WHITE PAPER: SYMANTEC BACKUP EXEC 3600 APPLIANCE Symantec Backup Exec 3600 Appliance Simple, Quick, Secure Data Backup and Recovery Small and medium-sized businesses cannot survive without their data. Where large organisations will almost always have resources to manage data loss, backup and recovery, smaller businesses find it harder to balance the cost and the savings, the benefits and the risk. Symantec makes that balancing act easy, with the Backup Exec 3600 Appliance.
Content Business Value...3 The Backup Exec 3600 Appliance...4 Underlying Principles...6 VMware Integration...7 Hyper-V Integration...8 Built-in Data Deduplication...9 Recovery Capabilities...9 Example Appliance Scenarios...11 Case Study...13 2
Business Value In today s complex world of information technology and data protection, there are many challenges and considerations associated with building, implementing, and supporting any backup solution. These challenges often lead to delayed projects, overspent budgets and failure. For these and many other factors, organisations are seeking a simple appliance-based solution. This approach reduces complexity, cost and associated risks. Complexity of a Traditional Backup Solution Building a traditional backup solution involves the acquisition of multiple components including a server, operating system, tape devices, backup software, agents, tapes, and not to mention multiple warranty and maintenance contracts. This equates to a higher overall cost of ownership. For some environments, it is also necessary to define and manage a backup storage strategy for remote offices, which can be complicated further if technical personnel are not available at remote offices to assist. In addition, as IT environments continue to adopt virtualisation, there is the need to implement a backup solution that matches the needs of both physical and virtualised server resources. Cost of a Traditional Backup Solution In addition to the challenges and complexity there are significant costs and time investments associated with creating a traditional backup solution. These include backup software costs, backup software agent and option costs, backup server and storage hardware costs, costs associated with the time and effort needed to install the hardware and software components of the solution, as well as costs associated with managing removable media at remote offices. In some environments, costs are unnecessarily compounded if separate backup solutions are implemented for physical and virtual resources. In addition to these visible costs, there are hidden costs all along the way. All in all, the combined monetary and time cost of implementing a traditional backup solution can be significant. Risks of a Traditional Backup Solution Finally, there s the additional problem of risk that comes from constructing a backup solution made up of software and hardware components from different vendors. These risks include: Hardware and Software Component Compatibility: Solutions built using different hardware and software components from different vendors may or may not work together properly. Backup Performance: Presuming the different components of the backup solution function together, performance may not be optimal. In order to achieve acceptable performance, it may be necessary to troubleshoot, reconfigure, or even replace one or more components of the backup solution. Technical Support Time to Resolution: When dealing with a backup solution composed of hardware and software components from different vendors, troubleshooting and resolving problems can prove difficult. Vendors will each point the finger at another vendor, and issues can bounce back and forth before a solution is identified. 3
The Backup Exec 3600 Appliance The Backup Exec 3600 Appliance mitigates the problems of complexity, cost, and risk associated with traditional backup solutions by delivering a combined hardware and software solution in a single package. Simple Unified installation and configuration Single Vendor For: Hardware Software License management Cost Effective All You Can Eat Backup Exec Agent Backup Exec Options Remote Offices Remove tape Lower costs Low Risk All-in-one Solution Compatibility Assured Reliable Performance One Stop for Support Figure 1. Symantec Backup Exec 3600 Appliance Complete Virtual and Physical Protection in a Single Solution The Backup Exec 3600 Appliance delivers complete data and application protection for both virtual and physical server resources in an environment. This includes optimised support for the latest VMware and Microsoft Hyper-V platforms. For VMware environments, the Backup Exec 3600 Appliance includes deep integration with the VMware vstorage API, ensuring VMware virtual machines are protected using the latest technology available. Physical Backup Exec TM 3600 Appliance Virtual Figure 2. Complete Physical and Virtual Protection Using the Backup Exec 3600 Appliance, users can protect both physical and virtual server resources in their environment and avoid the unnecessary costs and headaches associated with implementing and managing separate backup solutions for each. 4
