Chat now with support
Chat with Support

Recovery Manager for AD Disaster Recovery Edition 10.1.1 - User Guide

Overview Getting started
Permissions required to use Recovery Manager for Active Directory Recovery Manager Console Getting and using help Configuring Windows Firewall Using Computer Collections Managing Recovery Manager for Active Directory configuration Licensing
Backing up data
Permissions required for the Backup operation Managing Backup Agent Using a least-privileged user account to back up data Using Managed Service Accounts Active Directory backups vs Windows System State backups Creating BMR and Active Directory backups Using the Backup Wizard Retrying backup creation Enabling backup encryption Backing up AD LDS (ADAM) Backing up cross-domain group membership Backing up distributed file system (DFS) data Backup scheduling Setting performance options Setting advanced backup options Using Forest Recovery Agent Unpacking backups Using e-mail notification Viewing backup creation results
Restoring data
Getting started with Active Directory recovery Managing deleted or recycled objects Restoring backed up Active Directory components Integration with Change Auditor for Active Directory Using granular online restore Restoring AD LDS (ADAM) Selectively restoring Active Directory object attributes Restoring objects in an application directory partition Restoring object quotas Restoring cross-domain group membership Performing a restore without having administrator privileges Reports about objects and operations Using complete offline restore Offline restore implications Restoring SYSVOL authoritatively Performing a granular restore of SYSVOL Recovering Group Policy Restoring data from third-party backups Using the Extract Wizard Restoring passwords and SID history
Full Replication Consolidating backup registration data Monitoring Recovery Manager for Active Directory Recovering an Active Directory forest
Forest recovery overview Deploying Recovery Manager for Active Directory Forest Edition (Disaster Recovery Edition) Permissions required to use Forest Recovery Console Forest Recovery Console Managing a recovery project Recovery methods Phased recovery Managing Forest Recovery Agent Rebooting domain controllers manually Resetting DSRM Administrator Password Purging Kerberos Tickets Managing the Global Catalog servers Managing FSMO roles Manage DNS Client Settings Configuring Windows Firewall Developing a custom forest recovery plan Backing up domain controllers Assigning a preferred DNS server during recovery Handling DNS servers during recovery Forest recovery approaches Deciding which backups to use Running custom scripts while recovering a forest Overview of steps to recover a forest Viewing forest recovery progress Viewing recovery plan Viewing a report about forest recovery or verify settings operation Handling failed domain controllers Adding a domain controller to a running recovery operation Selectively recovering domains in a forest Recovering SYSVOL Deleting domains during recovery Resuming an interrupted forest recovery Recovering read-only domain controllers (RODCs) Checking forest health Collecting diagnostic data for technical support
Restore Active Directory on Clean OS Bare metal forest recovery Using Management Shell Creating virtual test environments Using Recovery Manager for Active Directory web portal Appendices
Frequently asked questions Best practices for using Computer Collections Technical characteristics Best practices for creating backups Best practices for creating backups for forest recovery Best practices for recovering a forest Descriptions of recovery or verification steps Ports Used by Recovery Manager for Active Directory Forest Edition (Disaster Recovery Edition) Backup Wizard Online Restore Wizard Online Restore Wizard for AD LDS (ADAM) Group Policy Restore Wizard Repair Wizard Extract Wizard Events generated by Recovery Manager for Active Directory Descriptions of PowerShell commands
Add-RMADBackup Add-RMADCollectionItem Add-RMADFEComputer Add-RMADReplicationConsole Add-RMADStorageServer Backup-RMADCollection Close-RMADFEProject Compare-RMADObject Convert-RMADBackup ConvertTo-RMADRecycledObject Create-RMADStorageManagementAgentSetup Expand-RMADBackup Export-RMADBackup Export-RMADFERecoveryCertificate Export-RMADFEResult Get-RMADBackup Get-RMADBackupAgent Get-RMADBackupInfo Get-RMADBackupObject Get-RMADBackupSecurityStatus Get-RMADCollection Get-RMADCollectionItem Get-RMADDeletedObject Get-RMADFEComputer Get-RMADFEConsole Get-RMADFEDnsCache Get-RMADFEDomain Get-RMADFEEvent Get-RMADFEGlobalOptions Get-RMADFEOperation Get-RMADFEPersistenceConnection Get-RMADFEProject Get-RMADFERecoveryAgent Get-RMADFESchedule Get-RMADGlobalOptions Get-RMADLicenseInfo Get-RMADObject Get-RMADReplicationConsole Get-RMADReplicationSchedule Get-RMADReplicationSession Get-RMADReplicationSessionItem Get-RMADReportObject Get-RMADReportObjectAttributes Get-RMADReportObjectChildren Get-RMADReportSession Get-RMADSession Get-RMADSessionItem Get-RMADSessionItemEvent Get-RMADStorageServers Import-RMADBackup Import-RMADFERecoveryCertificate Install-RMADBackupAgent Install-RMADFERecoveryAgent New-RMADCollection New-RMADFEProject New-RMADFERecoveryMedia New-RMADSchedule Open-RMADFEProject Publish-RMADBackupSecurityStatus Remove-RMADBackup Remove-RMADBackupAgent Remove-RMADCollection Remove-RMADCollectionItem Remove-RMADFEComputer Remove-RMADFERecoveryAgent Remove-RMADFESchedule Remove-RMADReplicationConsole Remove-RMADReplicationSchedule Remove-RMADReplicationSession Remove-RMADStorageServer Remove-RMADUnpackedComponent Rename-RMADCollection Restore-RMADDeletedObject Restore-RMADDomainController Restore-RMADObject Resume-RMADFERecovery Save-RMADFEProject Set-RMADCollection Set-RMADFEComputer Set-RMADFEDnsCache Set-RMADFEDomain Set-RMADFEGlobalOptions Set-RMADFEPersistenceConnection Set-RMADFERecoveryMode Set-RMADFESchedule Set-RMADGlobalOptions Set-RMADReplicationConsole Set-RMADReplicationSchedule Start-RMADFERecovery Start-RMADFEVerification Start-RMADReplication Start-RMADReportViewer Stop-RMADFEWorkflow Update-RMADBackupAgent Update-RMADFEProject Update-RMADLicense

