Книга: Mastering VMware® Infrastructure3

Using Backup Agents in a Virtual Machine

Using Backup Agents in a Virtual Machine

Oh so many years ago when virtualization was not even a spot on your IT roadmap, you were backing up your physical servers according to some kind of business need. For most organizations, the solution involved the purchase, installation, configuration, and execution of third-party backup agents on the operating systems running on physical hardware. Now that you have jumped onto the cutting edge of technology by leading the server consolation charge into a virtual IT infrastructure, you can still back up using the same traditional methods. Virtual machines like physical machines are targets for third-party backup tools. The downside to this time-tested model is the need to continue paying for the licenses needed to perform backups across all servers. As shown in Figure 10.42, you'll need a license for every virtual machine you wish to back up: 100 virtual machines = 100 licenses. Some vendors allow for a single ESX Server license that permits an unlimited number of agent licenses to be installed on virtual machines on that host.

In this case, virtualization has not lowered total ownership costs and the return on investment has not changed with regard to the fiscal accountability to the third-party backup company. So perhaps this is not the best avenue down which you should travel. With that being said, let's look at other options that rely heavily on the virtualized aspect of the guest operating system. These options include:

? Using VCB for full virtual machine backups.

? Using VCB for single VMDK backups.

? Using VCB for file-level backups.

Figure 10.42 Using third-party backup agents inside a virtual machine does not take advantage of virtualization. Virtual machines are treated just like their physical counterparts for the sake of a disaster recovery or business continuity plan.

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