Create a VMware Backup Job Definition

Back up VMware data including virtual machines, datastores, folders, vApps, and datacenters with snapshots using a VMware Backup job definition.

IBM Spectrum Protect Plus supports virtual machine tags. Tags are applied in vSphere, and allow a user to assign metadata to virtual machines. Once applied in vSphere and added to the IBM Spectrum Protect Plus inventory, virtual machine tags can be viewed through the View > Tags & Categories filter when creating a job definition. For more information about VMware tagging, see https://docs.vmware.com/en/VMware-vSphere/6.5/com.vmware.vsphere.vcenterhost.doc/GUID-E8E854DD-AA97-4E0C-8419-CE84F93C4058.html.

Backing up and restoring encrypted virtual machines is supported in vSphere 6.5 environments and later. Encrypted virtual machines can be backed up and restored at the virtual machine-level to their original location. If restoring to an alternate location, the encrypted virtual machine is restored without encryption, and must be encrypted manually through vCenter after the restore completes.

The following vCenter privileges are required to enable operations for encrypted virtual machines: Cryptographer.Access, Cryptographer.AddDisk, and Cryptographer.Clone.

BEFORE YOU BEGIN:

  • Register the providers to back up. See Add a VMware Provider.
  • Configure an SLA Policy. See Configure SLA Policies.
  • Before an IBM Spectrum Protect Plus user can perform backup and restore operations, roles and resource groups must be assigned to the user. Grant users access to resources and backup and restore operations through the Accounts pane. See Access.
  • To back up a Linux-based vCenter virtual appliance, you must first modify the VMware scripts pre-freeze-scripts and post-thaw script on the vCenter virtual machine. See Backing Up a Linux-based vCenter Virtual Machine.

CONSIDERATIONS:

  • If a virtual machine is associated with multiple SLA Policies, ensure that the policies are not scheduled to run concurrently. It is recommended to either schedule the SLA Policies to run with a significant amount of time between them, or combine them into a single SLA Policy.
  • If your vCenter is a virtual machine, it is recommended to have the vCenter on a dedicated datastore and backed up in a separate backup job.
  • In some cases, VMware Backup jobs fail with “failed to mount” errors. To resolve, increase the maximum number of NFS mounts to at least 64 through the NFS.MaxVolumes (vSphere 5.5 and later) and NFS41.MaxVolumes (vSphere 6.0 and later) values, as described in the following procedure: https://kb.vmware.com/selfservice/microsites/search.do?language=en_US&cmd=displayKC&externalId=2239.

To create a VMware Backup job definition:

