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ManualsBrandsSymantec ManualsSoftwareBackup Exec 12.5

BackupExec12.5AgentforVMware

VirtualInfrastructureFAQ

Contents

Overview ............................................................................................................................. 1

Supported Configurations ................................................................................................... 3

Backup ................................................................................................................................ 6

Database and Application Protection .................................................................................. 9

Virtual Machine Recovery ................................................................................................ 10

Licensing ........................................................................................................................... 11

Future Enhancements ........................................................................................................ 12

Overview

1. What is the Backup Exec 12.5 Agent for VMware Virtual Infrastructure?

Answer-

The new Agent for VMware Virtual Infrastructure is being introduced with Backup Exec

12.5 to protect a VMware Virtual Infrastructure. The VMware Virtual Infrastructure product

family includes VMware ESX, VirtualCenter, Virtual Consolidated Backup (VCB), VMware

Converter, VMotion, etc and is officially branded as VMware Virtual Infrastructure 3 (VI3)

by VMware. Backup Exec 12.5’s Agent for VMware Virtual Infrastructure (AVVI) can

leverage all of these components of VMware VI3 to automatically discover, protect, and

recover virtual machines and their data.

2. Can Backup Exec 12.5’s Agent for VMware Virtual Infrastructure (AVVI) backup

Guest virtual machines while they are online and running?

Answer-

Yes, all Guest virtual machines (VM’s,) including Windows and Linux virtual machines, can

be protected while they are online and running. This can be done without any downtime of

a running virtual machine using Backup Exec’s Agent for VMware Virtual Infrastructure’s

(AVVI) integrated support of VMware’s Virtual Consolidated Backup (VCB) technology.

This allows both physical and virtual systems to finally be protected from a single backup

and recovery solution, Backup Exec for Windows Servers 12.5.

3. Can offline Guest virtual machines also be protected?

Answer-

Summary of content (13 pages)

PAGE 1
Backup Exec 12.5 Agent for VMware Virtual Infrastructure FAQ Contents Overview ............................................................................................................................. 1 Supported Configurations ................................................................................................... 3 Backup ................................................................................................................................ 6 Database and Application Protection ....
PAGE 2
Yes, both offline and online Guest virtual machines can be protected together in a single backup. 4. Can I protect applications like Microsoft Exchange, SQL and SharePoint running inside of Guest virtual machines? AnswerYes, there are multiple methods that can be used to protect applications inside of Guest virtual machines depending on the recovery needs.
PAGE 3
9. If there is no Agent on the ESX server, how does Backup Exec 12.5’s AVVI discover ESX servers and Guest virtual machines? AnswerBackup Exec 12.5 AVVI is built to leverage the VMware VirtualCenter infrastructure if present in an environment. All ESX host servers and their Guest virtual machines that an installation of VirtualCenter is aware of can be automatically discovered by Backup Exec.
PAGE 4
2. What Guest virtual machine OS’s are supported for backup? AnswerAny Guest OS supported by VMware on ESX is also supported by Backup Exec 12.5 Agent for VMware Virtual Infrastructure. For the latest detailed information on specific versions supported and limitations, please see the Backup Exec 12.5 Software Compatibility List http://seer.support.veritas.com/docs/307063.htm 3. What versions of VMware VCB does Backup Exec 12.5 AVVI support? AnswerBackup Exec 12.
PAGE 5
AnswerThere are two types of RDM disks. RDM disks can be placed into Physical or Virtual compatibility Mode. Physical compatibility mode (i.e. persistent-independent) bypasses the ESX storage infrastructure (vmfs file system) and thus cannot have a snapshot taken by VCB. Physical compatibility mode RDM disks in this configuration are skipped automatically during the backup.
PAGE 6
device to a virtual machine through the SCSI pass-through mechanism are detailed in the ESX Server Administration Guide and include the following restrictions: • VMware supports attaching SCSI drives to the ESX Server using Adaptec SCSI adapters. Using other adapters, such as LSI MPT‐Fusion SCSI, is not supported. • If using a tape drive library (versus using a stand‐alone tape drive), the library must be multi‐target, and not multi‐LUN.
PAGE 7
AnswerVMware VCB technology does not currently provide any means to perform Incremental or Differential backups of Guest virtual machines. Currently, Incremental or Differential backups of Guest virtual machines can only be performed using traditional file-level backup methods of using a Backup Exec Remote Agent for Windows Systems or Remote Agent for Linux/Unix Servers inside of the Guest virtual machine. 4.
PAGE 8
of the ESX server’s configuration files. ESXi cannot be supported via RALUS due to its lack of the service console. With the introduction of Backup Exec 12.
PAGE 9
Database and Application Protection 1. Do I still need to use separate Backup Exec Database or Application Agents for backups? AnswerYes, it is extremely important that Backup Exec Database or Application Agents continue to be installed inside of Guest virtual machines and separate regular database or application level backups be performed of virtualized applications such as Microsoft SQL, Exchange, SharePoint, Oracle, Active Directory, Lotus Domino, etc.
PAGE 10
Applications installed in Windows or Linux Guest virtual machines that are not VSScompliant such as Lotus Domino, Oracle, SAP, DB2, etc cannot be properly quieisced using the VMware or Backup Exec VSS Requestor/Provider. It is recommended that Backup Exec Database or Application Agents be used inside of the Guest virtual machine to protect these applications.
PAGE 11
• • Install a Backup Exec Agent for Windows Systems (AWS) into the Guest virtual machine and perform the restore like any other Backup Exec restore operation If there is no desire to install a Backup Exec AWS into the Guest virtual machine just for restore purposes, files/folders can be redirected to be restored to the local Backup Exec server and copied manually to the Guest virtual machine using Windows Explorer 4.
PAGE 12
For example, three (3) ESX servers hosting ten (10) Guest virtual machines each to be protected would require: • One (1) Backup Exec 12.5 Media Server license • Three (3) Backup Exec 12.5 Agent for VMware Virtual Infrastructure licenses 2. How Are Backup Exec Remote Agents for Windows Systems and Linux/Unix Systems licensed with AVVI If Used? AnswerEach Backup Exec 12.
PAGE 13
AnswerThese resources will assist you in becoming more familiar with ESX backup and recovery concepts and planning • The “VMware Virtual Machine Backup Planning for ESX ” guide http://www.vmware.com/pdf/ESXBackup.pdf • The “Backup Software Compatibility for ESX Server 3.x” guide www.vmware.com/pdf/vi3_backup_guide.pdf • The “Consolidated Backup in VMware Infrastructure 3” whitepaper www.vmware.com/pdf/vi3_consolidated_backup.