  
        vxsnap create
      3.  
        vxsnap reattach
      4. vxsnap restore
        1.  
          Recovery after hardware failure

Troubleshooting scheduled snapshots

When scheduling snapshots using the Quick Recovery Configuration Wizard or the VSS Snapshot Scheduler Wizard, you can use the information in the following table to help avoid problems or troubleshoot situations.

Situation

Resolution

Snapshots do not occur on a scheduled date.

The date may have been excluded under "Specific Dates" on the schedule. Excluding a date takes precedence over other days scheduled.

A snapshot is not taken on the date that you create the schedule, although that date is specified as the "Schedule takes effect on date".

The date shown in the Schedule takes effect on field is used as a run day only if no other run days are specified. If you specify other run days, the schedule starts running on the earliest day specified.

If you want the current date included in a schedule, specify it as an Include date on the Specific Dates tab.

A scheduled snapshot does not occur for an imported template schedule.

If you import a template that uses the current date as the "takes effect on" date, but part of the schedule cannot be implemented for the current date, the effective date is shifted to the following day.

For example, if the schedule includes two daily snapshots, one in the morning and one at night, and you import the schedule in the afternoon, neither of the snapshots occur on the current date. Both occur the following day.

While running the Quick Recovery Wizard to modify template settings, the existing settings are not displayed.

If a scheduled snapshot operation is occurring on the selected object at the same time that you select the object in the wizard, the wizard is temporarily unable to display the existing settings.

You can try running the wizard later.

A schedule is unavailable to be edited in the Quick Recovery Wizard.

Expired schedules cannot be edited.

Instead, delete the expired schedule and add a new one.

You want to use the VSS Scheduler wizard but the Applications node is not shown in the VEA.

You may need to refresh the VEA display to see the node.

You are unable to locate a snapshot set XML file.

The VSS Snapshot Scheduler Wizard assigns a prefix of "VM_" to the name you assign.

Drive letters assignments for snapshot volumes do not occur.

If time elapses between when you use the wizard to assign drive letters and when the snapshot operation occurs, a drive letter you assigned may become unavailable. When this occurs, the snapshot operation is performed, but no drive letters are assigned.

You can assign or change drive letters or mount paths in Veritas Enterprise Administrator.

A scheduled snapshot fails after you have done a manual snapback (reattach) of one or more of the snapshot volumes in the snapshot set.

When a snapback is done manually for a volume rather than by using the VSS Snapback wizard or allowing the scheduler to handle it, the XML metadata file is not deleted. To take the next scheduled snapshot, the scheduler attempts to reattach all the volumes specified in the XML metadata file and fails because one or more are already reattached. Therefore, the snapshot also fails.

To ensure that the next scheduled snapshot works correctly, use the VSS Snapback wizard (or the vxsnap utility) to reattach using the XML file.

Two databases are on the same volume. You run the Quick Recovery wizard to schedule the first database. You then run it again to schedule a snapshot for the second database on the same disk. But the mirror preparation for the first database is not yet complete.

The following problems can occur:

  • When running the wizard, the second time, it does not update the available disk space shown for the disk where the first snapshot is scheduled.

  • Mirror preparation for the second database fails.

You can choose from the following ways to avoid these problems:

  • Include both databases in the snapshot when running the wizard the first time.

  • Select a different disk for the second snapshot mirror when running the wizard the second time.

  • Wait for the mirror preparation for the first snapshot to finish before running the wizard to schedule the second snapshot.

In addition, when troubleshooting, you may want to review the following logs.

If a schedule fails, check the scheduler service logs in the following folder:

C:\Program Files\Veritas\Veritas Volume Manager\logs\SchedService.log

If a snapshot fails, check the VxSnap.log file in the following folder:

C:\Program Files\Veritas\Veritas Volume Manager\logs

Quick Recovery Configuration wizard log files are located in the following path:

C:\ProgramData\Veritas\winsolutions\log