EDITOR’S NOTE VM BACKUP TOOLS OFFER EFFICIENT BACKUP AND RECOVERY

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Tips and Tools to Master Virtual Server BackupsServer virtualization and recovery-in-place have had a significant impact on the process of backing up virtual machines, along with the options for backup recovery. Learn about recovery-in-place and how to avoid pitfalls.

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VM Backup Woes in the Rearview Mirror

Virtual server backups are no longer the pain point that they once were. Today, there are a variety of products available for backup vir-tual machines (VMs). On one hand, you’ve got newer, virtualization-specific software vendors like Veeam pushing innovation in this area. And on the other, you have legacy backup soft-ware products which offer VM backup func-tionality. In fact, it’s likely that the software you are using today has a VM backup option.

Virtual server backup software makes use of APIs from virtualization vendors that allow for better integration between the backup software and the hypervisor. This has resolved many of the initial challenges with backing up virtual servers. But, access to virtualization APIs does not mean that all VM backup software is cre-ated equal. In this space, there are a few lead-ing vendors, while the rest of the field is always playing catch-up from a feature perspective.

One area of innovation is the concept of

recovery-in-place, or “instant recovery,” as many call it. This technology allows users to mount backup instances of VMs and run applications while the primary VM is being restored. This, of course, reduces application downtime. But, like most technologies, there are many things to consider before deploying recovery-in-place.

This three-part guide to virtual server backup explores recovery-in-place and other features of today’s virtual server backup software. It also looks at how to ensure that backing up VMs does not impact application performance. Finally, you’ll learn how legacy backup suites have evolved to include VM backup capabilities, among other useful fea-tures. Dig in! n

Andrew BurtonExecutive Editor,

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VM Backup Tools Offer Efficient Backup and Recovery

A few years ago, virtual server backup was a pain point for many IT teams. Today, there are a variety of options available to ensure data on virtual servers is protected.

Also, in some cases, virtualization can ben-efit the data protection process. For example, many data protection products allow users to run an application from a backup instance of a virtual machine (VM) following an outage of the primary VM. This gives users access to data and applications while the primary VM is being restored.

So, the outlook on virtual server backup is decidedly brighter these days. However, there are a number of important things to consider when it comes to VM backup.

HOW VM BACKUP WORKS

There are a number of ways virtual servers can be backed up. Some shops still prefer to use

traditional backup software and install agents on each VM. This is typically fine if you are protecting a small number of virtual machines. However, if you have hundreds of VMs to pro-tect, this approach can become unwieldy.

The biggest issue with this approach is resource contention. Traditional backup soft-ware was designed around the idea that a single physical server would run a single application. With virtualization, there can be many applica-tions running on a single physical server. This can lead to competition for compute resources and slow down application performance during backup. Also, this approach requires shops to treat each VM as a separate client with sep- arate licensing costs—depending on how many VMs you are backing up, this can be expen- sive.

So, many shops use VM-specific backup tools such as Veeam Backup & Replication or VM backup functionality included with many

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traditional backup software products. For example, legacy backup software vendors like Commvault, Symantec and EMC offer VM-specific backup options today.

VM backup products take advantage of APIs provided by the hypervisor vendor, such as VMware’s vSphere Storage APIs for Data Pro-tection (VADP). This allows the backup appli-cation to put the VM into a backup-ready state, also known as quiescing the VM, before taking a snapshot and using it to create an image-level backup. Users can restore an entire VM from the image, of course, but today’s software is also sophisticated enough that it can also retrieve and restore individual files from the VM image.

“INSTANT” RECOVERY

One of the newer and more interesting VM backup software features is known as recovery-in-place or instant recovery. The latter name is a little misleading, because recovery is not truly instantaneous.

While recovery-in-place should not be mis-taken for a high availability technology, it does

allow users to return to operations quickly—especially when compared with a traditional server restore.

Virtualization allows users to move work-loads to balance the load on storage and com-pute resources and improve performance. This capability also makes a VM easier to recover. Recovery-in-place allows a hypervi-sor to mount a backup instance of a VM and to get applications up and running quickly while the primary VM is being restored. This is a very useful tool, but there are a number of things you should be aware of before using recovery-in-place.

As noted above, recovery-in-place is not instantaneous and your applications will see some downtime. Most backup vendors claim that by using this technology you can have an application up and running in the backup envi-ronment within a few minutes. Also, it is not an automated process. While the exact method will differ from product to product, recovery-in-place requires manual intervention.

For example, when using Symantec’s Net-Backup Instant Recovery for VMware, the pro-cess is as follows:

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■n Users run a command to access the virtual machine from its backup image;

■n NetBackup mounts the image as an NFS data store and creates a temporary data store on the ESX host where the VM will be restored;

■n While running from the backup VM, new write requests are directed to the temporary data store while the NFS data store is read-only—this keeps the backup in a pristine state;

■n Storage vMotion is used to copy the virtual machine data from the NFS data store to the temporary data store and vSphere Client is used to merge virtual machine’s snapshot files;

■n Finally, users run another command to unmount the NFS data store.