Logging tab

The Logging tab is used to enable the extended logging during backup.

The following options are available:

  • Global settings - Use the default logging settings from the Recovery Manager Console root node: Recovery Manager for Active Directory->Settings…>Logging.

  • Enable - If you select this option, extended logging will be enabled for all domain controllers within the collection during the backup operation.

  • Disable - If you select this option, the log will contain only Warnings and Error messages.

The log files will be created in the %ProgramData%\Quest\Recovery Manager for Active Directory\Logs folder:

  • Agent side (domain controller): ErdAgent.log

  • Recovery Console: ErdServer.log

 

Performance tab

NOTE

The options on this tab are not supported for BMR backups.

The Performance tab is used to configure the throttling and performance tuning settings to be applied when creating backups for the given Computer Collection.

On this tab, you can use the following elements:

  • Enable bandwidth throttling. Limits the total bandwidth used by Backup Agent when transferring data over network links. Use bandwidth throttling to prevent excessive network traffic Backup Agent may cause.

  • Maximum network use. Provides a space for you to specify the maximum total bandwidth Backup Agent can use when transferring data over network links.

  • Enable backup agent CPU throttling. Limits the percentage of CPU processing time Backup Agent can use on each computer.

  • Maximum CPU use. Provides a space for you to specify the maximum percentage of CPU processing time Backup Agent can use on each computer.

  • Create backups on at most <Number> computers in parallel. Specifies the maximum number of computers serviced in parallel when creating backups. Increasing this number can speed backup creation. However, network saturation problems may occur. Symptoms of network saturation include slow network response when transferring data by Backup Agent, and possibly “RPC server unavailable” error messages when connecting to Backup Agent.

  • Data compression. Specifies the compression method Backup Agent uses when processing the data before sending it over network links. Using higher compression reduces network traffic, but increases CPU load on the computers being backed up. If you are planning that backups created with Recovery Manager for Active Directory be used by other MTF-compliant backup tools, set data compression to None.

 

Advanced tab

NOTE

The options (except Run Scripts settings) on this tab are not supported for BMR backups.

The Advanced tab is used to configure a number of advanced backup settings.

On this tab, you can use the following elements:

  • Limit maximum backup time This option limits the maximum backup session time.

  • Limit maximum DC backup time This option limits the maximum backup session time for a single DC.

  • Run Scripts This option allows you to customize your environment by running PowerShell scripts before and/or after creating a backup. Custom scripts can be launched either on the Recovery Manager for Active Directory Console machine or on the domain controller side.

    In the Run PowerShell Scripts dialog, the following options can be specified:

    • Run the script before starting the backup - Launches specified PowerShell scripts before the backup creation process is started.

    • Stop the backup if the script fails - Stops the backup process if the script cannot be run without errors.

    • Run the script after backup creation is complete - Launches specified PowerShell scripts after backup is created.

    • Mark the backup as unsuccessful if the script fails - If the script fails, the backup process will be shown as failed with error in the RMAD console.

