The steps for setting up a virtual failover client vary depending on the desired location for the VFC. Before setting up the VFC, it is recommended that you review Steps for implementing Windows instant recovery. For instructions on setting up the VFC, see the following topics:
Use the steps described below to set up a virtual failover client (VFC) on a Recovery Series backup system or replication target. Before setting up the VFC, It is recommended that you review Requirements and considerations for Windows instant recovery.
Step 1: | Determine the system load (optional). See Unitrends system resource considerations for Windows instant recovery. |
Step 2: | Allocate system storage for instant recovery. See Allocating storage for Windows instant recovery. |
Step 3: | Set up a virtual network bridge and network to access the LAN during instant recovery. (This is not client-specific, so if a bridge and network are already set up on the Unitrends system, you can skip this step.) See Setting up a virtual network for Windows instant recovery. |
Step 4: | Set up a VFC. See Creating a virtual failover client. |
A virtual failover client (VFC) residing on a Recovery Series appliance uses the appliance’s resources and impacts system performance. Processors, memory, and storage are assigned to the VFC, so less system resources are available for functions such as backups, archiving, replication, and deduplication. Retention is also impacted, as storage allocated for instant recovery cannot be used for backups.
Before creating a VFC on a Recovery Series appliance, you should use the procedure described below to check the system load and utilization and determine whether the appliance has adequate resources to perform other functions while also running the VFC.
1 | In the Navigation pane, select the backup system or replication target where the VFC will run. |
2 | Click on Settings > System Monitoring > Load and verify that the system load is at an acceptable level. |
Note: If the system is consistently in the Alarm Area for prolonged periods of time or if backups are not completed in the desired backup window, you should reconsider the number of VFCs.
3 | If VFCs are currently residing on the appliance, select Settings > Instant Recovery > WindowsTo see resource utilization snapshots for processor, memory, and storage for these VFCs. |
Depending on the identity of the appliance (backup system or replication target), the storage can be allocated among backups/replication, vaulting, and instant recovery. Resources allocated for a virtual failover client (VFC) can no longer be used for other features such as backups, archives, or deduplication.
The amount of storage you allocate for instant recovery on the appliance should be greater than the sum of the used space on all of the original clients for which you will create VFCs.
Before allocating storage, it is recommended that you note the following:
• | The system load and utilization (see Unitrends system resource considerations for Windows instant recovery). |
• | The storage used on the client. The amount of storage you allocate for instant recovery on the appliance should be greater than the sum of the used space on all of the original clients for which you will create VFCs. You can determine the amount of space used on a client by selecting the computer window and viewing the disks. The figure below provides an example. |
1 | On the Unitrends appliance that will run the VFC, select Settings > Storage and Retention > Storage Allocation. You see the storage allocation chart which shows the storage allocated for backup/replication, vaulting, and instant recovery. |
2 | Allocate storage for instant recovery by sliding the pie chart or entering the desired size in the field below the graphic. The amount of storage allocated for instant recovery should be greater than the sum of the used space on the original Windows clients. |
If the storage allocated for instant recovery is insufficient, an alert and SNMP trap is issued to help you quickly detect and resolve the space allocation issue.
3 | Click Confirm. You see a summary window with the new allocation. |
4 | Click Yes to confirm the new settings. |
To run the virtual failover client (VFC) on a Recovery Series appliance, you must set up a virtual network bridge and confirm or update the virtual network before setting up the VFC itself. (For more information, see Creating a virtual failover client.)
Note: This is an appliance-specific setup and not client specific. If a virtual network has already been setup for a previous VFC, you do not need to repeat this step for a new VFC.
This network bridge allows you to access the VFC in audit or live mode. When the VFC is in live mode, it uses this bridge to access the local area network of the appliance. It can then communicate with other clients on the network and access the Internet. A VFC in audit mode does not have network connectivity.
The virtual failover client (VFC) communicates with other network elements via the network bridge, which is associated with a physical Ethernet adapter (eth0, eth1, etc) on the Unitrends appliance.
Setting up the virtual network is a two-part process that includes:
• | Setting up the network bridge |
• | Setting up the virtual network |
1 | Select Settings > Instant Recovery > Network Bridge. In the upper left part of the screen, you see the Ethernet adapters (and associated subnets) that the VFC uses to communicate with the other clients on the network. |
2 | Click to select an Ethernet adapter. |
• | This may be eth0, eth1, etc., or you may see only one. |
• | If you have more than one Ethernet adapter, use a secondary adapter for the network bridge (the one that is NOT being used for backups or replication). |
3 | After you click on the Ethernet adapter, perform one of the following depending on the message that displays: |
• | If a bridge has not been set up for this adapter, the message NO BRIDGE ATTACHED displays. Proceed to step 4. |
• | If a bridge has already been set up for this adapter, a message displays in the upper right portion of the screen indicating that this adapter is attached to the bridge (such as “Network Bridge attached to Physical Adapter: eth0”). Skip to step . |
4 | Click Add to add the network bridge to the adapter. You see a message confirming that you are adding the bridge. |
5 | Click the I understand that I am adding a bridge to... checkbox. |
6 | Click Confirm. In the upper right part of the screen, you see a message that the network bridge is attached to the physical adapter and the physical Ethernet adapter you selected. |
Note: You also see a Remove button you can use to remove this adapter, if necessary.