Performance is another important con-sideration. Since backup hardware is not designed for high performance applications, users should expect to see a performance dip while using recovery-in-place. However, lower performance is, of course, better than application downtime. If you plan to rely on

recovery-in-place, you’ll want to ensure that your backup server has enough compute power to run your application(s) at a reasonable per-formance level.

VM BACKUP SOFTWARE ADOPTION

A 2014 survey of our readers shows that virtual server backup is no longer the pain point that it once was. Forty-six percent of respondents said they have “no problems” backing up VMs. Many shops are using VM-specific backup software or VM backup options from a tradi-tional backup software vendor—28% and 29%, respectively. Those numbers are up from 7% and 11% in 2012. And use of traditional agent-based backup for VMs is also fading with 20% of respondents who said they are taking this approach, down from 29% in 2012.

The approach an organization takes for vir-tual server backup, of course, will be dictated by its specific needs. The good news is there are plenty of options available today and VM backup is no longer the pain point it was only a few years ago. —Andrew Burton

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VIRTUAL BACKUP ISSUES

Prevent Backup Performance Issues Caused by Virtual Backups

If you’re feeling backup pain as the result of server virtualization, you’re not alone. Many organizations are seeing increasingly higher backup workloads on their disk-based backup appliances as the result of virtual machine (VM) proliferation. In some cases, this is resulting in longer backup and recovery win-dows. Fortunately, there are ways of working around this problem.

First, let’s examine why server virtualiza-tion is breaking disk backup. Unlike primary disk storage architectures, which are designed to handle random read/write I/O activity, disk-based appliances are typically designed to han-dle sequential backup workloads. In addition, they are specifically optimized to handle large block transfers. Backup software products that

are designed specifically for virtual backups, however, change how data flows to the disk backup appliance. By utilizing deduplication and change block tracking (CBT), for example, these systems send very small data block transfers to the disk appliance.

Since CBT shortens the backup window, it increases the user’s appetite to take more fre-quent backups over the course of the day—the more backups, the less risk of data loss. How-ever, when there are dozens or potentially hundreds of VMs being backed up via CBT, this results in multiple, small block transfers going to the disk backup appliance at the same time. As a result, the backup transfer begins to look very similar to a production work-load. Since these systems are tuned to receive

Since CBT shortens the backup window, it increases the user’s appetite to take more fre quent backups over the course of the day.

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large, sequential block I/O, this mismatch can wreak havoc on the appliance, resulting in poor backup performance. In short, disk backup appliances are as inappropriate for managing this kind of backup workload as they are for hosting production application data.

FROM SSD TO HDD SPEED

Another issue is that some products for virtual backups now offer the ability to perform recov- ery-in-place.

This means that backup data on disk can be used as a mount point for a VM. So, rather than waiting for data to be recovered from the backup, the VM can point to the backup image and resume normal operation. Sounds like a nice feature, but when you consider that most disk backup appliances are configured with high-density, slow-rotational disk drives, it could be a recipe for failure.

Many organizations are using flash and solid-state drives (SSD) in their primary stor-age systems so an application user potentially could go from solid-state speeds to the speed of a 1-terabyte, 5400 rpm drive. To further

compound this issue, if the disk backup system is also constantly running data deduplication processes, every time the VM performs a write operation, the I/O will have to be deduped before it is committed to disk, further impact-ing performance.

TIERED BACKUP CAPACITY

To reduce or eliminate the impact of server vir-tualization on your disk backup infrastructure, there are several options you can take. First, consider front-ending deduplication backup appliances with non-deduped disk. This disk “staging area” could hold seven to 14 days of backup data to enable fast backups and fast recoveries. Since this is a relatively small stor-age area, it can also be configured with smaller-capacity, higher-speed drives. Doing this can help offset the additional I/O demands being placed on the appliance by VM CBT jobs or even multiple daily full or incremental backups.

Furthermore, this staging area would serve as a more viable storage tier for performing recovery-in-place operations because applica-tion storage I/O will not be encumbered by the

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added latency of deduplication processes.Any data that needs to be retained beyond a

seven- to 14-day window can then be migrated to a deduplicated storage area for long-term retention (30 days to 90 days). Anything that needs to be retained beyond a 90-day window can be archived to an efficient tape archive repository. In fact, there are tape-based prod-ucts available now that enable users to build a hybrid tape cloud—a local Linear Tape-Open, or LTO, repository that integrates with cloud-based tape archives.

