Using ESX as a disaster recovery tool

[Scotsdude]

Hey.

I'm thinking about using ESX as a DR tool. Its my plan to create virtual versions of the physical servers I have in the office, and then have the ESX server based at my DR site. Due to time,cost and other considerations, I can't virtualise my existing servers at this time.

Has anyone else done this? and if so, how did you manage the restore? I can't seem to find any info on restoring file backups from the physical servers (stored on a veriety of tape formats - another headache) to the virtual machines.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks.


Scotsdude

 

[anawrocki]

This is your tool. There is a replacment in Beta that is even better on the way. I believe the replacment will even allow for a hot p2v.

http://www.vmware.com/products/p2v/index-overview.html

 

[Scotsdude]

P2V isn't the issue. The issue I have is trying to restore the normal tape backups from the physical servers onto the virtual equivalents. I am NOT in a opsition to virtualise the main servers at this time - they must remain as physical units.

Scotsdude

 

[anawrocki]

You would need to use the P2V tool to make your backup. You then store the image whereever your DR/BC policy dictates. Than you simply mount the VM at time of disaster.

 

[Scotsdude]

No, you're not quite getting what I'm after. the servers back up every night to tape, as normal. File-level backups. I then want to restore this data to the virtual equivalents.

Scotsdude

 

[Chacalinc]

what are you backing up? backup the OS will not work due to that you have 2 different "physical" machines, I mean, it is like to have two different providers (e.g.IBM server versus HP server). A guest OS in the VMWare will see a complete different hardware than the original. So you should backup only data and not OS and Apps. Install the guest OS as a new box, install the apps, and then restore the data.

Cheers.

Chacal, Inc.

 

[anawrocki]

I get that, you would have to incrimentally/differentially apply changes as needed with the current version. I would check out the next version in Beta. It will back up servers hot to a vm image.

Someone may have an idea on the tape thing, but this will be much more easy to inovate / automate / replicate when the new version is released.

 

[Scotsdude]

Chacalinc,

Its just the data I want to back up/restore. Any ideas hwo to do that using tape when going from Physical to virtual?

Anawrocki,

I agree, I'd much rather VM the lot and work from there but that's just not gonna happen at this time.
Thanks for your input though.

Scotsdude

 

[LarryTheCucumber]

Do you run a backup system? TSM, Legato, etc?

What we have done is create the VM from the PM and we can restore any files from tape we wish. The VM acts just like the PM. We use TSM for our backups.

 

[Scotsdude]

Yeah, we use Arcserve. Do you just attach the tape drive to the ESX server and see ti in the VM?

Scotsdude

 

[LarryTheCucumber]

Check this page

http://www.vmware.com/pdf/vi3_backup_guide.pdf

With TSM we have a TSM VM setup that we would use.

 

[comtec17]

You will still need to put in an Arcserve server and import your catalogs. But once the import is complete and the Client agents are on the VM's, just restore to the VM's like you would any other ordinary server.

 

[Chacalinc]

But (continuing comtec's post) if you are restoring only data, just install the backup agent as any ordinary server and restore data in the VM.

Cheers.

Chacal, Inc.