vRanger 7.8.1 - User Guide

Performing a full restore for VMware vApps

Performing a full restore for VMware vApps

vRanger performs a full restore of a VMware vSphere® vApp(s)™ by using a savepoint created from a backup job. A savepoint contains point-in-time data of the vApp, including member VMs and vApp metadata. If you select an incremental savepoint from which to restore the server, a full savepoint is also restored, along with every incremental savepoint taken between the time of the full backup and the time of the selected incremental backup.

For information about performing a full restore from a savepoint manifest, see Restoring from manifest.

For more information, see Performing a full restore of a physical machine.

To perform a full restore for a vApp, complete the following tasks:

•	Starting the Restore Wizard

•	Selecting a VM Name & Folder

•	Mapping storage

•	Selecting a restore data transport method for

•	Configuring restore options

•	Setting the recurrence schedule

•	Configuring email notifications

•	Starting the restore job

Starting the Restore Wizard

Starting the Restore Wizard

When restoring a server from a savepoint, the Restore Wizard guides you through the steps necessary to complete the restore.

To use the Restore Wizard:

1	In the main vRanger UI, click My Repositories.

2	Select the repository in which the savepoints for the server you want to restore are stored.

3	In the Working Repository pane, select a savepoint to restore.

4	You can automatically restore the machine to the latest savepoint. To do so, right-click on the machine row and click Restore Latest.

To select a different savepoint, expand the machine row and select the desired savepoint. Right-click the savepoint, and click Restore, or click Restore on the vRanger toolbar. The Restore Wizard starts.

5	On the Job Information page, enter the Job Name and Job Description.

6	Click Next.

Selecting a destination

Selecting a destination

The Destination Selection page lets you configure the virtual data center (vDC) to which the VMware vSphere® vApp(s)™ savepoints are to be restored, and the name of the restored vApp.

To select a destination:

1	To rename the vApp you are restoring, enter the new name in the Restore vApp As field.

2	In the Restore vApp under vDC drop-down list, select the virtual data center to which the vApp should be restored.

3	For each network listed, select a network for the restored vApp in the Restore to Network column.

4	Click Next.

Mapping storage

The Restore Storage Mapping page lets you configure the storage profile and, as needed, the datastore for each VM in the vAPP.

To select storage mapping:

1	In the Storage Profile drop-down list, select the applicable storage profile.

Selecting a storage profile allows VMware® vCloud Director® to select the appropriate datastore automatically based on your storage profile settings.

2	To specify a datastore manually, select Any in the Storage Profile drop-down list, and select the applicable datastore in the Datastore drop-down list.

3	Click Next.

Selecting a restore data transport method

Selecting a restore data transport method

In vRanger, the transport determines how restore data is sent, and where the restore processing activity occurs; for more information, see VMware backup transport options. When configuring a restore job for a VMware® VM or VMware vSphere® vApp(s)™, the Restore Wizard uses the Automatic transport selection option by default to select the best transport method automatically at run-time. You can also configure the transport manually by using the Using Custom transport selection option.

 

NOTE: The Transport Selection page is not available when restoring a physical or Hyper-V® virtual server. When restoring physical servers and Hyper-V VMs, vRanger sends the data to restore over the network from the repository. Because this method is the only one available for transporting data for physical and Hyper-V servers, the Transport Selection page of the Restore Wizard does not display.

To select a restore data transport method for VMware machines, complete one of the following procedures:

•	Using Automatic transport selection

•	Using Custom transport selection

Using Automatic transport selection

The Restore Wizard includes an Automatic transport selection option, which lets vRanger select the best available method for your configuration. When determining the best transport, vRanger uses two key criteria:

•	Whether virtual appliances (VAs) are deployed.

•	Where vRanger is installed.

The logic used to select a transport differs slightly based on whether vRanger is installed on a VM or on a physical server. For more information about the order in which vRanger checks for transport availability, see Transport selection order: VM backup.

To use Automatic transport selection:

1	On the Transport Selection page, select Automatic transport selection.

The selected transport method appears at the bottom of the page.

 

IMPORTANT: Each time the job runs, vRanger detects your configuration and selects the best transport method available at run-time. That method might not always be what is shown on the page during the job setup.

2	Click Next.

Using Custom transport selection

The Custom transport selection option lets you specify both where the actual restore processing activity occurs) and which transport to use. For more information, see VMware backup transport options.

To use Custom transport selection:

1	On the Transport Selection page, select Custom transport selection.

This option enables the custom settings.

2	Select where you want the job to occur from the following options:

▪	On this vRanger machine.

▪	On a vRanger VA.

vRanger verifies whether any VAs are configured on the source host. If the host belongs to a cluster, and no host VA is found, vRanger searches for shared VAs on the cluster as well.

If no VA is detected, click Configure Virtual Appliance to add a VA to vRanger. For more information about configuring the VA, see Understanding the vRanger virtual appliance (VA).

 

NOTE: Using the vRanger VA is recommended for scalability and performance.

3	Select which transports the job should attempt from the following options:

▪	Advanced [SAN / HotAdd]

▪

LAN

For more information, see VMware backup transport options.

4	[Optional] If you want your LAN backups to be encrypted, select Use SSL encryption when transferring files over the LAN connection.

 

CAUTION: This option causes reduced performance.

5	Click Next.