UNSTRUCTURED SEGREGATION

Many of the analysts and storage vendors in the industry today say that the vast majority of net new information (upwards of 80% of all data, by some estimates) being created is unstruc-tured—user files, email, PDFs, rich multimedia, machine sensor data. Other than perhaps user files, most of this information typically doesn’t dedupe very well—at most, you may see a 2:1 reduction on deduped storage systems.

Object storage technology, on the other hand, is ideally suited for managing unstructured

data since it is very elastic (theoretically, its ability to scale is unlimited); it can be used in private and hybrid cloud infrastructure; and it has embedded data protection attributes that, in effect, don’t require the data to be backed up.

By utilizing object storage technology, it is possible to dramatically reduce the amount of data that needs to be backed up each night. This is due to the fact that many object storage systems can disburse data objects very effi-ciently across multiple disk enclosures for local redundancy and replicate data to object stores in secondary data centers or public clouds for disaster recovery purposes. In fact, the backup process could be reduced to protect only VM images, user files, email and database data.

When you talk to your backup supplier, ask about all of these options. Many vendors pro-vide multiple backup offerings—disk-based deduplication systems, object storage, tape and so on—and can help you design an appropri-ate architecture. It is important to understand what your data profile is, which types of recov-erability features you need, and how you can best scale your data protection footprint to meet the needs of the business. —Colm Keegan

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The Evolution of the Data Backup Application Suite

Enterprise-class backup applica-tions have evolved from backup and restore utilities to comprehensive data management and protection suites. Today, these platforms offer hardware- and software-based snapshot and replication management, virtual server data protection, cloud integration and more.

Most of the major backup vendors have started using snapshots as a mechanism to allow fast recovery of file data, and in some cases entire virtual machines (VMs). Although some vendors have offered snapshot inte-gration for many years, snapshot support (especially array-level snapshots) is only now becoming a standard capability for various backup vendors.

Symantec NetBackup, for example, is designed to work with a variety of differ-ent hardware- and software-based snapshot methods. Symantec also provides a compo-nent called NetBackup Replication Director

that maintains control over the snapshot rep-lication process, and allows for individual files to be recovered from a snapshot without hav-ing to actually mount the snapshot. Snapshots are treated as a first-class part of the backup process, meaning they can be managed directly through NetBackup’s interface.

Like Symantec, Hewlett-Packard (HP) also supports snapshot integration and instant recovery in Data Protector 9. The company has supported array-based snapshot management for quite some time, but its latest snapshot-related offerings focus on data and applica-tions. The HP 3PAR StoreServ environment allows for instant recovery of file systems, and Oracle, SAP and Microsoft applications.

IBM has introduced a couple of new snap-shot-related capabilities. FlashCopy Manager 4.1 supports hardware-based snapshots, while FlashCopy Manager creates application back-ups of servers and storage pools in VMware

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environments thanks to vSphere API integra-tion. As part of Tivoli Storage Manager 7.1 (now part of IBM’s Spectrum Protect umbrella), IBM has introduced HTTPS support for NetApp snapshot-assisted progressive incremental backup processing.

EMC has long supported snapshots for block-based EMC storage arrays, but Net-Worker 8.2 offers some new functionality. It’s now possible to create file-based snapshots for EMC VNX, EMC Isilon and NetApp. Like Symantec, EMC NetWorker 8.2 can create and manage NAS-based snapshots.

NetWorker also has the ability to utilize native snapshots previously created by storage administrators. This allows backup administra-tors to perform a rollover of a native snapshot to a Data Domain system.

Commvault also provides control over hard-ware-level snapshots. However, the Commvault approach is different because it is focused on snapshot unification. The latest version of Simpana uses IntelliSnap technology to pro-vide a single management framework for mul-tivendor environments. The software supports a variety of applications, operating systems, hypervisors and storage array vendors.

VENDOR NICHES

Hewlett-Packard Data Protector 9 is a great example of a product with a niche feature set.

Pretty much every enterprise-grade backup application contains a reporting engine, but HP takes it to the next level by offering real-time analytic capabilities. The HP Backup Naviga-tor (a companion product to HP Data Protector) provides rich analysis of resource consumption with a focus on optimizing Capex and Opex spending. The software allows an administra-tor to detect and address issues before they can become problematic.

Commvault Simpana’s niche strength is its data lifecycle management capabilities.

Most of the major backup vend- ors have started using snapshots as a mechanism to allow fast recovery of file data.

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Simpana can automatically archive aging backup data. Commvault also provides rich search, e-discovery and legal hold capabilities.

ENHANCED VIRTUALIZATION SUPPORT

Major enterprise-class backup applications have supported server virtualization on some level for several years. Even so, most of the major backup application vendors continue to introduce new VM backup features.

