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Re: Backup P4300 with VMware vSphere and Data Protector (vStorage API)

 
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Thorsten Hauck
New Member

Backup P4300 with VMware vSphere and Data Protector (vStorage API)

Hello.
We are using a P4300 Cluster with VMware vSphere and we want to backup VMs via the new vStorage API with HP Data Protector. My question is: How to connect the P4300-Volumes to the backup server to be able to do SAN-Based Backups? Is there any guide for doing this correctly? How to prevent the Backup Server with Windows Server 2008 from doing anything wrong on the P4300-Volumes?
Thank you very much.
Best regards
Thorsten
7 REPLIES 7
Steven Clementi
Honored Contributor

Re: Backup P4300 with VMware vSphere and Data Protector (vStorage API)

What you are talking about sounds like Zero Downtim Backup.

ZDB uses array based snapshot technology to offload the backup to your backup server/media server.

VADP allows you to load a backup client onto your ESX/Hyper-V host and do backup's of your Windows vm's that are application consistant (inc, diff and full image) and crash consistant backup's of linux vm's.

VCB only allowed for crash consistant backup's of your vm's, but the backup was offloaded onto the proxy server to relieve the vm or the host it was running on.

I have not configured zdb with a lefthand array so not exactly sure how/if it works, but it should handle all the presentations for you.


Steven
Steven Clementi
HP Master ASE, Storage, Servers, and Clustering
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Thorsten Hauck
New Member

Re: Backup P4300 with VMware vSphere and Data Protector (vStorage API)

Hello and thank you for your answer.
I am NOT talking about ZDB, and also not about VCB (which is history I think). What we are doing is to backup Virtual Machines with the "new" VMware vStorage API for Backup. If the storage (iSCSI or FibreChannel) is NOT connected to the backup server, then DATA PROTECTOR uses the "NBD"-method (backup over the network) when selecting "vStorage Image", but backing up using the "SAN"-method should be much faster. Therefore it is necessary to connect the backup server directly to the SAN. I did this once (earlier) with a fibre channel san, but not with P4300 iSCSI san. To avoid problems, I am searching for a white paper or something that describes how to connect this CORRECTLY because the backup server could destroy the VMFS if connected wrong, I think.
Thank you and best regards
Thorsten
Dirk Trilsbeek
Valued Contributor

Re: Backup P4300 with VMware vSphere and Data Protector (vStorage API)

we connect our P4500 SAN to our backup server for faster VCB backup with the SAN option. To avoid for our backup server to destroy the vmfs volumes we assign the volumes with readonly permission to the backup server (done in the lefthand management console). That way the server will never be granted write access to any volume and can't destroy the file system. I don't know if the vStorage API needs write access to volumes, but vcb works just fine with readonly access.
Thorsten Hauck
New Member

Re: Backup P4300 with VMware vSphere and Data Protector (vStorage API)

Hello Dirk.
Thank you for your useful answer. Which operating system do you use for your VCB proxy, and which client/connector do you use for the iSCSI-connection to the Lefthand-Volumes?
Best regards
Thorsten
Dirk Trilsbeek
Valued Contributor
Solution

Re: Backup P4300 with VMware vSphere and Data Protector (vStorage API)

The backup server is a 64 Bit Server 2008 R2 Standard. vcbMounter connects to the vCenter-Instance (runs on the same server, actually), the volumes are connected to the Server using the standard iSCSI initiator from Microsoft.
Thorsten Hauck
New Member

Re: Backup P4300 with VMware vSphere and Data Protector (vStorage API)

Hello.
Does anybody know if "read-only" is ok for "vStorage API for Data Protection"? I am not sure, but I think direct restore to the SAN should be possible too with this new API?

To Dirk: Thank you very much again! Just for your information and only if you dont know: VCB-Proxy and vCenter Server should not be installed on the same machine.

Best regards
Thorsten
Christian Reiter
Frequent Advisor

Re: Backup P4300 with VMware vSphere and Data Protector (vStorage API)

Hello Thorsten!

 

Have you been able to setup the backup? I've the exactly same environment here and still seek a solution how to do the backups  most efficiently.

 

Best Regards,

 

C. Reiter