Non-Disruptive Backup of VMware Environments Using Veritas ...

Non-Disruptive Backup of VMwareEnvironments Using VeritasNetBackupGeorge WinterTechnical Product ManagerVeritas NetBackup

AgendaVMware ESX Architecture OverviewVMware Backup ChallengesTraditional Backup ConceptsNon-Disruptive Backup - VMware Consolidated BackupDemo – Consolidated Backup with NetBackupPlanned Future Integration With NetBackup 6.5Final ThoughtsQ & A

AgendaVMware ESX Architecture OverviewVMware Backup ChallengesTraditional Backup ConceptsNon-Disruptive Backup - VMware Consolidated BackupDemo – Consolidated Backup with NetBackupPlanned Future Integration With NetBackup 6.5Final ThoughtsQ & A

AgendaVMware ESX Architecture OverviewVMware Backup ChallengesTraditional Backup ConceptsNon-Disruptive Backup - VMware Consolidated BackupDemo – Consolidated Backup with NetBackupPlanned Future Integration With NetBackup 6.5Final ThoughtsQ & A

Virtual Machine Backup IssuesAll VM's share a single physical hostSystem resources are efficiently used but finiteIn VM environments, unused system resources are rareBackup activities use significant I/O and network resourcesIn a nutshell…Minimal system resources are available for backupsBackups need to be designed around these realitiesApplicationOperating SystemHardware

Traditional Backup TechnologiesBacking up Virtual Machines introduces different set of problemsIs it best to backup VM as a client?What are advantages of backing uponly the VMDK files?How do I backup a DB hosted on a VM?Keep the following in mind:Backup processing is very I/O and resource intensiveBackup activities on one VM can impact operations on another

Technique 1: Backup the VM as a NBU ClientX 8 6 A r c h i t e c t u r eXNBU Clientis installedinside VMlike any othersupportedNBU clientVM1.vmxVM2.vmxVM3.vmxSUSEVM1VM2APP1APP2APP3APP4NBU CLIENTWindowsNBU CLIENTRed HatVM3APP5APP6NBU CLIENTVM1.vmdkVM2.vmdkVM3.vmdkEXT3VMFSESX Service Console (Red Hat)

Technique 1: Backup the VM as a NBU ClientAdvantages:Essentially same backup config as standard (non-VM) backupsRestore process is unchangedSingle file restores are possibleFull and incremental backups are possibleTranslates to DB's as wellDisadvantagesI/O processing on each VM can significantly impact other VM'sEntire VM file hierarchy is searched for new or changed filesduring each backupEntire OS restores can be problematic

Technique 1: Backup the VM as a NBU ClientRecommendations:Backup each VM seriallyTake advantage of "Synthetic Backup" technologyOnly allow a singledatastream per VM asdata in VM's exist onsingle filesNetBackup Policy Configuration

Technique 2: Backup the VMware Disk (VMDK) FilesNBU Client isinstalled on theServer Console(RHEL)Running a clienton ServiceConsole issupportedVM1.vmxVM2.vmxVM3.vmxEXT3SUSEX 8 6 A r c h i t e c t u r eVM1VM2APP1APP2APP3APP4WindowsVMFSRed HatXVM3APP5APP6VM1.vmdkVM2.vmdkVM3.vmdkESX Service Console (Red Hat)NBU CLIENT

Technique 2: Backup the VMware VMDK (and VMX) FilesThree ways of backing these up:1) Shutdown VM – backup VMDK files – restart VMMost straightforwardVMDK files are static during backup windowUnfortunately, VM is down for backup durationVMDK files are backed up using NBU RHEL clienton Service Console

Technique 2: Backup the VMware VMDK (and VMX) FilesThree ways of backing these up:2) Shutdown VM – create snapshot – restart VM – backup VMDK filesUtilized snapshot + redo capability built into ESX 2.xRequires some scriptingVM is unavailable for only a short timeReboot is required with this techniqueAfter reboot, all writes are directed to a VMware Redo LogVMDK files are backed up using NBU RHEL client onService Console

Technique 2: Backup the VMware VMDK (and VMX) FilesThree ways of backing these up:3) Create snapshot – backup VMDK filesCreates a "Crash Consistent" version of VMware image(including apps)"Crash Consistent" does not sound very good…..No guarantee of data integrityNot recommended by NetBackupRaw Device Mapping (RDM) is"Crash Consistent" as well

Technique 2: Backup the VMware VMDK (and VMX) FilesAdvantages:Disaster Recovery is extremely easyBackup everything by backing up a few filesDisadvantagesNo single file restoreNo incremental backup – must backup entire VMDK fileeach backup runVM must be rebooted(assuming you want consistent backups!)

