SOLVED: How to redirect a NDMP Lun restore

[YonatanC]

Hi,

I'm backing up a volume that contains a LUN.

In case I need to restore the LUN to another volume, how do I redirect it?

I can't seem to find any tab or field for NDMP redirection in the restore window.

Thanks

[CraigV]

Hi,

You can only restore NDMP data to a similar device. Check below on how to restore:

http://www.symantec.com/business/support/index?page=content&id=HOWTO23320

Thanks!

[YonatanC]

Hi Craig,

I have another NDMP backup which backsup a CIFS volume. I know in such a case, when I restore I can see the individual files from the NDMP backup and can use regular File Redirection to restore them.

You say that when I backup a LUN I can only restore it to the original location? What happens to the existing LUN? Is it overwriten? No other options?

[CraigV]

...from what I understand if you backup an EMC array using NDMP you can only restore to an EMC array...not NetApp for instance.

Thanks!

[YonatanC]

OK, but this is really not my question :)

Let me try and explain again:

I'm backing upfrom a NetApp volume. The volume contains a LUN which is mapped as a RAW disk to a Windows VM machine (RDM disk).

The NDMP backsup the volume as a whole. I can not drill down to the file level when I want to restore (that's OK).

Let's say I need to restore that entire LUN but I don't want to overwrite the existing LUN. How do I do that?

[Colin_Weaver]

The recommended method to backup a NetApp LUN is to use a remote agent running on the systeem that writes data into the LUN and NOT using the NDMP option - this is because you can then restore individual files from inside the LUN and do proper database technology backusp if you have an appliaction storeing it's data  in the LUN.

Whilst written for an older version of BE, pelase review this

http://www.symantec.com/docs/TECH71381

and this (which happens to be listed at the bottom of the above article)

http://www.symantec.com/docs/TECH66079

Note I cannot confirm the exact steps to do a redirect of a LUN in the current BE version as do not have visibility of a suitable configuration.

Note: as your owning system is a VM with the attached iSCSI LUN the recommended backup method for this is also a traditional agent backup and not the virtual agent backup process.

[YonatanC]

Hi Colin,

I'm aware of the pros and cons of this type of backup. Unfortunately I don't have a choice:

I have a Windows 2008 VM with a 550GB disk mapped as a Raw Disk to the machine.

When I use VM Agent backup it can't backup the RDM disk. When I use flat file backup it takes a really long time. So I decided to use VM agent to backup the machine+NDMP backup for the 550 disk.

Anyway, I went through those technotes you sent and I still can't figure one simple thing: Where in the restore console in BE do I redirect the LUN to the new volume/qtree I created? (I use BE 2010 R3, SP3)

There's only File/SQL/Exchange/VM/ActiveDirectory Redirection...

[Colin_Weaver]

Sorry but as I explained I can't confirm where / how to do what you want in the current version. Please log a formal support case to get advice instead of using the forums.

[YonatanC]

Thanks Colin.

I just found a workaround to the redirect issue, though I still haven't tested it:

Before the restore, change the current volume\qtree name and then create a new volume with the original name. the restore SHOULD go to the new volume and leave the original intacked.

[YonatanC · Accepted solution]

SOLVED:

OK guys, here's what I did in order to restore the RAW LUN to a different volume, and it worked perfectly:

1. Unmapped the currently active LUN ID

2. changed the volume and the LUN name (the qTree name cannot be changed).

3. created a new volume with same name as the original volume. Also created a new qTree under it with same name as original qtree.

3. Performed the restore. Under NDMP tab I made sure the Preserve Tree option is selected. No other special options selected.

4. After the restore I noticed a new LUN was created under the new volume and qtree that had the original name. The new LUN also had the original name.

That's it! Now I had the original volume/qTree/LUN (with the name changed) and the restored lun in the new volume I created.

Hope this'll help someone in the future :)