The Backup Exec 3600 Appliance Designed for Virtual Environments Users who want to protect their VMware or Hyper-V virtual environments understand the frustration and time involved with legacy backup technologies are not designed specifically for protecting virtual environments. Limitations can include: Degradation of virtual environment performance when processing backups inside virtual machines The shutdown of guest virtual machines in order to protect them completely Separate backups for virtualised applications, such as Microsoft SQL, Active Directory, SharePoint, and Microsoft Exchange The manual configuration of backup agents and policies for new virtual machines Slow file-by-file backups that capture redundant data in each guest virtual machine over and over Long restores of an entire guest virtual machine in order to recover a single file The Backup Exec 3600 Appliance overcomes these limitations with the following features: Backup Exec 3600 Appliance Virtual Protection Features Direct backups of virtual environments (no proxy server) Image-level backups of virtual machines while they remain online Differential and incremental backup support (change block tracking) Block Optimization VSS integration, ensuring application consistency Automatic discovery and protection of new virtual machines Optimized data deduplication of VMDK and VHD files All Levels of Recovery from a single-pass backup: Full virtual machine Application recovery Granular application recovery Granular file and folder recovery The Backup Exec 3600 Appliance represents an effective, easy-tobuy, and easy-to-use data and application protection solution for small and medium sized customers who are partially or fully virtualised. Figure 3. Direct Backup of Virtual Resources 5
Underlying Principles General The Backup Exec 3600 Appliance comes with Backup Exec software pre-installed and is designed to be a complete data and application backup solution for small and medium size environments. Included Software Backup Exec 2012 The Backup Exec software included on the Backup Exec 3600 Appliance is based upon Backup Exec 2012. Both the core Backup Exec software and the agent software required to protect physical servers are included in the Backup Exec 3600 Appliance. Windows Storage Server 2008 The operating system included on the Backup Exec 3600 Appliance is Windows Storage Server 2008 hardened to ensure optimal security and stability in production environments. All these software components can be updated with patches and hot fixes which are automatically downloaded. This self-update capability ensures that the appliance remains secure and functional in an everevolving security environment. Physical Server Backup Methods For physical servers protected by the Backup Exec 3600 Appliance, backup data is always captured through a local agent on the physical server called the Agent for Windows (for Windows servers) or the Agent for Linux (for Linux servers). With either agent, communications are over the LAN infrastructure. The agents also direct recovery of file or application objects back to the original resource from which they were captured. Virtual Machine Backup Methods For virtual infrastructures such as VMware vsphere or Microsoft Hyper-V environments, users can protect virtual machines either using host-based backup methods, which capture image-level backups of virtual machines associated with the virtual host, or by using the same agent-based backup method used to protect physical servers. Image-level and agent-based backups can be mixed and matched to meet the needs of an environment. For example, users may choose to protect all Windows-based virtual machines using image-level backups while protecting Linux-based virtual machines using agent-based backups. Users can add additional functionality by installing the appropriate Backup Exec agent to each virtual machine being protected by the Backup Exec 3600 Appliance. This agent works with the image-level backup to automatically discover applications inside the virtual machine, perform recovery operations for applications such as Exchange, SQL, SharePoint, and Active Directory, and to restore filelevel elements directly back to the virtual machines from which they were generated. Communication Security Physical Server Communication Security The communication path between the Agent for Windows or the Agent for Linux and the Backup Exec 3600 Appliance is encrypted using TSL/ SSL encryption technology. Hyper-V Virtual Machine Communication Security For Hyper-V environments, the Agent for Windows is installed to each Hyper-V host and once again the communication path between the Agent for Windows on the Hyper-V host and the Backup Exec 3600 Appliance is encrypted using TSL/SSL encryption technology. VMware Virtual Machine Communication Security For VMware environments, backups are captured via the VMware vstorage API. No Backup Exec agent is installed to the vsphere host itself. To ensure security in these configurations, it is recommended that SSL be enabled on the vsphere host to ensure communication traffic between the vsphere host and the Backup Exec 3600 Appliance remains secure. 6
