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FAS2020 Active/Active and NDMP licensing

ricdanger
Level 4

Hi,

 

I have a NetApp FAS2020 active-active filer. While it is a single box, it has two IPs each with a different aggregate. I'm planning to buy Backup Exec NDMP option. From the datasheet, I get that I only need to buy one NDMP license per filer. But Backup Exec License assement tool issues a warning saying that I need two licenses.

My concerns are the following:

- Will the backups fail or give warnings once I move from evaluation to a fully licensed version, with just one NDMP license?

- Will it be legal to have just one license for this setup?

 

Thanks,

Ricardo

6 REPLIES 6

nkapoor
Level 3
No, that is not legal.  You will unfort. need two licenses. I have had the same issue before. Btw, depends on how much storage you have, but we have a NetApp FAS270 with 2.8TB of storage. To backup the storage we needed a NDMP Legato Networker License (about $18,000 :( ) but there are NDMP Backup Software. You may want to consider CA's Brightstore Arcserve instead. Amazing the difference in price of these products, Backup Exec won't do it, and NetBackup is as expensve as Legato. CA Brightstore Arcserve have a NDMP agent and it only costs $800 although you'd have to buy the core product but that's not much over $1000. Trouble is then you'd have to maintain two different backup software and media management can get confusing. Nichant

ricdanger
Level 4

Are you positive about that?
The datasheet states the following for NDMP options states the following:

"The Backup Exec 12.5 NDMP Option is licensed on a per-NAS device basis."

"Clustered NAS devices only require a single NDMP Option license for the active NAS system." 

I'm not sure if you are familiar with this setup, so I will describe it: I have one FAS2020 box with the disks on front, and at the back I have two power supplies and two removable motherboards that connect to the machine backplane. Each motherboard has it's own IP, but both boards form a cluster. If one board dies, the other takes up the IPs and the aggregates. Normally, each board has an active aggregate.
So, it is an "active-active" cluster on the same box.

Given that I only have one NetApp box (a single FAS2020 with two motherboards) does it count as one or two filers?

mitchm3
Level 3
If you had an active/passive cluster, it would be one license.

in an active/active cluster, since data can be served up from either device automatically, than you need two licenses for NDMP.

The best way for me to interpret an active/active setup would be that each node in your cluster is serviing out data ACTIVELY, in a load balanced and redundant fashion usually through a "virtual," IP, or "cluster IP."


However, based on your description of your setup, it's not clear if you are truly using an active/active setup as you mention two different IP's and not a virtual IP.  Alas, I'm no Netapp guru...

ricdanger
Level 4
Let me clarify:

- I have one storage device (NetApp FAS2020).
- It has two motherboards, and 12 disks, both connected to the same backplane
- Each motherboard has one IP
- Each IP has different aggregates. One IP has one aggregate with user homes, the other IP has a misc share.
- When everything is working properly, each motherboard is serving different contents (active/active). Homes are accessed through one IP while shared content is accessed through the other IP.
- When one motherboard fails, the second motherboard will start using the IP of the one that fails, and will start serving all the data. So, I still use the two different IPs to access different data, but they are in reality being served by the same motherboard on the same device.

Backup Exec requires me to add two different NDMP devices, one for each IP. But I only have one FAS2020 filer.

ricdanger
Level 4
EULA states the following:

17.2.15 You may use each individual licensed copy of the Backup Exec for Windows Servers NDMP Option on a single active Server running Backup Exec, whether physical or virtual, at any one time. An individual licensed copy of the NDMP Option is required for EACH NDMP server appliance attached to a single active Server running Backup Exec.

So, I assume that I have a single server NDMP appliance, that happens to have two controllers. Am I assuming something wrong? It is a single box/equipment.

nkapoor
Level 3
I am sorry, you are right.   I simply misread the question.   I did some further research on this and found the same as you have.

17.2.15 You may use each individual licensed copy of the Backup Exec for Windows Servers NDMP Option on a single active Server running Backup Exec, whether physical or virtual, at any one time. An individual licensed copy of the NDMP Option is required for EACH NDMP server appliance attached to a single active Server running Backup Exec.

Now that I see your environment and understand it, it seems I was mistaken about your setup.   Great question though, I am sure other people will have similar questions.

n