AgendaVMware ESX Architecture OverviewVMware Backup ChallengesTraditional Backup ConceptsNon-Disruptive Backup - VMware Consolidated BackupDemo – Consolidated Backup with NetBackupPlanned Future Integration With NetBackup 6.5Final ThoughtsQ & A

VMware – A RetrospectiveBefore we talk about Consolidated Backups, lets take a quicklook at the history of virtualization from a resource consumptionperspective10 Years ago it was not hard to saturate a 20 MHz CPUNo resources available to virtualizeThen CPU’s started to become*much* more powerful(Moore's law was passed…)

CPU Utilization Before Virtualization100%80%60%Majority of system resources aretypically underutilizedScheduling backups is easyLot's of system resourcesavailable for backups40%20%0%Windows

CPU Utilization Before Virtualization100%80%60%40%At night we backupthe systemBackups are CPU andI/O intensivePeak Loads caused bybackup activitiesNot an issue becauselots of resources areavailable20%0%BACKUPWINDOWWindows

CPU Utilization After Virtualization100%80%Systemresourcesmore efficientlyused60%BACKUPWINDOW??BACKUPWINDOW??Run higheraverageutilization40%20%Where do youfit a backupwindow?0%Serv Cnsle Windows SUSE RHEL Sol x86

Backing Up ESX 3.xNew technology introduced with ESX 3.x:VMware Consolidated Backup (VCB)Designed to:Improve file system backup – single file restores are possibleOS is properly quiesced for consistent backups & restoresOS is 100% available• Snapshot & redo creation is quick• No reboot is requiredReduce backup processing load on ESX ServerSimple implementation

VMware Consolidated Backup ComponentsBackup Proxy ServerSimilar in concept to NBU off-host Media Server backupImage of VMDK file is mounted on this proxy systemThis image is backed up by NBUSync DriverInstalled via WMware ToolsEnsures that OS is synched before snapshot of VMDK fileSuspends writes to VMDK file and creates REDOvLUN DriverInstalled on VCB Backup Proxy ServerProvides image of VMDK fileTranslates VMDK blocks into individual files

VMware Consolidated Backup ConfigurationProxy Servermust be W2K3VMDK files needto be on storageaccessible byboth systemsVM1XW3KAPP1SYNCDRIVERESXVMDKVMware Backup ProxyNBU Media Server(Windows Server 2003)SAN

VMware Consolidated Backup ProcessNBU instructs Sync Driver to:- Flush disk buffers- Quiesce file system- Suspend writes to VMDK- Create REDO logVM1XW3KAPP1SYNCDRIVERVMDKREDOESXVMware Backup ProxyNBU Media Server(Windows Server 2003)SAN

VMware Consolidated Backup ProcessAt this point:- VMDK file is static- Data in VMDK file is consistentVM1XW3KAPP1SYNCDRIVERVMDKREDOESXVMware Backup ProxyNBU Media Server(Windows Server 2003)SAN

VMware Consolidated Backup ProcessvLUNDRIVERVirtualvLUN driver kicks in:- Interprets VMDK blocksas individual files- Backup begins- Multiple Virtual VMDK filescan be mounted simultaneouslyW3KVM1APP1SYNCDRIVERXVMDKREDOESXVMDKVMware Backup ProxyNBU Media Server(Windows Server 2003)SAN

AgendaVMware ESX Architecture OverviewVMware Backup ChallengesTraditional Backup ConceptsNon-Disruptive Backup - VMware Consolidated BackupDemo – Consolidated Backup with NetBackupPlanned Future Integration With NetBackup 6.5Final ThoughtsQ & A

