DP6.11 VMware Integration Enhancement for optimized VCBimage Backup

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Backup
There is a new omnirc variable named OB2_VMWARE_VCBOPTIMISED. During backup this
variable must be set to 1 on the VCB proxy server, which causes vcbMounter to be executed
with –F=0 and –M=0 options. Here the virtual machine disk files copied to the proxy server are
optimized and also split into multiple files of size less than 2 GB. Unused space in the file system
will not be copied. Backup time is shorter and tape space is used more efficiently.
Example 1
Suppose you have a setup as below and you want to take VCBimage backup in optimized mode:
 ESX server: esx1.company.com
 VirtualCenter server: virtualcenter1.company.com
 VCB Proxy server: vcbproxy1.company.com
 Cell Manager: cm1.company.com
Set OB2_VMWARE_VCBOPTIMISED=1 in the omnirc file on the proxy server
vcbproxy1.company.com. During the backup specification creation, you can select either the
VC server (virtualcenter1.company.com) or the ESX server (esx1.company.com).
If the omnirc variable is set, all the VCBimage backup sessions that use the
vcbproxy1.company.com as proxy server will run in optimized mode. In the backup session
log, a warning message will appear reporting the backup is running in optimized mode.
[Warning] From: [e-mail] "/ha-datacenter" Time:
3/25/2010 2:28:45 AM
The Omnirc variable OB2_VMWARE_VCBOPTIMISED is set. VCB image will be
backed up in optimised mode.
To change the VCBimage backup mode from optimized to non-optimized mode, reset the omnirc
variable to 0.
Restore
To restore an optimized VCBimage backup session, set the omnirc variables
OB2_VMWARE_VCBOPTIMISED and OB2_VMWARE_PATH in the restore client (ESX server). Set
OB2_VMWARE_VCBOPTIMISED to 1 and set OB2_VMWARE_PATH to a temporary location on the
ESX server where the backed-up image files will be restored. Data Protector will restore the VM
disk image files to the temporary intermediate disk location and call the vcbRestore utility to
convert the disk files and restore the VM. The intermediate disk should have enough space to
contain the backed-up disk files of all the VMs. After the restore is completed, the temporary files
will be deleted.
Restore of an optimized VCBimage backup session needs extra care. Note the following points:
 An optimized VCBimage backup session can only be restored by using ESX server credentials.
Use of VirtualCenter server credentials is not supported. This means you must select an ESX
server for the restore client in the Restore context in the Data Protector GUI. Generally the VMs
should be restored to the same ESX server from which the backup was taken. If you are
restoring to different ESX server, ensure that the datastores have the same names as the original
ones. Otherwise, the restore will fail. See the following example:
Example 2
Suppose you have the following setup:
– VirtualCenter server: virtualcenter1.company.com
– ESX server 1: esx1.company.com