    • Upload Script - Using this option you can upload an existing PowerShell script file (.ps1). After the script is uploaded, the contents of the script will be displayed in the dialog and you can edit it if necessary.

    • Select Account - Here you can select an account under which the scripts will be running. For the "Console scripts", by default, the account under which the console is launched will be used. For the "DC scripts", there is no default value, and the user has to select an account. Otherwise, the settings will not be saved.

NOTE

If the script is run on a domain controller, we strongly recommend using an account with the minimum rights required only to perform the actions specified in the script.

Resources/Images/Run_PS_scripts.png

NOTE

The "Console scripts" are launched only once for each run of backup creation on the console machine. The "DC scripts" are run on each DC for which the backup is created. If the "script for DC" fails, the corresponding DC will have an error or warning. If the "console script" fails, then all DCs for which the backup process was started will have an error or warning.

Recovery Manager for Active Directory provides an option to set the maximum timeout during which a script can run (the default value is 60 seconds). To change this value, set the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\WOW6432Node\Quest\Recovery Manager for Active Directory\Options\ScriptExecTimeoutInSeconds (DWORD) registry key to <required value>.

Failed script can lead to both Warning and Error results. It depends on the specified settings:

Option Name Scenario 1 Scenario 2 Scenario 3 Scenario 4
Run the script before starting the backup ✔ ✔
Stop the backup if the script fails ✖ ✔
Run the script after backup creation is complete ✔ ✔
Mark the backup as unsuccessful if the script fails ✖ ✔
Result Warning Error Warning Error

Script security

Running scripts can be dangerous - especially on a domain controller. Recovery Manager includes the following security measures for scripts:

  • Scripts are stored in the Recovery Manager database in an encrypted form.
  • Scripts are sent from the Recovery Manager console to the Backup Agent using a secure RPC channel.
  • Scripts are run in memory and no temporary files are created on the disk. When running scripts, the -EncodedCommand parameter of powershell.exe is used.
  • For scripts run on the domain controller, specifying a custom account under which the script will run is required. Using an account with minimum rights is recommended.
  • All scripts have a timeout when running. If the timeout is exceeded, the script will be forcibly stopped.
  • The result of the script running is recorded in the Windows Event Log.

 

Agent Settings tab

NOTE

For Recovery Manager for Active Directory 10.1 or higher: Make sure that you use the Backup Agent version supplied with this release of Recovery Manager for Active Directory.

The Agent Settings tab is used to specify settings for Backup Agent and Forest Recovery Agent.

Note

To install Forest Recovery Agent, the account under which Recovery Manager Console is running must be added to the Builtin\Administrators domain local group.
The elements of the Agent Settings tab are defined as follows:

  • Use the following account to access Backup Agent. Allows you to explicitly specify a user account under which you want the Recovery Manager Console to access Backup Agent. When this check box is cleared, the Recovery Manager Console uses the account under which it is running to access Backup Agent. To explicitly specify a user account, select this check box, and then click Select Account to specify the account credentials.

  • Use preinstalled Backup Agent. Allows you to enable or disable the automatic installation of the Backup Agent. The next table explains how Recovery Manager for Active Directory behaves when this check box is selected or cleared.

Product behavior
When this check box is selected

  • Recovery Manager for Active Directory backs up only those computers where the Backup Agent is preinstalled manually.

  • Recovery Manager for Active Directory does not automatically install the Backup Agent on the computers in the Computer Collection.

When this check box is cleared

  • Recovery Manager for Active Directory automatically installs the Backup Agent before backing up a computer where the agent is not preinstalled manually.

  • When the backup operation completes, Recovery Manager for Active Directory removes the automatically installed Backup Agent.

  • If the Backup Agent was manually preinstalled on the computer to be backed up, Recovery Manager for Active Directory will use that agent to back up data on the computer. Recovery Manager for Active Directory does not remove preinstalled Backup Agent after the backup operation completes

For more information on how to install, update, and uninstall the Backup Agent or discover the Backup Agent instances that were manually preinstalled in your environment, see Managing Backup Agent.

  • Automatically configure Windows Firewall. Select this check box to have Recovery Manager for Active Directory automatically configure Windows Firewall on target Windows Server 2008-based or Windows Server 2012-based DCs, so that Recovery Manager for Active Directory can back up these DCs.

  • Ensure Forest Recovery Agent is deployed. Select this check box if you want the application to verify whether Forest Recovery Agent is installed on each domain controller the Collection includes. The application reinstalls Forest Recovery Agent, if necessary. For more information, see Using Forest Recovery Agent.

 

Related Documents

The document was helpful.

Select Rating

I easily found the information I needed.

Select Rating