4 4 3 Beefalo:RHV Backup

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Overview

SEP sesam backup solution for RHV* environments was developed together with Red Hat. SEP sesam uses RHV Manager backup (libvirt) API to perform snapshot-based backups of virtual machines (VMs) in RHV environments and provide consistent, agentless backups of all RHV VMs, regardless of their workload or operating system.

As of v. 4.4.3 Beefalo, you can also perform snapshot-based backups of VMs by using Oracle Linux Virtualization Manager (OLVM) oVirt-based platform. As OLVM is currently installed on Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), the SEP sesam backup procedure is the same for RHV and OLVM, as described in the section Backing up RHV virtual machines.

*RHV is a rebranding of Red Hat Enterprise Virtualization (RHEV).

Key features

  • Since SEP sesam communicates directly with the RHV hypervisor, it does not matter what operating system is running as a virtual guest. Windows, Linux or any other operating system supported by the RHV hypervisor is treated as a virtual guest and backed up directly by communicating with the hypervisor.
  • SEP sesam supports backups for RHV single servers and RHV clusters with libvirt API.
  • Single (individual) VM backup is supported both on a RHV single server and on a RHV cluster.
  • The following backup methods are available for backing up VMs in a RHV cluster/data center or on RHV single server:
    • A config only backup backs up only the VM configuration.
    • Backup of individual VMs that can be grouped together in one task group running on multiple hosts via the RHV Manager.
    • Backup of VMs with specific disks (disks exclusion).
  • COPY backup is currently the only supported RHV backup level, which means that all data defined by the backup task is backed up (provisioned space). It is recommended to use SEP Si3 target deduplication for your RHV backups to reduce the size of backed up data.

Backup workflow

The backup process uses the following workflow:

  1. A snapshot of the virtual machine (VM) is created.
  2. The VM configuration is exported from the snapshot and backed up as the first saveset stream.
  3. The virtual disks represented in the snapshot are attached to the data mover VM.
  4. The data of the virtual disks is backed up.
  5. The snapshot of the VM is removed.

Prerequisites

To ensure error-free operation of SEP sesam and improve performance, make sure that the following conditions are met:

LAN-based or LAN-free backup

SEP sesam’s Red Hat Virtualization backup can operate in two modes: LAN-based backup and LAN-free backup.

During the backup, a VM snapshot is created and mounted to the SEP sesam data mover. The snapshots can be transferred via LAN or SAN (Storage Area Network). If a SAN storage device is available for SEP sesam, the transfer is done directly (LAN-free).

The following images show how to use the backup module for LAN-based and LAN-free backup. Steps 1-5 in the graphic show the direction of the connection establishment for communication and metadata transfer. Step 6 shows the direction of the connection establishment for the data transfer to the connected storage.

LAN-based backup scenario
  • Start the backup process with connection to the RHV Manager host or OLVM host. Create a consistent snapshot of the VM. (Step 1)
  • Once the snapshot is successfully created, the VM configuration is exported from the snapshot and backed up as the first stream in the saveset. (Steps 2, 3, 4)
  • The VM disks present in the snapshot are then attached to the data mover VM using the backup API. Once attached, the data on these disks is backed up and upon success, the snapshot is removed again. The snapshot is transferred from the data mover VM to SEP sesam Server via LAN. (Steps 5, 6)
  • The backed up data is stored in backup storage (connected storage devices, such as SEP sesam data store, SEP sesam Si3 deduplication store, tape library).
  • LAN based backup
    SEP-sesam-RHV-LAN-Based.png
LAN-free backup scenario
Use the SAN storage connected directly to the RHV cluster itself to perform backup transferred across your dedicated storage interface. In this case, the storage is attached directly to the data mover VM using the Storage Area network.
  • Start the backup process with connection to the RHV Manager host or OLVM host. Create a consistent snapshot of the VM. (Step 1)
  • Once the snapshot is successfully created, the VM configuration is exported from the snapshot and backed up as the first stream in the saveset. (Steps 2, 3, 4)
  • The VM disks present in the snapshot are then attached to the data mover VM using the backup API. Once attached, the data on these disks is backed up and upon success, the snapshot is removed again. The snapshot is transferred from the data mover VM to your backup storage via SAN. (Steps 5, 6)
  • The backed up data is stored in backup storage (connected storage devices, such as SEP sesam data store, SEP sesam Si3 deduplication store, tape library).
  • LAN free backup
    SEP-sesam-RHV-LAN-Free.png

Backing up RHV virtual machines

Create a new backup task for the RHV Manager or OLVM client. You can only perform one VM backup per backup task. You must configure a separate backup task for each VM that you want to back up.

  1. In the Main Selection -> Tasks -> By clients, select the RHV Manager or OLVM client and then click New backup task. The New backup task window opens.
  2. Specify the Source of the VM you want to back up. You can browse for the source or enter it manually. When you browse for the source, the task type and task name are set automatically. If you enter the source manually, you need to enter the task name and select the RHV task type from the drop-down list.
  3. File:RHV bck task Beefalo.jpg
  4. You can exclude individual disks from backup by entering them in the Exclude List field. You have to use the logical disk name(s) as displayed in the RHV management center. If you want to exclude multiple disks, enter them one by one followed by a comma without spaces, for example: disk_name1,disk_name2.
  5. By default, the RHV backup module automatically creates memory snapshots of the virtual machine. Memory snapshots take time and resources, but allow reversion to a running VM state as it was when the snapshot was taken. You can disable automatic creation of memory snapshots by adding the option -a qui=0 to the the Backup options: Click the Options tab -> Additional call arguments -> enter -a qui=0 to the Backup options field.
  6. If you want to define other options (such as pre/post backup and restore commands, set encryption, consolidate individual tasks under a specific task group, or assign a task to the schedule), click the corresponding tabs in the New backup task window.
  7. Click OK to create the task.
    SEP Tip.png Tip
    You can add your tasks for individual node or individual VM to a task group and enable triggering all tasks at once with a single event. For details, see Adding a Task to the Task Group.
  8. If you want to start the newly created task immediately, right-click the name of the task and click Immediate Start. If you want to create a periodic backup, you have to create a schedule for your backup task: Click New schedule under Main Selection -> Scheduling -> Schedules and set up a schedule. For more details, see Creating a Schedule.
  9. SEP Tip.png Tip
    You can also add your backup task to an existing schedule by double-clicking the backup task, selecting the tab Schedules and adding it to one or more schedules.
  10. After you have configured a schedule, you must create a new backup event for it. Go to Main Selection -> Scheduling -> New Backup Event, click the Parameter tab and select COPY backup from the Backup Level drop-down list. Note that COPY is currently the only supported backup level for SEP sesam RHV clients. For more information on backup events, see Creating a Backup Event

You can view the status of your backup jobs by selecting Last backup state in the Main Selection window. The backup status overview provides detailed information on the last run of backup jobs, including the task name, start and stop time of the last backup, backup level, data size, throughput, assigned media pool, etc.

Known issues

If you have problems, check the Troubleshooting Guide.

See also

RHV ConfigurationRHV Restore