7 | Click Close. Continue to Setting up the virtual network. |
1 | Select Settings > Instant Recovery > Virtual Network. In the upper left part of the screen, you see the default value of the virtual network. It may take a moment to load. |
2 | If the Virtual Network address conflicts with a subnet used in your environment, you can change this address as needed. |
Note: The DHCP Range is a pool of IP addresses from which IPs are assigned to the VFCs you create. For example, with a DHCP Range of 192.168.53.2 - 192.168.53.25, the address for the virtual network can be from 192.168.53.2 to 192.168.53.25, and you can change the last number to a number between 2 and 25 (as long as the number is not being used already).
3 | Click Confirm to establish the virtual network. You see a message that the network address is successfully set. |
4 | Click Okay. |
This section describes the procedures for setting up a virtual failover client (VFC). The steps are the same whether the VFC resides on a Recovery Series appliance (backup system or replication target) or an external hypervisor. After setting up a VFC on a hypervisor, you must configure the network settings for the VFC. For instructions, see Adding a virtual failover client to an external hypervisor and configuring network settings. Before setting up a virtual failover client, it is recommended that you review Steps for implementing Windows instant recovery.
Note: After setting up a VFC, you should not make any configuration changes to the original client (such as adding or removing a disk). Doing so causes the VFC to become Invalid for WIR. For details, see Invalid virtual failover clients.
1 | In the Navigation pane, select the backup system or replication target where the Windows client backups reside. |
2 | Go to Settings > Instant Recovery > Windows. |
You see any VFCs that are already set up. If you are on a Recovery Series appliance, you may also see graphs of the allocation for processors, memory, and storage for any existing VFCs on the system. These graphs do not represent any VFCs on a hypervisor, since Unitrends system resources are not allocated to these VFCs.
3 | Click Add in the bottom right of the screen. You see a list of all clients supported for WIR. |
Note: If the client you want to add is not in this list, verify that client prerequisites have been met. See Windows client requirements for Windows instant recovery.
4 | Click on the name of the desired client. |
You see a message that the client configuration is being retrieved. This might take a moment as the system scans over the latest eligible backup or the client itself for system/disk configuration, and then uses this configuration to create the VFC.
Note: If the appliance is unable to determine if your client is BIOS or UEFI-based, you see a message about UEFI requirements. If your client is UEFI-based, be sure these requirements have been met. For details, see Firmware interface type and disk and volume configuration.
5 | Once the configuration is retrieved, you see the Add Virtual Failover Client window, which displays the configuration of the original client and boxes used to configure the VFC. |
6 | Select an icon for the VFC location. |
Icons representing possible VFC locations display. Select the icon for your desired location. The platform capabilities of your appliance determine which icons display, so an icon representing a hypervisor might display even if you have not added this hypervisor to the appliance. You must add the hypervisor to the appliance before a VFC can be created on the hypervisor.
Note: If the client you selected is UEFI-based, the Recovery Series icon will not display as a possible location because a UEFI-based VFC cannot run on a Recovery Series appliance.
7 | Assign processors to the VFC. |
You can assign the VFC fewer processors than the original client, as long as the number of processors is not less than one. In most cases, WIR is a temporary solution, so you might want to assign the VFC fewer processors to conserve resources on the appliance or hypervisor.
8 | Assign memory to the VFC. |
This can be less than the amount of memory on the original client. In most cases, WIR is a temporary solution, so you might want to assign the VFC fewer processors to conserve resources on the appliance or hypervisor. For a VFC residing on a hypervisor, the memory must be at least 1024 MB. If it will reside on an ESX host, the memory must be a multiple of 4. For a VFC residing on a Hyper-V server, the memory must be a multiple of 2. The appliance rounds the number you enter up or down to the nearest multiple of 4 or 2, depending on the hypervisor you have selected.
