NetVault: Bare Metal Recovery for Netvault Backup …support-public.cfm.quest.com/eaeff398-e4f4-4de0-b0c7-7ea946ca377a:...technique to recover a system fully. ... in your environment,

VOG-103-1.1-EN-02 10/13/10

NetVault®: Bare Metal Recoveryfor NetVault® Backup Server

version 1.1

User’s Guide

BakBone Software9540 Towne Centre Drive, Suite 100 San Diego, California 92121 866.484.2663

CopyrightsNetVault: Bare Metal Recovery for NetVault: Backup Server User’s Guide

Software Copyright © 2010 BakBone Software Documentation Copyright © 2010 BakBone Software

This software product is copyrighted and all rights are reserved. The distribution and sale of this product are intended for the use of the original purchaser only per the terms of the License Agreement. All other product trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

The NetVault: Bare Metal Recovery for NetVault: Backup Server User’s Guide is copyrighted and all rights are reserved.

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THIS PUBLICATION COULD INCLUDE TECHNICAL INACCURACIES OR TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS. CHANGES ARE PERIODICALLY ADDED TO THE INFORMATION HEREIN; THESE CHANGES WILL BE INCORPORATED INTO NEW EDITIONS OF THE PUBLICATION. BAKBONE SOFTWARE MAY MAKE IMPROVEMENTS AND/OR CHANGES IN THE PRODUCT(S) AND/OR THE PROGRAM(S) DESCRIBED IN THIS PUBLICATION AT ANY TIME.

© 1999-2010 BakBone®, BakBone Software®, NetVault®, Application Plugin Module™, BakBone logo®, Integrated Data Protection™, SmartDisk™, Asempra®, and FASTRecover™ are all trademarks or registered trademarks of BakBone Software, Inc., in the United States and/or in other countries. All other brands, products or service names are or may be trademarks, registered trademarks or service marks of, and used to identify, products or services of their respective owners.

Chapter 1: Introduction 5

• About NetVault: Bare Metal Recovery ............................................................................ 5- VaultDR Offline Plugin ..................................................................................................................... 5- VaultDR Server Plugin ..................................................................................................................... 6- VaultOS Operating System .............................................................................................................. 6

• NVBMR for NVBU Server Overview ................................................................................ 6- Offline Backup Process Overview .................................................................................................... 6- Offline Recovery Process Overview ................................................................................................ 7

Chapter 2: Performing an Offline Backup 9

• Booting into VaultOS ........................................................................................................ 9• Adding a Library Using the Automatic Device Configuration Wizard ....................... 10• Adding Libraries Manually ............................................................................................. 12• Selecting the BMR Target Media ................................................................................... 14• Backing Up the Source NVBU Server ........................................................................... 15

Chapter 3: Performing an Offline Recovery 17

• Prerequisite ..................................................................................................................... 17• Booting into VaultOS ...................................................................................................... 17• Importing NVDB .............................................................................................................. 18• Verifying Access to the Target NVBU Server ............................................................... 18• Recovering the Source NVBU Server ........................................................................... 18

Table of Contents

Table of Contents4

NetVault: Bare Metal Recovery for NetVault: BackupUser’s Guide

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Chapter 1:

INTRODUCTION

About NetVault: Bare Metal RecoveryVaultDR Offline PluginVaultDR Server PluginVaultOS Operating System

NVBMR for NVBU Server OverviewOffline Backup Process OverviewOffline Recovery Process Overview

1.1.0 About NetVault: Bare Metal RecoveryNetVault: Bare Metal Recovery (NVBMR) is an integrated bare metal recovery solution capable of recovering an entire system including the operating system (OS), applications, system settings, partition information, and data for any supported NVBU Client. NVBMR provides bare metal recovery with either offline (cold) backups or online (hot) backups.

NVBMR integrates with NetVault: Backup (NVBU) and is also known as the VaultDR System of Plugins. It is comprised of two key components, or Plugins, each of which provides its own form of disaster recovery backup, and a third component that serves as a basic OS that is used to prepare a target Disaster Recovery (DR) Client for backup/restore.

NVBMR includes the following technical components:

VaultDR ServerVaultDR Offline Plugin for x86/x86-64 Clients

The following sections briefly describe these components.

1.1.1 VaultDR Offline PluginThe VaultDR Offline Plugin implements a block-by-block backup and restore technique to recover a system fully. This block-by-block operation takes the target system offline and makes it unavailable. This is done to either:

Backup – An Offline Backup backs up all aspects of a target system (OS, applications, system settings, and so on). This is ideal for new systems that have been configured for use.Restore – An Offline Restore recovers a machine that has no functional OS to a previously configured state.

