Veritas NetBackup™ for VMware Administrator's Guide

Last Published:
Product(s): NetBackup (8.3)
Platform: Linux,UNIX,Windows
  1. Introduction
    1.  
      About NetBackup for VMware
    2.  
      About the virtual machine backups that include database data
    3.  
      About the NetBackup appliance as a VMware backup host
    4.  
      NetBackup for VMware components
    5.  
      Appliance as backup host: component overview
    6.  
      Media servers as backup or discovery hosts
    7.  
      Overview of the VMware backup process
    8.  
      NetBackup for VMware terminology
  2. Required tasks: overview
    1.  
      Overview of VMware tasks
    2.  
      Overview of NetBackup tasks
  3. Notes and prerequisites
    1.  
      NetBackup for VMware prerequisites
    2.  
      NetBackup for VMware: notes and restrictions
    3.  
      Notes on VMware Virtual Volumes (VVols)
    4.  
      NetBackup IPv6 parameter required for backups in VMware IPv6 environments
    5.  
      NetBackup for VMware: notes on Linux virtual machines
    6.  
      Notes on the NetBackup appliance as a VMware backup host
    7.  
      NetBackup for VMware support for SAN multi-pathing
    8.  
      NetBackup for VMware support for fault tolerant VMs
    9.  
      NetBackup character restrictions for the Primary VM identifier
    10.  
      In the policy Query Builder, display names, resource pool names, and vApp names are case-sensitive
    11.  
      Notes on the hotadd transport mode
    12.  
      Notes and limitations for tag usage in VMware Intelligent Policy queries
    13.  
      Notes and limitations for the backup and restore of VMware tag associations
  4. Configure NetBackup communication with VMware
    1.  
      Adding the VMware backup host to NetBackup
    2. Adding NetBackup credentials for VMware
      1.  
        Using the VMware Managed Object Browser to verify the server name
    3.  
      Changing the host name of a VMware server in NetBackup
    4.  
      Setting privileges for posting events to vCenter
    5.  
      Authentication token for the NetBackup vSphere plug-ins
    6.  
      Setting global limits on the use of VMware resources
    7. Validating VMware virtualization server certificates in NetBackup
      1.  
        ECA_TRUST_STORE_PATH for NetBackup servers and clients
      2.  
        ECA_CRL_PATH for NetBackup servers and clients
      3.  
        ECA_CRL_PATH_SYNC_HOURS for NetBackup servers and clients
      4.  
        ECA_CRL_CHECK for NetBackup servers and clients
      5.  
        VIRTUALIZATION_HOSTS_CONNECT_TIMEOUT for servers and clients
      6.  
        VIRTUALIZATION_HOSTS_SECURE_CONNECT_ENABLED for servers and clients
      7.  
        VIRTUALIZATION_CRL_CHECK for NetBackup servers and clients
      8.  
        VMWARE_TLS_MINIMUM_V1_2 for NetBackup servers and clients
  5. Configure NetBackup policies for VMware
    1.  
      Configuring a VMware policy from the Policy Wizard
    2.  
      Configuring a VMware policy from the Policies utility
    3.  
      Limit jobs per policy on the Attributes tab (for VMware)
    4. VMware backup options
      1.  
        VMware backup host
      2.  
        Optimizations options (VMware)
      3.  
        Primary VM identifier options (VMware)
      4.  
        Existing snapshot handling options (VMware)
      5.  
        Transport modes options (VMware)
      6.  
        Application protection options (VMware)
      7.  
        VMware - Advanced Attributes dialog
      8.  
        About the Post vCenter events option (VMware Advanced Attributes)
    5. Exclude Disks tab
      1.  
        About the exclude disk options for virtual disk selection
      2.  
        Exclude disks from backups: an example to avoid
      3.  
        Restoring data from the backups that excluded the boot disk or data disks
    6.  
      Browse for VMware virtual machines
    7.  
      Limiting the VMware servers that NetBackup searches when browsing for virtual machines
    8.  
      Virtual machine host names and display names should be unique if VMs are selected manually in the policy
    9.  
      Primary VM identifier option and manual selection of virtual machines
    10.  
      About incremental backups of virtual machines
    11.  
      Configuring incremental backups
    12.  
      Storage Foundation Volume Manager volumes in the virtual machine
  6. Configure a VMware Intelligent Policy
    1.  
      About automatic virtual machine selection for NetBackup for VMware
    2.  