9 | Check the E-mail the virtual failover client recovery verification report box to receive a daily email report with a screen shot of the VFC’s login screen in audit mode. This email verifies that the VFC boots successfully. The email verification report is not available for a VFC residing on an ESX host. For details, see Automated audits for a virtual failover client. |
10 | Select volumes from the original client that you want to restore to the VFC. |
Consider the following when selecting volumes:
• | All of the original client’s volumes display under “Volumes Available,” regardless of whether they have been backed up on the appliance. |
• | All volumes are added to the VFC by default, and you can use the buttons in the volumes box to add or remove volumes. |
• | Critical volumes are identified. System Reserved and Utility partitions are marked UnmountedVol:. |
• | If you remove critical volumes, the attempt to create the VFC fails. |
• | After creating a VFC, you cannot add or remove volumes. To add or remove volumes, you must delete the existing VFC and create a new one with the desired volumes selected. |
Note: If a SAN LUN is attached to the original client, it is recommended that the SAN volume be excluded from the VFC and reattached after it is booted in live mode.
11 | If the client for which you are creating a VFC hosts Exchange or SQL applications, tabs for the applications display in the Add Virtual Failover Client window. Use these tabs to select databases to include in the VFC. |
Consider the following when selecting databases:
• | Only databases that have been backed up display. If you are using replicated backups to create the VFC, only databases for which replicated backups reside on the appliance display in the list of databases. |
• | System databases (such as master, model, and msdb) do not display because they are automatically included in the VFC. |
• | Hyper-V, Oracle, and Sharepoint applications do not display because they cannot be protected by WIR. |
12 | Click Confirm after you have configured all the settings in the Add Virtual Failover Client window. One of the following happens depending on the VFC location: |
• | Recovery Series appliance: The VFC is created, and the last backup group is restored to it. Information for the VFC displays in the list of Windows Instant Recovery Clients, which you can view by selecting Settings > Instant Recovery > Windows. For more details, see Viewing virtual failover client details. |
• | External hypervisor: An Add Virtual Failover Client window displays. You must now configure the network settings for the VFC. Proceed to Adding a virtual failover client to an external hypervisor and configuring network settings. |
Use the steps described below to set up a virtual failover client (VFC) on an ESX or Hyper-V server. Before setting up the VFC, It is recommended that you review Requirements and considerations for Windows instant recovery.
Step 1: | Verify that adequate resources are available on the hypervisor where the VFC will reside. |
Step 2: | Add the hypervisor to the appliance that will manage the VFC. See one of the following: |
Step 3: | Create the VFC. For instructions, see Creating a virtual failover client. |
Step 4: | Add the VFC to the hypervisor and configure network settings. For instructions, see Adding a virtual failover client to an external hypervisor and configuring network settings. |
After setting up the virtual failover client (VFC), you must add it to the hypervisor and configure network settings. Use the instructions described below.
1 | Create the VFC as described in Creating a virtual failover client. |
2 | A list of ESX or Hyper-V servers displays. |
Note: To create a VFC on a hypervisor, you must add the hypervisor as a client to the Unitrends appliance that will manage the VFC. If a hypervisor that has been added as a client does not display in the list of servers, verify that it meets the requirements for WIR. See Requirements and considerations for running a virtual failover client on an external hypervisor.
3 | Select the hypervisor where you want the VFC to reside. |
If you are creating the VFC on a Hyper-V server and you want the VFC to be a clustered VM, you must select a cluster. You cannot specify an owner node for the clustered VFC. If you select an individual node in the cluster, the VFC will not be clustered.
4 | Select a datastore (ESX) or path (Hyper-V). |
5 | Enter a name for the VFC in the field Virtual Failover Client Name. This is the name that displays in the hypervisor. The actual name of the VFC is the name of the original client. |
Consider the following when entering a name:
• | The default name is Unitrends_<name of the original client>. |
• | You can enter a different name. However, it is recommended that you assign the VFC a name that identifies it as a VM managed by the Unitrends appliance. |
• | The following characters are supported: upper and lowercase letters, numbers, hyphens, and underscores. |
6 | Select a network for the VFC. |
If you are creating a VFC on a Hyper-V cluster, select the network switch common to all nodes on the cluster. If you select a different switch, a VFC in live mode that fails over to a different node will lose network connectivity.
7 | Enter a unique IP address for the VFC. It must have the same subnet as the hypervisor on which it resides. |
Note: Virtual restores fail if you enter an IP address that is not valid.
8 | Enter the netmask for the VFC. It must be the same as the netmask for the hypervisor. |
9 | Enter a gateway for the VFC. It must be the same as the gateway for the hypervisor. |
10 | Click Confirm. The VFC is created on the hypervisor, and the last backup group is restored to it. Information for the VFC displays in the list of Windows Instant Recovery Clients, which you can view by selecting Settings > Instant Recovery > Windows. For more details, see Viewing virtual failover client details. |