Consolidate Backup Demo EnvironmentSW Installed on Backup Proxy:• Consolidated Backup Framework• NetBackup Media Server• VMware NBU Integration Module• Virtual Center ComponentsSW Installed on Guest OS:• VMware ToolsVM1XW3KAPP1SYNCDRIVERESXVMDKVMware Backup ProxyNBU Media Server(Windows Server 2003)SAN

DEMO

Some Points To Keep In Mind Regarding VCBAdvantages of VCB include:OS is 100% availableIncremental backups and single file restores are possibleSnapshot process is very quickVCB can also run pre and post processing within the VMHelpful for DB's or complex data structuresIf this processing fails, entire backup job fails

Some Points To Keep In Mind Regarding VCBI/O still occurs against VMDK file on shared storagePlan storage layout and backup scheduling accordinglyCurrent VCB OS (sync driver) support is limitedCheck VMware support site for up-to-date statusVCB process is currently controlled by NBU pre and postprocessing scriptsComplete integration planned for NBU v6.5 Advanced Client

Other ConfigurationsNot all possible backup configurationsare recommended or supported…..

What's Not Supported (And Why!)Running a NBU Media Server within a VMBackups are I/O and resource intensive• Impact of backups on other VM's would be significantNot recommended by VMwareRunning a NBU Media Server on Service Console (RHEL)Service Console is optimized (non-standard) version of RHELNever designed to be used as a media serverNo support for Fibre Tape DrivesVMware does not support this

AgendaVMware ESX Architecture OverviewVMware Backup ChallengesTraditional Backup ConceptsNon-Disruptive Backup - VMware Consolidated BackupDemo – Consolidated Backup with NetBackupPlanned Future Integration With NetBackup 6.5Final ThoughtsQ & A

Future Planned Integration With NetBackup 6.5VMware Integration• Quiesce for consistency• Off-host backup processing• Intelligent host re-mapping• Volume-level rollback• File-level snapshot restoreAdvanced ClientSnapshot Integration• FREE - Veritas Vol Mgr• Disk Array API integration• Snapshot cataloging• Snapshot rotation• Snapshot expiration• Wizard-driven setup

Planned Off-host Backup of VMware ESX 3.0Snapshot of a virtualmachine is mounted onanother host at volumelevelFull volume is mountedon other host – not animageUses VMware ESX 3.0native snapshotcapabilityEliminate impact to ESXhost including I/OFile-level restorecapability preservedESX ServerVMwareVirtualization LayerNetBackup 6.5Media ServerDisk or TapeStorage Unit

Additional Planned Integration With NetBackup 6.5Configure NetBackup backup Policies instead of writing, maintainingand troubleshooting homegrown scriptsIntelligent VMware host remappingAll backups properly referenced in catalog to Virtual Machine(s)Greatly simplifies restore process especially in larger environmentsCloser integration with DB or Application backup API'sOne click Virtual Machine Bare Metal RestoreIntegration with FREE Veritas Volume ManagerAnd more…

AgendaVMware ESX Architecture OverviewVMware Backup ChallengesTraditional Backup ConceptsNon-Disruptive Backup - VMware Consolidated BackupDemo – Consolidated Backup with NetBackupPlanned Future Integration With NetBackup 6.5Final ThoughtsQ & A

Some Final Thoughts……..Restore requirements tend to influence backup method selectionSingle file restores not possible with every backup techniqueIncremental backups not possible with every backup techniqueDR is straightforward when backing up VMDK filesDon't forget to backup the ESX Service ConsoleConfiguration information is stored thereThis can be done via NBU client on RHELTypically does not need to be backed up often

Some Final Thoughts……..For more information:Compatibility matrix is available on our support sitehttp://support.veritas.com“Implementing VMware Consolidated Backup withNetBackup 6.0”http:// support.veritas.comNetBackup 6.0 Advanced Client SAGhttp:// support.veritas.com

Thank You!george_winter@symantec.comGeorge WinterTechnical Product ManagerVeritas NetBackup

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