Underlying Principles Communication Security and Other Virtual Platforms For virtual infrastructures based on platforms other than VMware and Hyper-V, virtual machines are protected using an agent installed locally to each virtual machine, either the Agent for Windows or the Agent for Linux. In essence, virtual machines are protected as if they were standalone physical servers. Secondary Copies of Backup Data The primary storage device of the Backup Exec 3600 Appliance is the 5.5 TB disk array within the appliance itself. Because it s enabled for data deduplication, it can protect a larger amount of front-end data. Backup Exec 3600 Appliance Supported Secondary Storage Devices Locally Attached USB Devices Locally Attached Tape Drives and Libraries (SAS) Remote Backup Exec Servers Remote Backup Exec 3600 Appliances Remote Network Storage (NAS) Devices Nirvanix Cloud Storage VMware Integration The Backup Exec 3600 Appliance includes technology specifically designed and optimised for VMware environments. Integration with the vsphere platform through the vstorage API enables the Backup Exec 3600 Appliance to support the following features: Backup Exec 3600 Appliance VMware Protection Features Support for the latest VMware platforms, vsphere 4.0 and 5.0 Direct backup of VMware virtual machines (no proxy server) Block Optimization ignores empty blocks within a VMDK file Change Block Tracking enables differential and incremental backups Dynamic inclusion automatically finds and protects new virtual machines VSS integration ensures application consistency All levels of recovery from a single-pass backup: Full VM recovery Application recovery Granular Application Recovery Granular File and Folder Recovery 7
Hyper-V Integration The Backup Exec 3600 Appliance includes technology specifically designed and optimised for Hyper-V environments. Integration with the Microsoft Hyper-V platform enables the Backup Exec 3600 Appliance to support the following features: Backup Exec 3600 Appliance Hyper-V Protection Features Support for the latest Hyper-V platform, Hyper-V 2008 Direct backup of Hyper-V virtual machines (no proxy server) Block Optimization ignores empty blocks within a VHD file Change Block Tracking enables differential and incremental backups Dynamic Inclusion automatically finds and protects new virtual machines VSS integration ensures application consistency All levels of recovery from a single-pass backup: Full VM recovery Application recovery Granular Application Recovery Granular File and Folder Recovery Cluster Shared Volumes A new technology introduced by Microsoft for their Windows 2008 Server platforms is Cluster Shared Volumes. The Backup Exec 3600 Appliance and the Agent for VMware and Hyper-V support the protection of Cluster Shared Volume nodes, as well as highly available virtual machines in a Cluster Shared Volume configuration. The Backup Exec 3600 Appliance and the Agent for VMware and Hyper-V support the Live Migration of virtual machines between Hyper-V hosts. Simplified Disaster Recovery The core technology that enables the new virtual conversion features within the Backup Exec 3600 Appliance is called Simplified Disaster Recovery, or SDR. This technology ensures that system-level elements of a server are captured and stored as part of a backup operation. When a virtual conversion operation is performed, this system-level information is used to ensure the converted server is complete and will function properly as a virtual machine. 8
Built-in Data Deduplication The Backup Exec 3600 Appliance includes data deduplication technology that greatly increases its backup data storage efficiency. As backup data is captured and stored to the disk array in the Backup Exec 3600, the data is scanned to determine what blocks are unique and need to be stored and which blocks can be skipped. Only unique data blocks are stored to disk. Client-level and appliance-level calculation methods can be mixed and matched according to the needs of an administrator. For example, an administrator could decide to have all VMware backups deduplicated at the appliance level, and have all physical backups deduplicated at the client level. Figure 4. Backup Exec 3600 Appliance Data Deduplication This powerful data deduplication technology is built into the Backup Exec 3600 Appliance and does not require any additional purchase. The data deduplication technology within the Backup Exec 3600 Appliance includes specific optimisation for backups of virtual machines. This includes backups of VMware virtual machines as well as Hyper-V virtual machines. Recovery Capabilities The Backup Exec 3600 Appliance supports a wide range of recovery options for both physical and virtual machine backups. Each of these recovery options is possible from a single-pass backup operation; no additional or separate backup operation is required. 9
