Restoring data from the backups that excluded the boot disk or data disks

[RiaanBadenhorst]

Hi,

What is the default behaviour for a restore of the VM when you've backed up using "exclude data disks"?

Guide lists.....

 

Restoring data from the backups that excluded the boot disk or data disks

If the policy's Virtual disk selection option excluded the boot disk or data disks, you can restore the backed up data as follows:

• If Enable file recovery from VM backup was enabled on the backup policy: You can restore individual files from those portions of the virtual machine that the Virtual disk selection option did not exclude.

  See Restoring individual files.

• If the Virtual disk selection option was set to Exclude boot disk: You can restore the virtual machine and move the restored data disk(s) to another virtual machine.

It does not explicitly mention the restore options for "Exclude Data Disk"

• Exclude data disks: Consider this option if you have a different policy or other backup program that backs up the data disks. If Exclude data disks is enabled in a policy, that policy does not back up the data disks.

  Note the following about Exclude data disks:

  • If the virtual machine has only one disk (such as C:), that drive is backed up. It is not excluded.

  • If the virtual machine's boot disk is an independent disk, and the virtual machine has a separate data disk, the boot disk is backed up. The restored boot disk however contains no data, because NetBackup cannot back up the data in an independent disk.

Note:

When the virtual machine is restored from the backup, the virtual machine data for the data disk may be missing or incomplete.

So the question is, will a restore always bring back the VM (with all its vmdk's) but not put data in all of them (hence destroying your data on the data disk)? You have to restore to a temp location/server and move them around manually?

[RamNagalla · Accepted solution]

see this comment..

Exclude data disks: Consider this option if you have a different policy or other backup program that backs up the data disks

you need to go for exclusion only in below conditions

1) Data is protected by another method

2) you dont mind for data/boot disk loss because you can create it easily or its of no value.

yes.. when you go for restore of the images having this exclude options.. it will restore the blank VMDK considering you are ready for one of the above 2 conditions.

when you exclude the boot disk...its like you can recover the data disk and attach those to any of the VMs to access the data.

and when you exclude the data disk.. you can recover the boot disk and attache the avaliable Data disks.

it is avaliable based on your requirement.
 

[RiaanBadenhorst]

So basically, which ever option you choose (Exclude boot or Exclude Data), you will always get the entire VM with all the disks recreated, but only the disk that you didn't exclude will have data restored to it. And this would basically destroy the valid data you might have on a data drive when you restore from an 'exclude data disk' option backup. Please confirm.

[Mark_Solutions]

It does seem to sound that way http://www.symantec.com/docs/TECH207544  unless you can select not to overwrite data during the restore?

Perhaps the "move" option mentioned here is the way to do things? http://www.symantec.com/docs/HOWTO92072

[RiaanBadenhorst]

Thanks Mark

I'm just researching, don't have anywhere I can do it to test. Thought someone might have experienced this.

It looks like an alternate restore is the way to go and then to move it.