Chapter 1Introduction

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1.1.2 VaultDR Server PluginThe VaultDR Server Plugin resides on the NVBU Server and enables backup and recovery of a target client’s data via the VaultDR Offline Plugin.

1.1.3 VaultOS Operating SystemThe VaultDR Offline Plugin includes a component known as VaultOS. The VaultOS is a minimal OS that is used to boot a target disaster recovery client system to prepare it for either backup or restore (depending on the VaultDR System Plugin in use). This minimal OS starts the target client, loads all applicable device drivers, and leaves its hard drive in a state suitable for either backup or restore.

1.2.0 NVBMR for NVBU Server OverviewNVBMR for NVBU Server is a specially packaged version of NVBMR that provides offline bare metal protection for NVBU Servers running on x86/x86-64-based OSs that use locally-attached tape-based devices, including virtual tape libraries (VTLs); it does not support devices that require network access, such as shared VTLs (SVTLs) or NetVault: SmartDisk (NVSD). The bare metal recovery (BMR) image of the NVBU Server is taken by a LiveCD that is preloaded with an NVBU Server, the VaultDR Server Plugin, and the drdaemon process. The BMR image can then be transferred to a direct-attached tape-based library or standalone tape drive for recovery in case disaster recovery is needed for the NVBU Server.

Important: The preloaded NVBU Server uses NVBU v8.5.1; however, this preloaded version of the NVBU Server can protect and recover NVBU Servers using NVBU v8.2.2 and later. NVBMR for NVBU Server provides a backup of the server; it does not provide access to network-related functionality such as support for the NVBU Client Management window and its features.

1.2.1 Offline Backup Process OverviewOffline backup of an NVBU Server for bare metal recovery is achieved by performing the following tasks:

Preload a CentOS LiveCD with NVBU, the VaultDR Server Plugin, and drdaemon.Boot the CentOS LiveCD into X graphical multiuser mode.Launch NVBU and drdaemon.Detect and add a locally-attached tape library or standalone tape drive.Choose a dedicated DR target media.


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Start communication between VaultDR Server and drdaemon.Initiate the backup process, and transfer data to the DR target media.

For more information, see Performing an Offline Backup on page 9.

1.2.2 Offline Recovery Process OverviewOffline bare metal recovery of an NVBU Server is achieved by performing the following steps:

Boot the CentOS LiveCD created for the backup process.Launch NVBU and drdaemon.Detect and add a locally-attached tape library or standalone tape drive.Determine the dedicated DR target media that was used during backup.Scan and import DR target media indexes, and rebuild the NetVault: Backup Database (NVDB).Start communication between VaultDR Server and drdaemon.Initiate the recovery process, and transfer data from the DR target media to the storage disk device.

For more information, see Performing an Offline Recovery on page 17.

Chapter 1Introduction

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Chapter 2:

PERFORMING AN OFFLINE BACKUP

Booting into VaultOSAdding a Library Using the Automatic Device Configuration WizardAdding Libraries ManuallySelecting the BMR Target MediaBacking Up the Source NVBU Server

2.1.0 Booting into VaultOSBefore you perform an offline backup of the NVBU Server, you must create a VaultOS CD and boot from it.

1. Burn “VaultOS-live-centos2.iso” onto a blank CD-ROM disk.2. Boot VaultOS from the CD created in Step 1.

Important: Unless there is a Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) Server in your environment, drdaemon requires a static IP address to communicate with the NVBU Server. If there is no DHCP Server, you must set the IP address manually.

3. If you need to set the IP address manually, complete the following steps:a. Click the Network Configuration icon.b. On the Network Configuration dialog, select the device, and click Edit.c. On the Edit dialog, enter the IP Address, Subnet Mask, and Default

Gateway, and click OK.After you are finished, VaultOS will boot into X graphical multiuser mode and launch NVBU and the VaultOS drdaemon.

Chapter 2Performing an Offline Backup

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The VaultOS desktop includes the following icons. You can click these at any time to access various components.

The next step is to detect and add the locally-attached tape library or standalone tape device via NVBU. The following sections describe adding a library automatically or manually, respectively. For a detailed description, refer to the NetVault: Backup Administrator’s Guide.

