5 1 0:Citrix XenServer Single File Restore


Welcome to the latest SEP sesam documentation version 5.1.0 Apollon. For previous documentation version(s), check documentation archive.


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Overview


SEP sesam supports single file restore – item-level restore of files, folders and volumes from the FULL, DIFF or INCR backup of the Citrix XenServer virtual machine if the saveset is stored on a SEP sesam data store (Path, Si3 deduplication store, etc.). By mounting the VHD, the operating system creates a virtual drive from the file, assigns it a drive letter, and makes the drive available locally on your server.

You can restore single files using the GUI restore wizard or via the web interface Restore Assistant (in v. ≥ 5.0.0 Jaglion). Although most options are the same in both restore interfaces, the web interface Restore Assistant is more intuitively designed and offers additional advanced options.

Note that this article only describes the procedure for restoring individual files of a Citrix VM. For details on complete VM restore, see Citrix XenServer Restore in the GUI or Standard Restore Procedure.

Prerequisites

Before attempting to restore a single file, all preparation steps have to be performed properly, including configuration and VM backup. For details, see the Citrix documentation.

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

  • SEP sesam Server version ≥ 5.0.0 Jaglion. For the list of supported systems, see Citrix Support Matrix.
  • Single file restore (SFR) of backups from virtualization platforms, e.g. Citrix, requires the guestfs-tools package to be installed on Linux in order to access and mount VM disk image on Linux. If the package is not installed on your SEP sesam Server or Linux RDS, it is not possible to mount VMDK and perform SFR. Refer to Installing guestfs-tools on Linux.
  • Backups must not be encrypted, compressed or stored on tape.
  • To restore single files via the web interface Restore Assistant, appropriate permissions are required. For details, see About Authentication and Authorization.
  • Before starting a restore, check the restrictions for mounting the virtual disk (VHD file).

Restore options

When restoring individual files from Citrix VM backups, you can choose from the following VM restore options to perform restore according to your needs:

  • Do not overwrite an items: (default) Files are only restored if they do not already exist on the target system.
  • Overwrite an existing items: If the data exists on the target server, it is replaced with the restored version.
  • Create new version: Restore files under a new name.
  • Keep original tree structure: When restoring to the original location, the Keep original tree structure option is selected by default. The directory structure of the restored files is the same as the original directory structure of the backed up data.
  • Restore all items flat in the selected target directory: The backup is simply restored to a file without recreating the directory structure.
  • You can also select to skip ACL settings during restore.

Restoring single file (SFR)

Depending on the interface you are using, follow the appropriate procedure to restore individual Citrix XenServer VM files:

Restoring a single file (SFR) is supported only in advanced UI mode (formerly expert mode in the GUI). For details on switching the UI mode, see Setting the UI mode in the GUI and Setting the UI mode in the Restore Assistant.

Single file restore via the GUI

Make sure your UI mode is set to advanced (formerly expert) and create a new restore task for the individual item(s) you want to restore.

  1. From the SEP sesam GUI menu bar, select Activities -> Restore. The New Restore Task window opens.
  2. Select what you want to restore. You can search savesets by task name or by filename or path.
    • When searching by task name, use the drop-down list of available tasks and select the one you want to restore from. This option is selected by default.
    • If you are searching by filename/path, select the option Filename or path in a saveset and enter your search expression in the search pattern field.
  3. In the Saved in period drop-down lists, specify the time frame for which you want to conduct the search. Click Next.
  4. The search results are displayed. From the list of savesets matching your query, select the version from which you want to restore an individual file. Then select the Mount virtual disk(s) check box. Note that some restrictions apply.
  5. You can also select RDS to mount from the drop-down list and specify advanced mount options.
  Note
To be able to access and mount VM disk image on Linux, the guestfs-tools package must be installed on your SEP sesam Server or Linux RDS. If the guestfs-tools package is not installed, it is not possible to mount VMDK and perform SFR. Refer to Installing guestfs-tools on Linux.


