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NetVault Plug-in for Exchange 10.0.5 - User Guide

Introducing Dell™ NetVault™ Backup Plug-in for Exchange Defining an Exchange data protection strategy Planning your Exchange Server deployment Installing and removing the plug-in Configuring the plug-in Backing up data Restoring data Troubleshooting

Setting backup options

The next step involves creating the Backup Options Set or selecting an existing one.
To create a Backup Options Set:
1
Next to the Plugin Options list, click Create New.
2
If you are using Exchange 2007, select the applicable option in the Backup Method section:
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Extensible Storage Engine (ESE)
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Volume Shadow Copy Service (VSS)
The Backup Method defaults to the Default Backup Method selected on the Exchange Server Configuration dialog box. The plug-in supports implementing an ESE or a pure VSS backup-strategy; that is, your backup strategy should include either ESE backups or VSS backups, not a combination of the two. (Because Exchange 2010 and later only support VSS, you do not need to select a method for these versions.) For more information on selecting a backup method for your Exchange Server, see Defining an Exchange data protection strategy.
3
In the Exchange Backup Type section, select the applicable option.
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Full: A Full Backup performs a complete backup of the set of items that have been selected. A Full Backup does not depend on any other backup and can be restored in a single step. In Exchange Server, a Full Backup includes all database files and transaction log files.
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Copy: A Copy Backup backs up the set of items that have been selected without performing a transaction log file truncation. This backup provides a snapshot of the files as they existed at the time of the backup. A Copy Backup should be used to perform a fast, non-intrusive complete backup of an Exchange Server and is commonly used for offline scaling and migration scenarios.
•
Incremental: An Incremental Backup backs up the transaction log files of the set of items that have been selected since the most recent Full Backup or Incremental Backup. After the backup is completed, the Exchange Server truncates the transaction logs. This truncation helps maintain the operating health of the Exchange Server.
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Differential: A Differential Backup backs up the transaction log files of the set of items that have been selected since the most recent Full Backup or Incremental Backup. Differential Backups do not perform transaction log truncation, and therefore do not maintain the operating health of the Exchange Server.
For more information, see Reviewing the backup types.
4
In the Advanced Options section, complete the following:
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Maximum Number of Parallel Streams: To enable the fastest backups possible, the Plug‑in for Exchange uses parallel streams to back up the Storage Groups/Mailbox Databases simultaneously. This option allows you to specify the maximum number of parallel streams to use during a backup. The maximum number of parallel streams must meet both of the following conditions:
•
Less than or equal to (<=) the number of drives for the backup devices specified on the Target tab.
•
Less than Maximum number of Storage Groups/Mailbox Databases that can be created. The following table details the maximum number of Storage Groups/Mailbox Databases allowed by each Exchange Server version and edition:
 
Exchange Server method
Server edition
Maximum number of Storage Groups/Mailbox Databases
Exchange Server 2007
Standard
5 Storage Groups
Enterprise
50 Storage Groups
Exchange Server 2010/2013
Standard
5 Mailbox Databases
Enterprise
100 Mailbox Databases
For example, if you are targeting a Virtual Tape Library configured with two drives and you have 20 Storage Groups, the Maximum Number of Parallel Streams should be 2 or less.
 