2.2.0 Adding a Library Using the Automatic Device Configuration WizardThe Automatic Device Configuration wizard helps you add and configure backup devices. This wizard recognizes devices manufactured by multiple vendors, although not all are supported. NVBU automatically starts scanning for new locally-attached devices in the NVBU Domain when you start the software services.

To configure a backup device automatically, perform the following steps:

1. From the NVBU Console, open the NVBU Device Management window (via either of the toolbar buttons or by clicking Administration > Device Management).The Automatic Device Configuration wizard starts automatically when a qualified device is found.

2. Follow the wizard as it guides you through the configuration steps.

Note: If the Automatic Device Configuration wizard does not find a qualified device, you must add the library manually. For details, see Adding Libraries Manually on page 12.

Icon DescriptionNetwork Configuration – This icon brings up the CentOS Network Configuration dialog for configuring network devices, host connections, and so on.

Terminal – This icon opens a CentOS Terminal window.

NetVault: Backup – This icon launches the NVBU Server Console.

drdaemon – This icon launches the drdaemon interface.


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Figure 2-1:Automatic

Device Configuration

wizard

3. When you have finished with the configuration, click Next to proceed.NVBU adds the device and displays a message.

4. Click Finish to complete the procedure.The device is added and listed on the Devices tab.

Note: The Automatic Device Configuration wizard will find direct-attached physical and virtual tape devices. Direct-attached Virtual Tape Libraries (VTL) that are created on direct-attached storage may be used for performing BMR of the NVBU Server. However, NetVault: SmartDisk (NVSD) Devices cannot be used for BMR of the NVBU Server.


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2.3.0 Adding Libraries ManuallyTo add a locally-attached library or VTL manually, perform the following steps:

1. From the NVBU Console, open the NVBU Device Management window (via either of the toolbar buttons or by clicking Administration > Device Management).

2. On the Add menu, click Add Library to open the Add Library window.3. Under Choose Library, locate and double-click the NVBU Server or Client to

which the device is connected (or right-click it, and select Open).Figure 2-2:

Library Selection tab

4. Depending on the library type, open the applicable node to display the available libraries.

5. Double-click the library (or right-click it, and choose Select) to display the library picture, type, and details under Selected Library.


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6. Select the Drive Selection tab.Figure 2-3:

Drive Selection tab

7. Open the NVBU Server or SmartClient node to which the device is connected.

8. Open the applicable drive type to display the available drives.9. To select the drive bays, perform the applicable steps:

Libraries with a Single Drive: Double-click the drive (or right-click it, and choose Select) to display the drive picture, type, and details under Selected Drives.Libraries with Multiple Drives

a. In the Select for Drive Bay box, enter 1.b. Under Choose Drives, double-click drive 1 (or right-click it, and choose

Select) to display the drive picture, type, and details under Selected Drives.

c. Repeat Step a and Step b for the remaining drives, changing the drive number and bay for each drive.

Note: While the drive number usually matches the bay number, depending on the library and drive configuration, a different assignment of drives to bays might be necessary. If you experience failure during move or load/unload operations, consider adding your drives in a different order to their bays.

For details on configuring the library and drive parameters, refer to the NetVault: Backup Administrator’s Guide.


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10.If you want to change the library name, enter the string in the Library Name box.To identify a device, NVBU assigns a default name, which is displayed in the Library Name box in the upper-right corner of the window. You can save a device with its default name, or assign it a new name.

11.On the toolbar, click Save Details.The device is added and listed on the Devices tab. The status changes to online after library initialization and inventory verification.

2.4.0 Selecting the BMR Target MediaThe next step is to select a dedicated BMR target media for your backup. Perform the following steps.


2. On the Devices tab, right-click the drive/slot that contains the media that you want to use, and select Properties.

3. When the Media Properties dialog appears, enter a user-defined label (for example, BMRMedia) string in the Media Label field, and then click OK to save it.

Figure 2-4:Media

Properties dialog


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2.5.0 Backing Up the Source NVBU ServerYou are now ready to perform a backup of the NVBU Server. Perform the following steps via the NVBU Console.

1. Open the NVBU Backup window (via either of the toolbar buttons or by clicking Operations > Backup).

2. On the Selections tab, double-click the NVBU Server node.3. Locate and double-click the VaultDR APM to open it.4. When the “self” node appears, double-click it to display all disk device

information for this NVBU Server.You can open disks by double-clicking them. Individual partitions will be displayed and made available for selection to back up.

