Using a NAS for backups & Unitrends FREE
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Tagging @art_of_shred
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Unitrends supports CIFS and NFS shares for archiving to NAS, and also protecting data on a CIFS or NFS share. I'm not sure about using a NAS as direct backup storage for a virtual setup (meaning you don't have a physical Unitrends appliance). Direct attached storage is always the recommended configuration for local backups.
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Assuming you can do SMB or NFS, I'd definitely do that to the NAS - don't mess with ISCSI unless you absolutely need to.
Also, if possible, use a dedicated NIC for the NAS to the ESXi host with Unitrends on it, maximize your throughput.
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Just thinking while I was typing a different reply since the server will be wiped and XenServer installed I'll be loosing the VM datastore anyway so guessing "achieving" them to the NAS is better so when XenServer is running and I redeploy unitrends I can "restore" from said achieve
Then I'll most probably use XO to handle backups (unless people think unitrends would be better than XO) and use the NAS as normal. As for now this is only to move servers so to speak
If that makes sense lol
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@Dashrender said in Using a NAS for backups & Unitrends FREE:
Assuming you can do SMB or NFS, I'd definitely do that to the NAS - don't mess with ISCSI unless you absolutely need to.
Also, if possible, use a dedicated NIC for the NAS to the ESXi host with Unitrends on it, maximize your throughput.
That's not a bad idea will try that too
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@hobbit666 said in Using a NAS for backups & Unitrends FREE:
Just thinking while I was typing a different reply since the server will be wiped and XenServer installed I'll be loosing the VM datastore anyway so guessing "achieving" them to the NAS is better so when XenServer is running and I redeploy unitrends I can "restore" from said achieve
Then I'll most probably use XO to handle backups (unless people think unitrends would be better than XO) and use the NAS as normal. As for now this is only to move servers so to speak
If that makes sense lol
The only thing that didn't make sense is that I think you meant "archiving".
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@art_of_shred said in Using a NAS for backups & Unitrends FREE:
@hobbit666 said in Using a NAS for backups & Unitrends FREE:
Just thinking while I was typing a different reply since the server will be wiped and XenServer installed I'll be loosing the VM datastore anyway so guessing "achieving" them to the NAS is better so when XenServer is running and I redeploy unitrends I can "restore" from said achieve
Then I'll most probably use XO to handle backups (unless people think unitrends would be better than XO) and use the NAS as normal. As for now this is only to move servers so to speak
If that makes sense lol
The only thing that didn't make sense is that I think you meant "archiving".
LOL Yeah was using my phone
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Just 1 or 2 things
Unitrends currently wont do incremental backups on Xenserver. All vm backups have to be full backups, all the time unless you use their agent, which will do full/incrmental, System State and File level backups.
Instead of backing up the vms, could you not just export them to xva then import them later?(basically a backup)
I use a NAS for my backups, though i do use iscsi disks and not nfs. -
@momurda said in Using a NAS for backups & Unitrends FREE:
Just 1 or 2 things
Unitrends currently wont do incremental backups on Xenserver. All vm backups have to be full backups, all the time unless you use their agent, which will do full/incrmental, System State and File level backups.
Instead of backing up the vms, could you not just export them to xva then import them later?(basically a backup)
I use a NAS for my backups, though i do use iscsi disks and not nfs.That could be plan B, just want to use Unitrends to play with it lol.
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Attach the NAS as a data store in vsphere then connect a disk on that to unitrends.
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The version I got doesn't seem to support XenServer?
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@hobbit666 said in Using a NAS for backups & Unitrends FREE:
The version I got doesn't seem to support XenServer?
XenServer is only supported via agents on the hosted virtual machines. XenOrchestra has some backup software included that is agent-less and does incremental backups.
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@hobbit666 said in Using a NAS for backups & Unitrends FREE:
The version I got doesn't seem to support XenServer?
