NetBackup 7.1 NDMP Gotcha

A new feature introduced in NetBackup 7.1 can cause NDMP backup failures. The Append-Only Mode described in this Symantec Tech Note causes the drive to prevent the overwrite of data on a cartridge unless the writing application performs a pre-authorization for the overwrite.  This feature is supported on IBM LTO-5 drives  with LTO-4 or LTO-5 media.  The feature is enabled by default and does not normally cause any issues if all systems accessing the tape device are NetBackup 7.1 Media Servers.

In an NDMP environment, however, the storage device (filer, data mover) writes directly to the tape drives and may not be aware of the pre-authorization requirement.  If these drives are shared between the NDMP device and the Netbackup Media Server, write errors occur, represented by a write protect message issued by the NDMP device.  This has been observed with an EMC VNX array and EMC support was previously unaware of the Append-Mode feature.

The solution to the problem is to disable Append-Only mode by touching the <InstallPath>NetbackupdbconfigDISABLE_APPEND_MODE on the Netbackup Master Server and restarting the NetBackup Services.

Symantec NetBackup Media Server Encryption Option (MSEO) – Redhat Enterprise 5 Install Fails

Recently I got this message while trying to install the NetBackup MSEO Security Server on a Redhat Enterprise 5 x64 server:

error: Failed dependencies: libXp.so.6 is needed by mseo-server-6.1.3-rhel5.x86_64

After multiple troubleshooting attempts, we finally we able to get past it by performing an install of the “libXp.so.6” 32 bit binary. We already installed the 64 bit binary (as that is what the operating system was) however we would get the same error during installation of MSEO.

We ran:
yum install libXp.so.6

And then the install proceeded!

Symantec NetBackup – “File Write Failed”, Status 14, When Updating Master Server Properties

Possible Error – File Write Failed (14)

If you receive this error when using Windows 2008 or Windows 2008 R2:
Unable to save data on some hosts
An error occured on host <master>. The error is ‘file write failed (14)’.

You are probably experiencing Windows User Account Control (UAC) is not letting NetBackup save its information. The following technote describes how to address this issue, which we have also copied the workaround below.
http://seer.entsupport.symantec.com/docs/330378.htm

Overview:
Status 14 (file write failed) occurs when updating host properties on a Windows 2008 Master Server

Workaround:
This has been seen in cases where User Account Control (UAC) is enabled under Control Panel – User Accounts. This causes a logged in Administrator to run all programs with User-Level rights as opposed to Administrator-Level rights unless the user specifically requests to run an application with Administrator rights.

There are three workarounds:
1) If User Account Control is not required, disabling it may allow the host properties update to complete. This can present a risk to the OS and needs to be evaluated by the appropriate Windows Administrator.

2) In the short-term, to avoid this problem, you can manually launch the NetBackup Administration Console with Administrator rights by right-clicking on the icon and selecting "Run as administrator".

3) For long-term use, you can change the short-cut icon to always launch with Administrator rights by right-clicking on it, selecting Properties > Shortcut > Advanced and place a check in the box next to "Run as administrator".

Symantec NetBackup – RDSM has encountered an issue with STS where the server was not found

If you get this error when running jobs with NetBackup 7 with deduplication pools and backups fail with status 213, please see this post on the Symantec Connect forum, which I’ve commented on (I post under “squirrelking” 🙂 )

https://www-secure.symantec.com/connect/forums/rdsm-has-encountered-issue-sts-where-server-was-not-found

Symantec NetBackup – Quickly Upload NetBackup Logs for Support Cases

Thanks to the original post on Symantec Connect here:
https://www-secure.symantec.com/connect/downloads/quickly-upload-netbackup-logs-support-cases

Are you looking for an easier way to get logs uploaded so you can get your issue resolved as fast as possible? We understand that transferring logs to Technical Support Engineers has been a customer pain point in the past and we’ve addressed this with a new utility called nbcplogs. Nbcplogs will handle the copying, compression, and transferring of logs – all with one easy command.