  1. From the navigation menu, expand Manage Protection, then expand Hypervisors. Expand VMware, then click Backup.
  2. Select resources to back up. Use the search function to search for available resources and toggle the displayed resources through the View filter. Available options include VMs and Templates, VMs, Datastore, and Tags & Categories. Tags are applied in vSphere, and allow a user to assign metadata to virtual machines.
  3. Click Select SLA Policy to add an SLA Policy to the job definition that meets your backup data criteria.
  4. To create the job definition using default options, click Save. The job runs as defined by your SLA Policy, or can be run manually from the Job Monitor pane.
  5. Note: By default, the entirety of the virtual machine will be backed up. However, once a virtual machine is assigned to an SLA Policy and the job definition is saved, available VMDKs are discovered and can be excluded from the SLA Policy. Once discovery completes, the virtual machine name becomes a link when viewed through the VMs and Templates view. Click the link to display available VMDKs and their associated SLA Policies. To exclude an individual VMDK from an SLA Policy, select the VMDK, click Select SLA Policy, then choose the SLA Policy assigned to the VMDK. This removes the VMDK from the selected SLA Policy.
  6. To include the VMDK back into the SLA Policy, or assign it to additional SLA Policies, select the VMDK, click Select SLA Policy, then select SLA Policies to associate with the VMDK. Click Save once your selections are complete.
  7. To edit options before creating the job definition, click Select Options. Set the job definition options.
  8. Make VM snapshot application/file system consistent
  9. Enable to turn on application or file-system consistency for the virtual machine snapshot. All VSS-compliant applications such as Microsoft Active Directory, Microsoft Exchange, Microsoft SharePoint, Microsoft SQL, and system state are quiesced. VMDKs and virtual machines can be instantly mounted to restore data related to quiesced applications.
  10. Skip Read-only datastores
  11. Enable to skip datastores mounted as read-only.
  12. Skip temporary datastores mounted for Instant Access
  13. Enable to exclude temporary Instant Access datastores from the backup job definition.
  14. Catalog file metadata
  15. To turn on file indexing for the associated snapshot, enable the Catalog file metadata option. Once file indexing completes, individual files can be restored through the File Restore pane in IBM Spectrum Protect Plus. Note that credentials must be established for the associated virtual machine through the Guest OS Username and Guest OS Password option within the backup job definition. Ensure the virtual machine can be accessed from the IBM Spectrum Protect Plus appliance either through DNS or host-name.
  16. Note: File indexing and file restore are not supported from restore points that were offloaded to .
  17. Truncate SQL logs
  18. To truncate application logs for SQL during the Backup job, enable the Truncate SQL logs option. Note that credentials must be established for the associated virtual machine through the Guest OS Username and Guest OS Password option within the backup job definition. The user identity follows the default domain\Name format if the virtual machine is attached to a domain. The format <local administrator> is used if the user is a local administrator.
  19. The user identity must have local administrator privileges. Additionally, on the SQL server, the system login credential must have SQL sysadmin permissions enabled, as well as the "Log on as a service" right, which is assigned through the Administrative Tools control panel on the local machine (Local Security Policy > Local Policies > User Rights Assignment > Log on as a service). For more information about the "Log on as a service" right, see https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc794944.aspx.
  20. IBM Spectrum Protect Plus generates logs pertaining to the log truncation function and copies them to the following location on the IBM Spectrum Protect Plus appliance: /data/log/guestdeployer/<Latest-Date>/<Latest-Entry>/<VM name>.
  21. VM Snapshot retry attempts
  22. Set the number of times IBM Spectrum Protect Plus should attempt to snapshot a virtual machine before canceling the job.
  23. VADP Proxy
  24. Select a specific VADP Proxy for load sharing and load balancing. Available options include By site and By proxy. Additional sites can be configured through the System Configuration > Backup Storage > Disk pane, then assigned to VADP proxies through the System Configuration > VADP Proxy pane. If Default is selected when defining the option By Site, a proxy that utilizes the same Site as the vSnap is automatically chosen.
  25. Use existing user
  26. Enable to select a previously entered username and password for the provider.
  27. Guest OS Username/Password
  28. For some tasks (such as cataloging file metadata, file restore, and IP reconfiguration), credentials must be established for the associated virtual machine. Enter the username and password, and ensure the virtual machine can be accessed from the IBM Spectrum Protect Plus appliance either through DNS or host-name.
  29. To troubleshoot a connection to a hypervisor virtual machine, use the Test function. The Test function verifies communication with the virtual machine and tests DNS settings between the IBM Spectrum Protect Plus appliance and the virtual machine. To test a connection, select a single virtual machine, then click Select Options. Select Use existing user and select a previously entered username and password for the resource. A new Test button appears to the right of the Save button at the bottom of the Options section. Click Test.
  30. When you are satisfied that the job-specific information is correct, click Save. The job runs as defined by your SLA Policy, or can be run manually from the Job Monitor pane.
  31. To configure additional options, click the Options field associated with the job in the SLA Policy Status section. If no additional options are currently configured for the job, the field will display Not Configured. Set the additional job options.
  32. Pre-scripts and Post-Scripts
  33. In the Pre-Script and/or Post-Script section, select an uploaded script and a script server where the script will run. Scripts and script servers are configured through the Jobs and Monitoring > Script pane. See Configure Scripts.
  34. Pre-scripts and post-scripts are scripts that can be run before or after a job runs at the job-level. Windows-based machines support Batch and PowerShell scripts while Linux-based machines support shell scripts.
  35. Continue job/task on script error - When enabled, if a Pre-script completes with a non-zero return code, the backup or restore is attempted and the Pre-script task status returns COMPLETED. When disabled, the backup or restore is not attempted, and the Pre-script task status returns FAILED. If a Post-script completes with a non-zero return code, the Post-script task status returns COMPLETED. When disabled, the Post-script task status returns FAILED.
  36. Exclude Resources
  37. Exclude specific resources from the backup job through single or multiple exclusion patterns. Resources can be excluded through an exact match or with wildcard asterisks specified before the pattern (*test) or after the pattern (test*). Multiple asterisk wildcards are also supported in a single pattern. Patterns support standard alphanumeric characters as well as the following special characters: - _ and *. Separate multiple filters with a semicolon.
  38. Force Base Resources
  39. Force base backups for specific virtual machines or databases in the Backup job definition. All previous backup information associated with the resource will be removed. Separate multiple resources with a semicolon.
  40. Once complete, click Save.

NEXT STEPS:

 


IBM Spectrum Protect Plus 10.1.2

Licensed Material - Property of IBM Corp. © IBM Corporation and other(s) 2018. IBM is a registered trademark of the IBM Corporation in the United States, other countries, or both. | 8/23/2018