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NOTE: In an Exchange 2010 or later DAG deployment, the number of parallel streams is allocated on a per-server basis; therefore, the number applies to each server included in the DAG. For example, if your DAG includes three Exchange Servers and you select two streams for backup, it can create up to six simultaneous streams assuming that there are at least two databases on each server that need to be backed up. If there are fewer databases, the streams are not created. If there are fewer drives available, the streams wait until the next drive is available.
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Mount unmounted databases before backup: This option mounts any unmounted databases before attempting to back up the database.
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Perform VSS Consistency Check: This option indicates whether a consistency check of the VSS should be performed on the Exchange Storage Groups/Mailbox Databases included in the backup job. Dell recommends that you use this option, which is selected by default.
•
Incomplete Backup of All Items Selected: When multiple items are included in a backup and the plug-in is unable to back up all the selected items, the plug-in lets you specify what action the backup should take. For example, if a job includes multiple Storage Groups/Mailbox Databases and the backup of all but one is successful, you can specify what action the backup job should take.
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Complete with Warnings — Saveset Retained: The job returns a status of “Backup Completed with warnings” and a backup saveset is created that includes the items that were successfully backed up.
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Complete without Warnings — Saveset Retained: The job completes and returns a status of “Backup Completed.” The errors are logged in the NetVault Backup binary logs and ignored on the Job Status page. A backup saveset is created that includes the items that were backed up.
•
Fail — Saveset Retained: The job returns a status of “Backup Failed.” However, a backup saveset is generated that includes the items that were successfully backed up.
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Fail — No Saveset Retained: The job returns a status of “Backup Failed” and no saveset of backed-up objects is kept. That is, even if some of the objects were successfully backed up, the saveset is discarded.
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Backup Algorithm in DAG (only available in DAG deployments):
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All Active: If you want the Plug‑in for Exchange on each Mailbox Server to back up only the databases that are active when the backup is performed, select this option.
•
Backup Database Copies with the Lowest Activation Preference Number: Select this option if you want the plug-in to select an available database copy. The plug-in selects the copy with the lowest activation preference number for backup. If a database copy is not available for backup, the plug-in selects the active database.
•
Backup Database Copies with the Highest Activation Preference Number: Select this option if you want the plug-in to select the available database copy with the highest activation preference number. If a database copy is not available for backup, the plug-in selects the active database.
•
Backup Databases from preferred Exchange Server whenever possible: Select this option if you want to specify a list of preferred Exchange Servers to perform backups from and a list of servers to exclude. This option works in combination with the following fields:
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If possible Backup Exchange Databases only from the following Exchange Server: If you selected Backup Databases from preferred Exchange Server whenever possible, enter a comma-separated list of Exchange Servers, in order of preference, that should be used to back up the database. If the database, copy or active, is available in the Exchange Server listed first, it is backed up from that server. If not, the plug-in tries the next server in the list, and so on. If there is not an available copy (including the active database) on any of the listed servers, the plug-in uses the server that contains the active database or the database copy with the lowest activation preference number.
•
If possible do not Backup Exchange Databases from the following Exchange Server: If you selected Backup Databases from preferred Exchange Server whenever possible, enter a comma-separated list of Exchange Servers, in order of preference, that should not be used to back up the database. The server listed first has the lowest preference. If the database, copy or active, is available on any other Exchange Server, the database is not backed up from the server listed. The plug-in tries to exclude all servers listed in this field. If the database is only available on one of the excluded servers, the plug-in performs the backup using the last server in the list of exclusions.
 
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NOTE: The If possible Backup Exchange Databases only from the following Exchange Server option takes precedence over If possible do not Backup Exchange Databases from the following Exchange Server. If the backup can be performed using a server from the first list, the plug-in does not process the list of excluded servers.
5
If you are performing a VSS-based backup in an LCR or CCR environment, complete the following in the Volume Shadow Copy Service (VSS) section:
 
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NOTE: When performing VSS-based backups in an LCR or CCR environment, the plug-in is able to back up either the active copy or passive copy of the Exchange Server data. By enabling backups of the passive copy, the load on the active node is reduced.
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Active Copy: Select this option to back up the active copy of all Storage Groups. This option is the default for Standalone deployments, and the only option available for SCC/Failover Cluster deployments or deployments that have Standby Continuous Replication (SCR) enabled for any of the Storage Groups.
•
Passive Copy: Select this option to back up the passive copy of all Storage Groups. While available for both CCR and LCR deployments, this option is the default option for CCR deployments and has the following restrictions:
•
If you are selecting this option for an LCR deployment, backups are performed only for Storage Groups that have LCR enabled. Storage Groups that do not have LCR enabled are not backed up.
•
If SCR is enabled for any of the Storage Groups (even in a CCR and LCR deployment), selecting this option causes the backups to fail. Failure occurs because backups cannot be performed from the passive copy.
•
When performing backups of passive data, it is important to ensure that the passive copies in CCR and LCR environments have a state of Healthy in the Exchange Management Console. If the passive copy has a status of Failed, the backup fails. The Failed passive copy can be returned to a Healthy state by deleting it and updating it with the Update-StorageGroupCopy command. For more information on the Update-StorageGroupCopy command, see http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/aa998853.aspx.
•
Mixed (Available only for LCR deployments): Selecting this option backs up the passive copies of all Storage Groups along with active copy Storage Groups that are not LCR enabled. This option is the default and the recommended option for LCR deployments that do not have SCR enabled, and has the following restriction:
If SCR is enabled for any of the Storage Groups, selecting this option causes the backups to fail. The Active Copy option should be selected for environments where LCR and SCR are simultaneously deployed.
6
Click Save to save the set.
7
In the Create New Set dialog box, specify a name for the set, and click Save.
The name can contain alphanumeric and non-alphanumeric characters, but it cannot contain non-Latin characters. On Windows®, there is no length restriction; however, a maximum of 40 characters is recommended.
To use an existing Backup Options Set:
In the Plugin Options list, select the existing Backup Options Set that you want to use.