Symantec’s latest enhancement to its exist-ing virtualization support now provides unified protection for physical and virtual machines. Symantec NetBackup with V-Ray offers a stan-dardized view of physical and virtual resources. The company claims this makes management easier by eliminating redundant storage pools and simplifying deduplication.

HP takes a similar approach to its virtual-ization strategy. HP Data Protector lets users manage both physical and virtual server back-ups through the HP Data Protector console.

IBM Tivoli Storage Manager 7.1 (VMware Edition) is focused on instant recovery for VMware virtual machines. Users can create

copies of VMs for test/dev and also perform object-level restorations within SQL Server and Exchange Server. In addition, IBM’s Flash-Copy Manager 4.1 provides instant recovery of the Tivoli Storage Manager data store and is designed to coexist with VMware vCenter Site Recovery Manager.

EMC NetWorker 8.2 offers VMDK-level backup and restoration and VMware Instant Access. However, the most significant change to EMC’s VM backup software is support for Microsoft Hyper-V.

One of Commvault’s most significant new capabilities is the ability to automatically protect VMs by creating a series of discovery rules. CommVault says this ensures newly cre-ated VMs will be protected without manually adding them to the backup. CommVault also allows VM owners to perform self-service backup and recovery of VMs through a Web console.

CLOUD SUPPORT

It shouldn’t come as any surprise that most of the big backup vendors have been adding cloud

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functionality to their products, but the actual features and capabilities being introduced vary from one vendor to the next.

Commvault offers a tool called Virtualize Me that examines the physical server’s hardware configuration and builds a VM that mimics its hardware. Once the VM has been created, an ongoing replication process keeps the standby VM’s contents current. The overall goal is to provide customers with a way to fail over to a secondary site or to a public cloud without having to invest in hardware that mirrors the hardware found in the primary data center.

Symantec has created a centralized man-agement console for NetBackup servers and domains across the enterprise from a single location. The company also introduced seam-less support for various cloud storage pro-viders, along with mechanisms for moving data from local to cloud storage.

IBM, on the other hand, added support for vCloud Director as a part of Tivoli Storage Manager 7.1. This allows automated support for vCloud Director to back up virtual applications (vApps).

NetWorker 8.2’s new cloud functionality

centers on Microsoft’s System Center Virtual Machine Manager. Virtual Machine Manager allows for the creation and management of VMs, as well as private and hybrid clouds. EMC now allows fabric, tenant and cloud adminis-trators to manage the recovery of data within the scope of their own management role.

CENTRALIZED MANAGEMENT

As distributed and replicated backup systems have become more common, a pressing need has evolved for centralized control over the backup process. Many of the big name backup vendors have introduced management consoles that are designed to simplify the backup and recovery process. In some cases, these consoles allow for operations to be performed across multiple data centers. In other cases, the con-soles allow physical and virtual resources to be managed in a uniform way.

As previously mentioned, Symantec has cre-ated a centralized management console for NetBackup. One of the reasons why Syman-tec created this console was to enable remote disaster recovery. NetBackup with V-Ray allows

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data to be protected and recovered anywhere.HP’s offerings are similar to those of Syman-

tec. The Data Protector console allows for cen-tralized management of backup and recovery (and replication) operations across a variety of environments. Operations can span physi-cal and virtual environments, sites and data centers.

IBM provides centralized management capa-bilities through its Tivoli Storage Manager Operations Center. The software simplifies management tasks such as the provisioning of new clients in environments that use multiple Tivoli Storage Manager servers.

Like the other vendors that have been dis-cussed, EMC provides centralized management capabilities through its NetWorker Manage-ment Console. However, EMC provides some additional capabilities. For example, the Net-Worker 8.2 Management Console provides

visualization for VMware vCenter. This should go a long way toward simplifying the protection of VMware environments. In addition, EMC provides mobile support (iOS and Android) for EMC Backup and Recovery Manager.

Commvault provides a centralized manage-ment console similar in scope to what the other backup vendors offer. As mentioned pre-viously, Commvault provides a Web console that can be used by authorized users as a self-service portal. —Brien Posey

As distributed and replicated backup systems have become more common, a pressing need has evolved for centralized con-trol over the backup process.

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ABOUT THE

AUTHORS

ANDREW BURTON is an executive editor with the Storage Media Group.

COLM KEEGAN is an analyst with Storage Switzerland.

BRIEN POSEY is a Microsoft MVP with two decades of IT experience. Previously, Posey was CIO for a national chain of hospitals and healthcare facilities.

Tips, Tools for Mastering Virtual Server Backups is a SearchDataBackup.com e-publication.

Rich Castagna | VP of Editorial

Ellen O’Brien | Associate Editorial Director

Andrew Burton | Executive Editor

Ed Hannan | Senior Managing Editor

Dave Raffo | Senior News Director

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Jillian Coffin | Publisher jcoffin@techtarget.com

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