Recovery Capabilities Virtual Server Recovery Options The Backup Exec 3600 Appliance supports a full range of powerful recovery options for protected VMware and Hyper-V virtual machines. These include: Full virtual machine recovery Application recovery Granular file and folder recovery VMDK/VHD file recovery Granular application recovery Redirected recovery The Backup Exec 3600 Appliance represents the latest in backup technology with features and capabilities integrated with, and designed specifically for, VMware and Hyper-V virtual environments. Physical Server Disaster Recovery Options The Backup Exec 3600 Appliance supports advanced disaster recovery capabilities for the physical servers it is being used to protect. This includes the following: Physical Server Disaster Recovery Options Bare Metal Recovery* Dissimilar Hardware Recovery* *Windows servers only. Simplified Disaster Recovery Simplified Disaster Recovery (SDR) technology ensures that system-level elements of a server are captured and stored as part of a backup operation. Recovery Disk The Backup Exec 3600 Appliance s recovery disk is used by administrators to perform bare metal and dissimilar hardware recovery operations of physical servers protected by the Backup Exec 3600 Appliance. The recovery disk is based on the powerful Microsoft WinPE operating system, and includes a driver database for both runtime tasks and dissimilar hardware recovery operations. Additional Physical Server Recovery Options In addition to the advanced disaster recovery features supported by the Backup Exec 3600 Appliance for the physical servers it is protecting, other non-disaster recovery capabilities are also supported. This includes the following: Non-disaster Physical Server Recovery Options Application Recovery Granular Application Recovery File and Folder Recovery Redirected Recovery 10
Example Appliance Scenarios Single Site A common scenario for the Backup Exec 3600 Appliance involves the protection of a single site. In this scenario, the appliance replaces the traditional backup server, which is commonly constructed of hardware and software components from different vendors that have been manually combined to form a backup server. Virtual Server Backup Another scenario for the Backup Exec 3600 Appliance involves the protection of virtual infrastructures. With built-in support for VMware and Hyper-V environments and backup deduplication technology included as standard, the Backup Exec 3600 Appliance is a nice fit for environments that are partially or fully virtualised. The Backup Exec 3600 Appliance is deployed in the single site environment and configured to protect physical and virtual server resources. Backup policies are assigned to the protected server resources, and backup data sets are copied, per the defined schedule, to the disk storage system of the appliance. From there, backup data is copied offsite either with removable USB media (RDX) or tape media, or by copying backup sets to a remote resource, such as a network B2D folder or a Nirvanix cloud storage account. Figure 6. Virtual Server Backup Scenario Figure 5. Single Site Appliance Scenario 11
Example Appliance Scenarios Sister Site or DR Site Scenario The Backup Exec 3600 Appliance can be used as a sister site or DR site. In this example, a Backup Exec 3600 Appliance is configured at each site. Backup data sets are captured at each site from protected physical and virtual servers and stored to the disk system of the appliance at that site. These backup sets are also copied or duplicated between each Backup Exec 3600 Appliance, ensuring that each appliance contains the complete set of backup data from both sites. In this scenario, backup data is transferred in deduplicated or compressed form, reducing bandwidth requirements and speeding up the data movement process. One of the Backup Exec 3600 Appliances must be promoted to the role of central administration server (CAS), to ensure that catalogs and device sharing methods are managed properly, and to simplify the operations of both appliances from a single console. Remote Office Scenario The Backup Exec 3600 Appliance can be used to protect remote office environments. A great way for customers to solve the problem of properly protecting and backing up servers at remote sites is to implement a Backup Exec 3600 Appliance at each of their remote sites. At each remote site, server backup data is stored to the Backup Exec 3600 Appliance. From there, backup sets are copied up stream to a centralised Backup Exec server. This allows for disaster recovery protection of the remote sites without having to manage tape media at those sites. Once again, backup data is transferred in deduplicated or compressed form, reducing bandwidth requirements and speeding up the data movement process. Backup Exec CAS Backup Exec TM 3600 Appliance (CAS) Backup Exec TM 3600 Appliance Figure 7. Appliance Sister Site Scenario Remote Office Appliance Figure 8. Remote Office Appliance Scenario 12