Finalizing and submitting the job

To finalize and submit a backup job:
1
Use the Schedule, Target Storage, and Advanced Options lists to configure any additional required options.
2
Click Save or Save & Submit, whichever is applicable.
 
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TIP: To run a job that you have already created and saved, select Manage Job Definitions on the Navigation pane, select the applicable job, and click Run Now.
You can monitor progress on the Job Status page and view the logs on the View Logs page. For more information, see the Dell NetVault Backup Administrator’s Guide.
 
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IMPORTANT: Restarting services that host Exchange VSS Writers, including the Microsoft Exchange Information Store, Microsoft Exchange Replication Service, complete OS reboots, and cluster failovers causes running backup jobs to fail. This failure is due to a loss of in-memory ‘backup-in-progress’ state that Microsoft maintains for VSS backups.

Restoring data

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Restore and recovery overview
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Restoring data using the plug-in
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Using advanced restore procedures

Restore and recovery overview

When preparing to restore an existing backup, several key concepts are useful to understand. The following sections explore these concepts.
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Reviewing the available restore methods
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Reviewing the Phases of the Restore Sequence
Reviewing the available restore methods
The Restore Method is the technology that is selected to perform the restore. The Plug‑in for Exchange supports several Restore Methods, each with its own specific purpose.
Extensible Storage Engine (ESE) Restore Method
ESE is the native technology used to perform restore and recovery operations for Exchange Server. ESE is provided from Microsoft as a standard Exchange Server component in Exchange 2007.
When using the ESE Restore Method, all databases being restored must first be dismounted using a Microsoft-approved approach or by selecting the Dismount Databases Before Restore option in the Restore and Recovery Options tab of the Restore Options tab. Failing to dismount the database before performing the restore results in either a Restore Failure or a Restore Completed with Warnings job status.
 
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IMPORTANT: Windows Server® 2008 supports Exchange Server 2007 SP1 or later; previous versions of Exchange 2007 are not supported. In a standard Exchange Server 2007 SP1 installation, there is an ESE client library (esebcli2.dll) in the Exchange Server Bin folder. The file version of esebcli2.dll is 8.1.240.5 for Exchange Server 2007 SP1. However, if this library is not replicated from the Exchange Bin folder to the Windows Bin folder, an older version of the .dll file might be present in the Windows Bin folder. Plug‑in for Exchange uses the ESE client library that is available in the Windows Bin folder. If the older version of the library is contained in the Windows Bin folder, a backup or restore job might fail. If a failure occurs, save a copy of the ESE client library from the Windows Bin folder to a safe location, copy the ESE client library from the Exchange Server Bin folder to the Windows Bin folder, and run the backup or restore job again.
Volume Shadow Copy Service (VSS)
During a VSS-based restore, the plug-in instructs the Exchange Store Writer to coordinate with the Exchange Information Store (on behalf of the plug-in) to prepare the system for the restore, verify the restore targets, put the data back from the backup device, and then replay the transaction logs as needed.
Copy Files Restore Method
Plug‑in for Exchange lets you restore the raw files from storage to a specific target directory. This method provides greater freedom in restoring database files, particularly when restoring files for non-traditional purposes, such as data mining or compliance auditing.
The Copy Files Restore Method does not require that you dismount databases from the Exchange Server. However, Database Recovery is not supported when using this restore method.
 
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NOTE: The Copy File Restore Method is required when creating a Staging Area or Target Directory to perform individual mailbox and mailbox item recovery. For more information, see the Dell Recovery Manager for Exchange User Guide.
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