      Support and use of VMware tag associations
    3.  
      The basics of a NetBackup query rule
    4.  
      Important notes on automatic virtual machine selection
    5.  
      NetBackup requirements for automatic virtual machine selection
    6.  
      Automatic virtual machine selection: Task overview
    7.  
      Options for selecting VMware virtual machines
    8.  
      Configuring automatic virtual machine selection
    9.  
      Editing an existing query in Basic Mode
    10.  
      Using the Query Builder in Advanced Mode
    11.  
      AND vs. OR in queries
    12.  
      Examples for the NetBackup Query Builder
    13.  
      The IsSet operator in queries
    14.  
      About selecting virtual machines by means of multiple policies
    15.  
      Order of operations in queries (precedence rules)
    16.  
      Parentheses in compound queries
    17.  
      Query rules for resource pools
    18.  
      Query rules for datacenter folders (host folder)
    19.  
      Query rules for duplicate names
    20.  
      Query rules for tags
    21.  
      Query Builder field reference
    22.  
      Test Query screen for VMware
    23.  
      Test Query: Failed virtual machines
    24.  
      Effect of Primary VM identifier parameter on Selection column in Test Query results
    25.  
      Effect of Primary VM identifier parameter on VM Name column in Test query results
    26.  
      Refreshing the display of virtual environment changes in the Query Builder
    27.  
      Reducing the time required for VM discovery in a large VMware environment
  7. Reduce the size of backups
    1.  
      About reducing the size of VMware backups
    2.  
      Block-level backup (BLIB): full vs incremental
    3.  
      Deleting a vSphere Client snapshot
  8. Back up virtual machines
    1.  
      Backing up virtual machines
    2.  
      Using the Activity Monitor to monitor virtual machine backups
    3.  
      Restarting jobs individually in the Activity Monitor
    4.  
      Viewing NetBackup activity in vSphere Web Client or vSphere Client (HTML5)
    5.  
      Using OpsCenter to report on virtual machine backups
  9. Use Accelerator to back up virtual machines
    1.  
      About the NetBackup Accelerator for virtual machines
    2.  
      Accelerator: full vs. incremental schedules
    3.  
      How the NetBackup Accelerator works with virtual machines
    4.  
      Accelerator notes and requirements for virtual machines
    5.  
      Accelerator forced rescan for virtual machines (schedule attribute)
    6.  
      Accelerator requires the OptimizedImage attribute
    7.  
      Accelerator backups and the NetBackup catalog
    8.  
      Accelerator messages in the backup job details log
    9.  
      NetBackup logs for Accelerator with virtual machines
    10.  
      About reporting the amount of Accelerator backup data that was transferred over the network
    11.  
      Replacing the Accelerator image size with the network-transferred data in NetBackup command output
  10. Restore virtual machines
    1.  
      Restore notes and restrictions
    2.  
      Restore notes and restrictions on Linux
    3. Restoring the full VMware virtual machine
      1. Virtual Machine Recovery dialog boxes (restore to original location)
        1.  
          Recovery Destination dialog box
        2.  
          Recovery Options dialog box
        3.  
          Virtual Machine Options dialog box
        4.  
          Perform Recovery dialog box
      2. Virtual Machine Recovery dialogs boxes (restore to alternate location)
        1.  
          Recovery Destination dialog box (restore to alternate location)
        2.  
          Recovery Options dialog box (restore to alternate location)
        3.  
          Select ESX server dialog box (restore to alternate location)
        4.  
          Select Folder dialog box (restore to alternate location)
        5.  
          Select Datastore or Datastore Cluster dialog box (restore to alternate location)
        6.  
          Storage Destination dialog box (restore to alternate location)
        7.  
          Network Connections and Other Recovery Options dialog box (restore to alternate location)
        8.  
          Perform Recovery dialog box (restore to alternate location)
    4.  
      About VMware virtual machine disk restore
    5. Restoring VMware virtual machine disks by using Backup, Archive, and Restore
      1.  
        Select Virtual Disks panel
      2.  
        Recovery Destination panel
      3.  
        Virtual Disk Destination panel