Not at the hypervisor / platform level. You need to work with agents the same as if it was physical. Doesn't work with ESXi Free, either.
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@scottalanmiller said in Using a NAS for backups & Unitrends FREE:
@hobbit666 said in Using a NAS for backups & Unitrends FREE:
The version I got doesn't seem to support XenServer?
Not at the hypervisor / platform level. You need to work with agents the same as if it was physical. Doesn't work with ESXi Free, either.
Just to clarify, it doesn't work with ESXi Free at the hypervisor level, but the agent level works just fine.
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@Dashrender said in Using a NAS for backups & Unitrends FREE:
@scottalanmiller said in Using a NAS for backups & Unitrends FREE:
@hobbit666 said in Using a NAS for backups & Unitrends FREE:
The version I got doesn't seem to support XenServer?
Not at the hypervisor / platform level. You need to work with agents the same as if it was physical. Doesn't work with ESXi Free, either.
Just to clarify, it doesn't work with ESXi Free at the hypervisor level, but the agent level works just fine.
I actually think that this makes it more confusing. Under no conditions can it talk to ESXi Free. But it can always talk to a VM via the OS. Saying that it can talk to ESXi Free "by talking to an agent" is far more confusing because we have removed ESXi from the equation.
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@scottalanmiller said in Using a NAS for backups & Unitrends FREE:
@Dashrender said in Using a NAS for backups & Unitrends FREE:
@scottalanmiller said in Using a NAS for backups & Unitrends FREE:
@hobbit666 said in Using a NAS for backups & Unitrends FREE:
The version I got doesn't seem to support XenServer?
Not at the hypervisor / platform level. You need to work with agents the same as if it was physical. Doesn't work with ESXi Free, either.
Just to clarify, it doesn't work with ESXi Free at the hypervisor level, but the agent level works just fine.
I actually think that this makes it more confusing. Under no conditions can it talk to ESXi Free. But it can always talk to a VM via the OS. Saying that it can talk to ESXi Free "by talking to an agent" is far more confusing because we have removed ESXi from the equation.
sadly without a really long drawn out conversation you can't cover all the bases to not leave someone confused - I would not have considered my statement confusing at all, but I see you point on where someone might.
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@Dashrender said in Using a NAS for backups & Unitrends FREE:
@scottalanmiller said in Using a NAS for backups & Unitrends FREE:
@Dashrender said in Using a NAS for backups & Unitrends FREE:
@scottalanmiller said in Using a NAS for backups & Unitrends FREE:
@hobbit666 said in Using a NAS for backups & Unitrends FREE:
The version I got doesn't seem to support XenServer?
Not at the hypervisor / platform level. You need to work with agents the same as if it was physical. Doesn't work with ESXi Free, either.
Just to clarify, it doesn't work with ESXi Free at the hypervisor level, but the agent level works just fine.
I actually think that this makes it more confusing. Under no conditions can it talk to ESXi Free. But it can always talk to a VM via the OS. Saying that it can talk to ESXi Free "by talking to an agent" is far more confusing because we have removed ESXi from the equation.
sadly without a really long drawn out conversation you can't cover all the bases to not leave someone confused - I would not have considered my statement confusing at all, but I see you point on where someone might.
to you it's not confusing. But if you need to be told this, then it is confusing. It's only not confusing to someone that doesn't need to be told.
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@hobbit666 said in Using a NAS for backups & Unitrends FREE:
The version I got doesn't seem to support XenServer?
I totally forgot about that. You gotta buy Enterprise to get Xenserver vm backups, and then they are only full backups at the moment.
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Was hoping to do a direct restore to XenServer once installed from the unitrends backups but going to Plan B
export to my PC and import the "image" "ova or what ever" into XenServer -
UEB free was, to my understanding, moving away from using CIFS and other network-based shares in upcoming version(s). Unitrends really wants you to start using vmware or HyperV to create the datastores and then expose those 'drives' to the UEB. Is that still the case, Art?