Case Study Fast, quick secure: data back-up for the Lotus Renault F1 Team The Lotus F1 Team goes racing 20 weekends each year with just one objective: to win. So along with two cars, a team of mechanics, engineers and IT experts and its telemetry, the Team takes with it the Backup Exec 3600 Appliance. F1 race success hinges on many, many elements, but one of the overriding factors is fast, reliable data access. The Backup Exec 3600 Appliance revolutionises the way the Team stores and protects its trackside virtual environment. desktop infrastructure where the team principal and race strategists monitor the second-by-second movements of the race. With the Backup Exec Appliance we have the ability to rapidly restore an entire server, virtual machine, application, or database in minutes, says Taylor. Better still, we can drill down into individual files or folders from that same single-pass backup. I don t know where we would be without the Backup Exec 3600 Appliance, explains Michael Taylor, deputy IT/ IS director for the Lotus F1 Team. Despite the fact that space and resources are limited during the race weekend, our overriding priority is to protect the trackside virtual servers that support our telemetry, race preparation, and other data. If we lost data before the race started, we wouldn t be on the grid; if we lost data during the race, we can forget about a podium finish. The Backup Exec Appliance dramatically minimises downtime and data loss by rapidly recovering what we need, when we need it. The Backup Exec 3600 Appliance delivers integrated data de-duplication, granular recovery, and virtual machine protection to the Lotus F1 Team. In particular it restores the team s VMware servers in minutes if needed. The Backup Exec Appliance also supports a 20-client virtual It took the Team less than one hour to complete the initial install, setup and configuration of the Backup Exec 3600 Appliance. At each race it now takes minutes, hugely important because the Team can only take a limited number of resources to each race. High-speed de-duplication (the Appliance sends only the changed blocks to storage) reduces the size of the virtual server files stored by 68 per cent. Why is the Symantec 3600 Backup Appliance right for the Lotus F1 Team? Because, says Michael Taylor, it is easy to install, it protects all our virtual trackside servers, and it introduced an all-in-one reliable data protection solution. It s a harsh environment trackside, and the rugged device is more than fit for purpose. Go to http://www.symantec.com/resources/customer_success/detail.jsp?cid=lotus_renault_gp for more on Lotus Renault and Symantec. For more information go to: BE 3600 Appliance Support Landing Page Backup Exec Family Landing Page Using Backup Exec in Large Environments Compatibility Documentation www.symantec.com/business/support/index?page=landing&key=60491 www.symantec.com/business/backup-exec-for-windows-servers http://support.veritas.com/docs/304175 www.backupexec.com/compatibility 13
About Symantec Symantec protects the world s information and is the global leader in security, backup, and availability solutions. Our innovative products and services protect people and information in any environment from the smallest mobile device to the enterprise data center to cloud-based systems. Our industry-leading expertise in protecting data, identities, and interactions gives our customers confidence in a connected world. More information is available at www.symantec.com or by connecting with Symantec at http://go.symantec.com/socialmedia/. Contact Us: Symantec Asia Pacific Sales For sales enquiries please call the appropriate number below or email: Australia www.symantec.com.au E-mail address: pacific_sales@symantec.com Toll free Number: 1800 000 423 New Zealand www.symantec.co.nz E-mail address: pacific_sales@symantec.com Toll free Number: 0800 697 962 Singapore www.symantec.com.sg Local Number: +65 6586 7742 Malaysia www.symantec.com.my Toll free Number: 1800 805 106 India www.symantec.com/in Toll free Number: 000 800 4401456 Indonesia www.symantec.com/id E-mail address: inquiry_id@symantec.com Philippines www.symantec.com/en/ph Email address: Micaela_Melencio@symantec.com Vietnam Email address: inquiry_vn@symantec.com Thailand www.symantec.co.th Email address: thaimktg@symantec.com Hong Kong www.symantec.com.hk E-mail address: hongkong-sales@symantec.com Toll free Number: 800 963 421 Copyright 2013 Symantec Corporation. All rights reserved. Symantec, the Symantec Logo, and the Checkmark Logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of Symantec Corporation or its affiliates in the U.S. and other countries. Microsoft and Windows are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countries. Linux is a registered trademark of Linus Torvalds. Other names may be trademarks of their respective owners. 2/2013