 

  • Mount is triggered and all VHDs of the selected VM are mounted to the device server using one or more unused drive letters of the Windows system e.g., D:, E:, etc. This may take a few seconds. Click OK.
     
  • In the Select Files window, select the data you want to restore and click Next.
  •  
  • On the fourth step of the restore wizard (Target Settings), select a restore target where you want to restore your files.
  • Then select an appropriate Execution option (Overwrite existing items, etc.) as described in the above section.
     
  • In the final step of the restore wizard, you can review all the settings of your restore task. You can start your single file restore immediately by clicking Start. If you want to save the restore task, click Save.
  •  
  • Click OK to unmount the saveset and close your restore session.
  • Single file restore via the Restore Assistant

    You can access the Restore Assistant in one of the following ways:

    • via the GUI: by clicking the Restore Assistant icon in the toolbar or from Activities -> Restore Assistant
    • from SEP sesam Web UI: left menu -> Restore Assistant
    • or by entering the following address in the browser bar: http://[sesamserver]:11401/sep/ui/restore/.
      Note
    • If you cannot access the web Restore Assistant, check if you have received the appropriate permissions for online restore.
    • The operations and options available after logging in may differ depending on the user type. Other Web UI display restrictions may depend on the custom roles with specific permissions and the UI mode.
      For details, see About Authentication and Authorization and User Roles and Permissions.

    You can restore individual files of a Citrix XenServer VM in the web interface in the advanced UI mode if you have the appropriate permissions. For more details on the UI mode, see Setting UI mode in the Restore Assistant.

    1. Open the Restore Assistant in the browser.
    2. In the Start window, select Citrix Hypervisor. Then select the option Advanced View. The VM or single file restore option is selected by default. Click Next.
    3.  
    4. In the Virtual Machine window, under Selection of the server, select your target Citrix server to which the data will be restored.
    5. Then, under Selection of the virtual machine, select the VM that you want to restore and click Next.
       
    6. In the Task window, under Task selection, select your source task. A backup task defines the source data that was backed up by the client.
    7. Then, under Backup selection, select the exact backup version you want to restore. You can use the calendar function in the upper right corner to set a date range for the displayed backups. Select the Single file restore option (in the lower right corner) and click Next.  
    8. In the Files window, select the SEP sesam Server or RDS to which you want to mount the backup. You can also specify an alternate mount path and/or advanced mount options. Then click the button Mount this backup in filesystem. A new window will appear showing the progress of the mount process.
    9.   Note
      • To be able to access and mount VM disk image on Linux, the guestfs-tools package must be installed on your SEP sesam Server or Linux RDS. If the guestfs-tools package is not installed, it is not possible to mount VMDK and perform SFR. Refer to Installing guestfs-tools on Linux.
      • Mounting is not possible if the savesets are stored on tapes or if the data is compressed or encrypted. Some other XPRFS restrictions also apply to mounting.

       

    10. Once a virtual disk is mounted on the device server, select the files you want to restore and click Next.
    11.  
    12. In the Target window, under Target selection, select your target environment for the restore. You can use the drop-down list to select or filter VMs by name.
    13. Then enter or browse for your target path and select an appropriate Execution option (Overwrite existing files, etc.) as described in the above section. Click Next.
       
    14. In the Options window, you can specify additional advanced options, such as selecting a data source (media pool, drive, etc.), set include/exclude filters, etc. For details on the available options, see Standard Restore Procedure.
    15. Click Next.
       
    16. In the last step, check the summary of your restore task (restore type (based on task type, selected backup, its date and details, restore options, etc.) and click Start restore.
    17.  

    Monitoring restore

    You can view the status of your restore jobs in the Restore Assistant by clicking the monitoring icon (second icon in the upper right corner), via SEP sesam Web UI (Monitoring -> Restores) or SEP sesam GUI (Main Selection -> Job State -> Restores). For details, see About Monitoring.


    See also

    Installing guestfs-tools on LinuxCitrix XenServer RestoreWeb Single File Restore for Virtual MachinesRestore AssistantAbout Authentication and Authorization

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