How to move Netbackup transfers to fiber interface?

[Goofoff109]

Hello Symantec Community.

I need some help, a Vendor setup our netbackup 7.5 environment a while back and used the LAN connections for everything.

Noone cared for a while but now the backups we are doing are so big its starting to saturate the pipe and slow other stuff down.

In the meantime we have acquired a fiber switch and have it all hooked into the servers/netbackup/everything.

Where do i go to move the transfers from the LAN to the fiber interfaces???

I am pretty new to netbackup. sorry if its a simple question but i couldn't find a blatent answer by googling or poking around the interface myself.

[teiva-boy]

Do you have the appropriate licensing to do SAN Client backups?  

[Goofoff109]

I believe so?

Does that play a major part in moving the transfers to the fiber?

[Marianne]

San Client does not need additional license, but you need Solaris SPARC or Linux media servers with QLogic hba's to be configured as Fibre Transport media server. The other option is to install Media Server software and configure SAN media server so that client can backup itself. Additional licensing is needed -Enterprise Client for each client to be configured as San media server. If you have Capacity license, all agents and options are included.

[Nicolai]

Goofoff109 - can you please explain in more details why you want to use SAN and for what.

I don't think you will  or can go large scale using Fibre Transport. While fibre transport is good for transferring huge amount of data is has also its downsides and application where its direct not recommended.

[Pritesh_Pisal]

As suggested by Nicolai gives the more details

what types of backup you are performing FS/DB/VMware/NDMP?  Size?

how you are measuring the slowness?

you can't directly switch all your backups on fiber,as lots of things to be considered. 

You will have to segregate the backups according to business critical and size and then move respective backups on fiber.

[Nicolai]

Goofoff109 - Are you talk VMware backup using Vsphere SAN transfer method insted of NBD ?

[Goofoff109]

I am not talking about Vmware VSAN - Nicolai

I just want to know if/How i can move which interfaces the netbackup transfers run through.

Right now they are on the normal internal LAN that all data runs through. But can i move this to the new restricted Fiber switch that is only for backups.

[Goofoff109]

Traffic monitors on the normal LAN spike to 100% during backups.

FS/DB are the main types. Sizes range from 8 TB of Exchange backups to 20-30 gigs on some file systems.

How do switch everything over then?

[Goofoff109]

Can you please explain where is it not recommended? or link me to a white paper. i have looked and could not find a lot.

[Marianne]

There is no "switch everything over" as if there is a tick box somewhere.

You need to decide between SAN Client and SAN media server or a combination of the two.

Overview of how SAN Client works can be found in 1st chapter of the manual : http://www.symantec.com/docs/DOC6469

The amount of media servers (Linux or Solaris ) and amount of QLogic hba's to receive data from clients need to be decided. This will depend on amount of clients and amount of data per client.

SAN Media server is simply media software installed on a client but needs additional licensing.
Here you need to consider the amount of clients and amount of tape drives.
Although tape drives and even media can be shared, only one media or San media server can write to a tape drive at a time.

[Nicolai]

I talk of experience when I say you should only use SAN client for databases. SAN client does not work well for unstructured data like file system backups.

The SAN client manual also say:

A SAN client is a special NetBackup client that can back up large amounts of data rapidly over a SAN connection rather than a LAN. For example, a database host can benefit from high-speed backups and restores. 

So a 8TB exchange may fall into the usage category for SAN client, but 30GB file system backup does not.

[Andrew_Madsen]

When you say a switch for backups do you mean 10GigE fiber? So really Ethernet and not fibre channel?

[Goofoff109]

Just an FYI for everyone this setup is

8GB Brocade Fiber and a 5220 Netbackup appliance.

Does that help?

I need to know where in the interface to change some of these jobs over. Or do i have to rebuild the job itself?

[Karthikeyan_Kup]

HI Goofoff,

As per your query, currently backups are running over Lan / NBD and now you wanted to configure the SAN backups. I hope you have already got the San switches and your Media server & Tape library is able to connect with SAN Switch.

To provide solution, i would like to understand what you are backing up and from which Boxes. I means you are backing up from Windows Server with SAN Storage connected, you are backing up NDMP Storage and VM Systems (Image Backup).

Please Provide required information to provide configuration steps.

[mph999 · Accepted solution]

It is not that simple unfortunatuly.

You need to explain what clients you have, and what type of backups they have.  How many clients do you have, how many are you thinking of switching over.

NBU environments MUST be designed to do x, y, z before they built.  If they are not designed to do x, y, z and then x, y, z are switch on, things tend to break.  I'm not saying san client config would cause such an issue, buty I'm just trying to explain it's not quite as simple as deciding something and then expecting it to work by changing a setting.

What HBAs do you have in the 5220, only HBAs in slots 2 and 4 can be configured for SAN client, and depending on the 'model' of 5220 you have, you may or may not have cards in these slots.

[Marianne]

... a 5220 Netbackup appliance .....

Which model 5220? How many hba's?

Only the models with 8 x FC hba's can be used as Fibre Transport media server.

As per Martin's post - your environment needed to be designed for SAN transport before backup devices were purchased. 

[Andrew_Madsen]

I will also add that you will need a distinct pair of HBAs per client. you will not want to mix disk traffic and backup traffic on the same HBA.

[Pritesh_Pisal]

when you say this setup is 8GB Brocade Fiber and a 5220 Netbackup appliance.

is you Appliance Master or media server?

[Pritesh_Pisal]

when you say this setup is 8GB Brocade Fiber and a 5220 Netbackup appliance.

is your Appliance Master or media server?

Sorry for double post Browser was hanged.