Figure 2-5:VaultDR APM Selection tab

on NVBUBackup window

5. Select a single disk, all disks, all partitions, or a single partition of each disk to back up.

6. Select the Backup Options tab, and then select Raw Mode, Zlib Compression, or both.

Raw Mode – Select this option if you want all partition information for a selected hard drive to be ignored and a “bit-by-bit” backup of the entire disk image to be performed. This bit-by-bit form of data transfer occurs


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during the restore of this backup as well, thereby eliminating the need to format the target drive.Cases in which Raw Mode is desired include:

The selected hard drive does not have a partition table.NVBMR cannot recognize the partition table.You are backing up data outside the Master Boot Record (MBR) and partitions (for example, dynamic disks).

Zlib Compression – Select this option to compress data on the NVBU Server prior to transfer during backup. This reduces overall network traffic during data transfer and also requires less media space to accommodate the backup. This option is useful for partitions that contain a large amount of unused space and that would otherwise need 1:1 space on the backup medium.

7. Select the Target tab.8. In the Media Options section, select MID, and then enter the label in the text

box.This is the label (for example, BMRMedia) for the target media that you specified earlier in the Media Properties dialog.

9. To initiate the backup, click the Submit button on the toolbar.Figure 2-6:

VaultDR Offline Backup


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Chapter 3:

PERFORMING AN OFFLINE RECOVERY

PrerequisiteBooting into VaultOSImporting NVDBVerifying Access to the Target NVBU ServerRecovering the Source NVBU Server

3.1.0 PrerequisitePrior to performing a recovery of the NVBU Server, the following condition must be met: Provide either a new disk or an existing disk that has had all existing partitions removed.

3.2.0 Booting into VaultOSThe first step in the recovery process is to boot into VaultOS. This requires the CD previously created during the Offline Backup process.

1. Boot VaultOS from the CD created in Step 1 in Booting into VaultOS on page 9.VaultOS will boot into X graphical multiuser mode and launch NVBU and the VaultOS drdaemon.

2. Detect and add the locally-attached tape library or standalone tape device via NVBU.For details, see Adding a Library Using the Automatic Device Configuration Wizard on page 10 or Adding Libraries Manually on page 12.

Chapter 3Performing an Offline Recovery

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3.3.0 Importing NVDBThe next step is to select the dedicated DR target media for your recovery and import the NVDB to it. Perform the following steps.


2. On the Devices tab, right-click the drive/slot that contains the media that was used during backup (for example, BMRMedia) and is marked “FOREIGN,”, and select Scan from the pop-up menu.NVBU imports backup indexes stored on the FOREIGN media to the NVDB.

3.4.0 Verifying Access to the Target NVBU ServerThe next step is to verify access and disk availability of the new or target NVBU Server. Perform the following steps.

1. From the NVBU Console, open the NVBU Backup window (via either of the toolbar buttons or by clicking Operations > Backup).

2. On the Selections tab, double-click the NVBU Server node.3. Locate and double-click the VaultDR APM to open it.4. When the “self” node appears, double-click it to display all disk device

information for this NVBU Server.

Important: If there is no disk available, the recovery process cannot continue.

3.5.0 Recovering the Source NVBU ServerThe final step in the recovery process is to restore the offline backup of the original NVBU Server to the new or target NVBU Server. Perform the following steps.

1. From the NVBU Console, open the NVBU Restore window (via either of the toolbar buttons or by clicking Operations > Restore).The VaultDR Server backups are displayed on the Selections tab.

2. On the Selections tab, double-click the applicable NVBU Server node.3. Locate and double-click the VaultDR APM to open it.

The backup savesets from previous backups are listed.


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4. Double-click the applicable saveset to display the standalone server machine (“self”).

Figure 3-7:Restore

Selections tab displaying

BMR backups of source

NVBU Server

5. Double-click the individual disk, and then select a single disk, all disks, all partitions, or a single partition of each disk to restore.

6. Select the Restore Options tab, and ensure that Physical Machine is the selected Restore Type.

7. In the Restore Name box of the Physical Recovery Options section, verify that the correct name appears.By default, the value in this field is the name of the NVBU Server from which this backup was originally performed (based on the backup saveset selected from the Selections tab of the Restore window). This name is associated with a specific IP address that was previously configured. If this value is left at its default setting, selected data will be restored to the machine that was originally backed up.

8. To initiate the recovery, click the Submit button on the toolbar.

Chapter 3Performing an Offline Recovery

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Documents

NetVault: Bare Metal Recovery for Netvault Backup …support-public.cfm.quest.com/eaeff398-e4f4-4de0-b0c7-7ea946ca377a:...technique to recover a system fully. ... in your environment,