      4.  
        Storage Destination panel
      5.  
        Recovery Summary panel
    6. Restoring VMware virtual machine disks by using NetBackup commands
      1.  
        Determining the backup image ID from which to restore a VMware virtual machine disk
      2.  
        Creating the VMware virtual machine disk restore file
      3.  
        Modifying the virtual machine disk restore file
      4.  
        Validating the virtual machine disk restore file
      5.  
        Restoring the virtual machine disk or disks by using the nbrestorevm command
      6.  
        VMware virtual machine disk restore file
    7.  
      About restoring individual VMware files
    8. Restoring individual VMware virtual machine files
      1.  
        Setting up NetBackup Client Service for VMware restores to a Windows shared virtual machine drive
      2.  
        Restore Marked Files dialog for restore of VMware files
    9.  
      How NetBackup handles VMware tag associations at restore
    10. Browse and search virtual machines for restore
      1.  
        Search Virtual Machines for Restore dialog
      2.  
        Browse the vCloud or vSphere view for virtual machine clients
      3.  
        Search results dialog
    11.  
      If the recovery host is not at the same NetBackup release level as the backup host
  11. Restore virtual machines with Instant Recovery
    1.  
      About Instant Recovery for VMware
    2.  
      Task overview for Instant Recovery for VMware
    3.  
      Performance recommendations for Instant Recovery for VMware
    4.  
      Requirements for Instant Recovery for VMware
    5.  
      Notes on Instant Recovery for VMware
    6.  
      Restarting the Client for NFS service on a Windows restore host
    7.  
      Instant Recovery options on the nbrestorevm command
    8.  
      Restoring a virtual machine with Instant Recovery for VMware
    9.  
      Restoring a virtual machine to a different location with Instant Recovery for VMware
    10.  
      Restoring individual files with Instant Recovery for VMware while the current virtual machine is running
    11.  
      Job types for Instant Recovery for VMware
    12.  
      Reactivating a restored virtual machine with Instant Recovery for VMware
  12. Use NetBackup for vCloud Director
    1.  
      About NetBackup for vCloud Director
    2.  
      Notes on creating a NetBackup policy for vCloud
    3.  
      Notes on restoring virtual machines into vCloud Director
    4.  
      Restoring virtual machines into vCloud Director
    5.  
      Reducing the time required for VM discovery in a large vCloud environment
    6. Virtual machine recovery dialog boxes for vCloud Director
      1.  
        Recovery Destination dialog box (vCloud Director)
      2.  
        Recovery Options dialog box (vCloud Director)
      3.  
        Recovery vApp Options for vCloud Director dialog box (restore to original location)
      4.  
        Virtual Machine Options dialog box for vCloud Director
      5.  
        Perform Recovery dialog box for vCloud Director
      6.  
        Recovery Options dialog box for vCloud Director (restore to alternate location)
      7.  
        Recovery vApp Options for vCloud Director dialog box (restore to alternate location)
      8.  
        Select a vApp dialog box
      9.  
        Recovery Destination Options for vCloud Director dialog box (restore to alternate location)
      10.  
        Virtual Machine Options (restore to alternate location)
      11.  
        Network connections (restore to alternate location)
      12.  
        Perform Recovery dialog box for vCloud Director (restore to alternate location)
  13. Best practices and more information
    1. NetBackup for VMware best practices
      1.  
        NetBackup for VMware with deduplication
    2.  
      Best practices for VMware tag usage
    3.  
      Further assistance with NetBackup for VMware
  14. Troubleshooting
    1.  
      Notes on troubleshooting NetBackup for VMware
    2.  
      Beware of unsupported backup host
    3.  
      How to determine the ESX network that NetBackup used for the backup or restore
    4.  
      NetBackup logging for VMware
    5.  
      Configuring VxMS logging
    6.  
      Format of the VxMS core.log and provider.log file names
    7.  
      Configuring the VDDK logging level
    8.  
      Preventing browsing delays caused by DNS problems
    9.  
      Changing the browsing timeout for virtual machine discovery
    10.  
      Changing timeout and logging values for vSphere
