Backup Exec cannot find remote agents so it gives errors

[Dennis_S_]

I have configured this software as much as I can figure out so that it knows that it is not backing up from a SAN server with an agent install.  Our san is using SIFs for storage so it is impossible to load an agent onto it.

This configuration is causing "Failed" message for every full and incremental backup.

Summary:

I want to configure backup exec so that it does not put all of my backups as failed because I already know that there is no remote agent and there is not going to be a remote agent installed anywhere in the near future.

[Kiran_Bandi]

Where the data you are trying to backup is located? (On servers other than media server?)

Without installing remote agents, you can backup only media servers data... Because by default a remot agent will be installed while installing the media server. For backing up any other servers on the network you must install remote agents on those.

Regards....

[CraigV]

Hi,

Have you tried backing up the remote shares? Enable the option as per the steps below:

Tools -> Options -> Network and Security ->  "Enable selection of user shares."

Otherwise try using NDMP. You can license that option in a 60-day trial period.

Thanks!

[ZeRoC00L]

SIFs ? you probably mean CIFS.

For CIFS you normally can backup such a NAS system with NDMP, but first let us know exactly what kind of SAN you have (Brand & type), to be sure it is on the HCL.

[Colin_Weaver]

If doing share level (CIFS) backups from a system with no remote agent installed then you will receive a warning about lack of remote agent but the backup should still run as it then falls back to the remote agent process on the media server. This warning cannot be disabled.

However if you get a complete fialure it is either because you do not have an agent for windows license on the media server, or something is running on port 10000 on the device that owns the share (i.e. nmpd is running on a filer)  or because your security for accessing the share is not quite right.

The agent license is needed even though you cannot install the agent software. To fix the port 10000 clash you have to disable or reconfigure the process that opens the port, to fix the security you have to look at the credentials in the job and the credentials of the Backup Exec serveices and make sure that all accounts have the required permissions

[Dennis_S_]

Ok so the warning cannot be disabled.  That makes sense because I can't find anything in the entire program to disable that warning.

So is this the general consensus?

[Dennis_S_]

I just checked my backup from the other night and it still shows as Failed on the bottom of Job Monitor.  I am baffled because when I tested this before we purchased the product, it was not doing this.

I'm in the options screen right now and I remember configuring it as use "media server side deduplication" under Destination Device and Media and it is still set that way.

I should not be receiving FAILED in red on the bottom of Job Monitor.  As follows in Job History:

Backup

Access is denied to Remote Agent.  Check the login account for the specified device.

Access is denied to Remote Agent.  Check the login account for the specified device.

It says the same message twice as you can see above.  I typed that all out by hand anyway.

I'm uncertain why it says this when I specifically configured it to use "media server side deduplication".  The software already knows to not use "client-side deduplication" as that is not checked under Destination and Device and Media.

[Colin_Weaver]

The error messages are reporting that  the remote agent on the media server is failing to authenticate to the area containing the files. This is how it works when the remote agent is not available on the actual device.

The setting you are referring to is only for DeDuplication jobs and will have to be set to media server side when no remote agent is available on the device - however it won't make any difference to your authentication/credentials problem and does nto have any affact at all if DeDup is not involved.

[Dennis_S_]

The problem is:

The backup completes successfully

The job status window says FAIL

I want it to say completed.  It was saying completed with some warnings but it did not fail out the entire job on my initial tests. And this is before we even purchased licenses for anything.

There has to be a way to fix this.

[Dennis_S_]

A tech had me set this to user defined shares in backup exec instead of clicking through the network.  I'll see if this fixes the issue.

[Dennis_S_]

The above did not resolve the issue but now I am only getting the error about it trying to connect to our Netapp, which does not have a remote agent installed.

Anyway now I have disabled the backups and am testing out data to disk rather than using dedupe to see if that performs better.

[Dennis_S_]

... and data to disk is going to take 40+ hours.  It is 1,000MB/min slower than the dedupe job was.

[Dennis_S_ · Accepted solution]

I resolved this issue by converting to a VM server hosting the LUNs and pushed the remote agent to it.  Now there are no errors at all.