8.0

Table Of Contents
Manually Back up vCenter Server by Using the vCenter
Server Management Interface
You can use the vCenter Server Management Interface to back up the vCenter Server instance.
You can select whether to include historical data, such as stats, events, and tasks, in the backup
file.
Note The backup operation for a vCenter High Availability cluster, backs up only the active node.
Prerequisites
n You must have an FTP, FTPS, HTTP, HTTPS, SFTP, NFS, or SMB server up and running with
sufficient disk space to store the backup.
Procedure
1 In a Web browser, go to the vCenter Server Management Interface, https://
appliance-IP-
address-or-FQDN
:5480.
2 Log in as root.
3 In the vCenter Server Management Interface, click Backup.
The table under Activity displays the most current backup version taken of the vCenter Server.
4 Click Backup Now.
The Backup Appliance wizard opens.
5 (Optional) Select Use backup location and user name from backup schedule to use the
information from a scheduled backup.
6 Enter the backup location details.
Option
Description
Backup location Enter the backup location, including the protocol to use to connect to your
backup server, the port, the server address, and backup folder to store the
backup files.
Use one of the following protocols: FTP, FTPS, HTTP, HTTPS, SFTP, NFS, or
SMB.
For FTP, FTPS, HTTP, or HTTPS the path is relative to the home directory
configured for the service.
Backup server credentials Enter a user name and password of a user with write privileges on the
backup server.
Note Username and password should only contain ASCII characters.
7 (Optional) Enter an Encryption Password if you want to encrypt your backup file.
If you select to encrypt the backup data, you must use the encryption password for the restore
procedure.
vCenter Server Installation and Setup
VMware, Inc. 57