    11.  
      Credentials for VMware server are not valid
    12.  
      Snapshot error encountered (status code 156)
    13.  
      The origin of the snapshot failure: NetBackup or VMware?
    14.  
      Conflict between NetBackup and VMware Storage vMotion with vSphere 5.0 or later
    15.  
      Incremental backups of the VM may fail if the NTFS file system in the guest OS is corrupted and the backup uses MSDP storage
    16.  
      The restore fails when you restore individual files to a virtual machine that has NetBackup client software
    17.  
      Backup or restore job hangs
    18.  
      VMware SCSI requirements for application quiesce on Windows
    19.  
      Mount point missing on a restored Windows virtual machine
    20.  
      Mount points not available when restoring files from a Linux virtual machine
    21.  
      Invalid client error when you restore files using NetBackup BAR interface installed on the virtual machine
    22.  
      VMware virtual machine does not restart after restore
    23.  
      A restored VM may not start or its file system(s) may not be accessible
    24.  
      NetBackup job fails due to update tasks on the VMware server
    25.  
      The vSphere interface reports that virtual machine consolidation is needed
    26.  
      The Enable file recovery from VM backup option does not work if a volume disk set contains a mixture of disk types
    27.  
      Linux VMs and persistent device naming
    28.  
      For a VMware virtual machine with Windows dynamic disks, a restore from incremental backup fails with a Windows restore host and the hotadd transport mode
    29.  
      Simultaneous hotadd backups (from the same VMware backup host) fail with status 13
    30.  
      Troubleshooting VMware tag usage
    31.  
      Ensuring that guest customizations can be restored in vCloud Director
    32.  
      Troubleshooting vmdk restore to existing VM
    33.  
      Errors for backups of virtual machines on Virtual Volumes (VVols)
    34.  
      Issues with the CA certificate during installation of the NetBackup client on VMware Cloud (VMC)
  15. Appendix A. NetBackup commands to back up and restore virtual machines
    1. Using NetBackup commands to create a VMware policy
      1.  
        Notes on creating a VMware policy for vCloud Director
      2.  
        VMware policy: bpplinfo options and keywords
      3.  
        bpplinclude options for modifying query rules in a VMware policy
    2.  
      Using the nbdiscover command to search the virtual environment
    3.  
      Using the nbrestorevm command to restore virtual machines into vSphere
    4.  
      Using the nbrestorevm command to restore virtual machines into vCloud Director
    5.  
      Using the nbrestorevm command to restore virtual machine disks
    6.  
      The nbrestorevm -R rename file for restoring virtual machines
    7.  
      Logs for troubleshooting the nbrestorevm command
    8.  
      Query format and examples for searching virtual machine backups
    9.  
      Allowing other servers or clients to restore virtual machines
  16. Appendix B. Configuring services for NFS on Windows
    1.  
      About installing and configuring Network File System (NFS) for Granular Recovery Technology (GRT)
    2. About configuring services for NFS on Windows 2012 or 2016 (NetBackup for VMware)
      1.  
        Enabling Services for Network File System (NFS) on a Windows 2012 or 2016 media server (NetBackup for VMware)
      2.  
        Enabling Services for Network File System (NFS) on a Windows 2012 or 2016 restore host (NetBackup for VMware)
    3.  
      Disabling the Server for NFS (NetBackup for VMware)
    4.  
      Disabling the Client for NFS on the media server (NetBackup for VMware)
    5.  
      Configuring a UNIX media server and Windows backup or restore host for Granular Recovery Technology (NetBackup for VMware)
    6.  
      Configuring a different network port for NBFSD (NetBackup for VMware)
  17. Appendix C. The Reuse VM selection query results option
    1.  
      About the Reuse VM selection query results option
    2.  
      The effect of virtual machine discovery on vCenter
  18. Appendix D. Backup of VMware raw devices (RDM)
    1.  
      About VMware raw device mapping (RDM)
    2.  
      Configurations for backing up RDMs
    3.  
      About alternate client backup of RDMs
    4.  
      Requirements for alternate client backup of RDMs
    5.  
      Configuring alternate client backup of RDMs
  19.  
    Index

Restoring individual files with Instant Recovery for VMware while the current virtual machine is running

You can use instant recovery to restore files individually from a virtual machine backup. You can restore the virtual machine from its backup image and mount it on a private network (such as a sandbox). This approach avoids the potential for network conflicts with the virtual machine in your production environment. Another virtual machine on a public network can be used as an intermediary, to copy the files from the virtual machine on the private network.

Note:

This procedure lets you restore files into a running VM. You do not need to shut down the current virtual machine in your production environment before you start this procedure.

Before you start this procedure, you need an intermediary virtual machine that has a network connection to the public network or production network. In this procedure you connect the intermediary to the private network where the restored virtual machine is to be mounted.

At the end of the procedure, you can copy files from the restored virtual machine to the intermediary virtual machine. Then the virtual machines on the public network can access the files on the intermediary.

To restore individual files using instant recovery

  1. Use vSphere Client to log on to the vCenter server.

    You must use a logon that allows access to the files that you want to recover.

  2. Create a vSphere standard switch.

    This switch is for access to the ESX host from the sandbox or private network where the VM is to be activated from its backup.

    Note:

    The switch is for internal communication within the ESX host only.

    For example, in vSphere Client 5:

    • Select the ESX host for communication between the restored virtual machine and the intermediary virtual machine.

    • On the Configuration tab, in the Hardware pane, click Networking.

    • Click Add Networking.

    • Select Virtual Machine as the connection type.

    • Select Create a vSphere standard switch.

    • For Port Group Properties, Network Label, enter a name for the internal switch (such as NB or NetBackup).

    • Click Finish.

  3. On the intermediary virtual machine, add a network card (NIC) to be connected to the vSphere standard switch.

    Use this connection to retrieve files from the restored virtual machine that is to be mounted on the private network.

    Note:

    This intermediary virtual machine must already have a network connection to the public network or production network.

    For example, in vSphere Client 5:

    • Select the intermediary virtual machine.

    • On the Summary tab, click Edit Settings.

    • Click Add.

    • Select Ethernet Adapter.

    • For the Network label, select the private network that is created in step 2.

    • Click Finish.

  4. If the intermediary's guest OS does not automatically assign an IP address for the private network after step 3, note: You must manually configure the IP address, default gateway, and subnet mask.

    The intermediary should now be connected to both the public network and to the private network where the virtual machine is to be restored.

  5. Use the nbrestorevm command to restore the virtual machine.

    nbrestorevm -vmw -ir_activate -C virtual_machine -temp_location temporary_datastore -R rename_file_path -vmsn

    -vmsn specifies that no network is enabled for the virtual machine when it is activated from the backup image. Without the -vmsn option, network conflicts with the production virtual machine may occur.

    The file that is designated by -R rename_file_path specifies a different display name or location for the restored virtual machine. You must change the virtual machine name or location to avoid conflicts with the current virtual machine in production. For example, to rename the virtual machine, the rename file can consist of the following entry (ending with a carriage return):

    change vmname to acme_vm5

    Note:

    The words change vmname to are literals, followed by the actual name to change to (such as acme_vm5).

    See Instant Recovery options on the nbrestorevm command.

    For other nbrestorevm options, see the man page or the NetBackup Commands Reference Guide.

  6. Add a network card (NIC) to the restored virtual machine and connect the NIC to the vSphere standard switch from step 2.
  7. Turn on the restored virtual machine.
  8. If the guest OS does not automatically assign an IP address for the private network, configure the IP address, default gateway, and subnet mask.
  9. Set up file sharing (such as through FTP, NFS, or CIFS) between the restored virtual machine and the intermediary virtual machine.

    Then copy the files from the restored virtual machine to the intermediary virtual machine. The current virtual machine in production can access the files.

  10. If you do not want to keep the restored virtual machine, enter the following:

    nbrestorevm - ir_listvm

    In the -ir_listvm output, find the VM Instant Recovery ID for the restored virtual machine.

    To remove the restored virtual machine:

    nbrestorevm - ir_deactivate instant recovery ID

    where instant recovery ID is the virtual machine's numeric identifier from the -ir_listvm output.