Using the Titan ID assigned to your support case run the following commands (we’ll use 123-123-123 in place of the actual one you would get from support):

On UNIX-like systems:
% cd /usr/openv/netbackup/bin/support
% nbcplogs -f 123-123-123

On Windows:
Start->Run->Type “cmd”->Press Enter
C:> cd C:Program FilesVERITASNetBackupbinsupport
C:> nbcplogs -f 123-123-123

It’s just that simple!

That command will gather all log files it can find for the last 24 hours on the system it is run on and FTP them to Technical Support.

Just want a specific time frame? Try this (where -s is the start time and -e is the end time) for January 15th at 11:00 pm to January 16th at 4:00 am:

% nbcplogs -s 01/15/2010-23:00 -e 01/16/2010-04:00 -f 123-123-123

For anyone that wants even more fine tuning, start here:

% nbcplogs –help

So that’s easy, but what logs does it actually get?  Here’s a list:

* NetBackup Legacy Logs
* NetBackup VxUL (Unified) Logs
* NetBackup OpsCenter Logs
* NetBackup Puredisk Logs
* Windows Event Logs (Application, System, Security)
* PBX Logs
* NetBackup Database Logs
* NetBackup Database Error Logs
* NetBackup Database Trylogs
* Vault Session Logs
* Volume Manager Debug Logs
* VxMS Logs

You can get nbcplogs from the following TechNote:
http://seer.entsupport.symantec.com/docs/343774.htm

Symantec NetBackup 7 – Incorrect Disk Pool Available Space with Media Server Deduplication Puredisk Disk Pool

I ran across this bug onsite at a customer and after some searching, I found out it is a bug that has a hotfix that fixes the issue. It will also be included in NetBackup v7.0.1 which is due out anytime.

Problem: The disk pools available space isn’t being reported correctly, so NetBackup thinks that the disk pool is full and backups to that disk pool results in “Status 129” errors (Disk pool full, insufficent disk space). Even after expiring images, the disk capacity is still full.

Steps Taken: I thought at first that perhaps NetBackup wasn’t “cleaning up” the images appropriately or that perhaps NetBackup was flagging the images to be cleaned but the Puredisk Deduplication Engine (PDDE) wasn’t cleaning up the data correctly, since I’ve seen that issue with standalone Puredisk nodes before. So I performed an expiration and cleanup manually by following the steps below:

Here’s how to manually force the clean up of NetBackup images after expiring them from the catalog:
install_pathNetBackupbinadmincmdnbdelete -allvolumes -force
install_pathNetBackupbinadmincmdbpimage -cleanup -allclient 

In Media Server Deduplication Pool environments, wait for PDDE to run its maintenance tasks for cleanup to see the disk space get cleaned.
Or you can run them manually; 
install_pathVeritaspddecrcontrol.exe –processqueue
install_pathVeritaspddecrcollect -v -m +1,+2 –noreport

Resolution: In my case, manually executing the cleanup didn’t result in additional disk space available. This is a known bug which has a patch that can be downloaded and applied to your Master and Media servers. Please see this technote article: http://seer.entsupport.symantec.com/docs/350190.htm

After applying the patch, the disk pools now show the correct available space and backups are working again!

Symantec NetBackup – Cannot Use Staged Capacity Managed Option in a Storage Lifecycle Policies (SLP) with Puredisk

When using a NetBackup Storage Lifecycle Policy (SLP) with a Puredisk Storage Unit, you cannot select the "Staged Capacity Managed" retention type. This article explains why that is the case.

Staged Capacity Managed Option

In a nutshell, using the “Capacity Managed” option within a Storage Lifecycle Policy (SLP) with a Puredisk storage unit is not possible. The option is even greyed out when pointing it to a Puredisk storage unit, as shown in the above screenshot.

That kind of made sense to me, but kind of didn’t. So after researching that question through multiple documents and training guides, I finally found the answer in the “Help” button on the above screen (in all places!). It said:

Staged capacity managed is selectable for any disk storage unit that is allowed in a lifecycle. However, for the disk types that support single-instance store (SIS), Staged capacity managed functions to various degrees. In order for Staged capacity managed to operate, NetBackup must know how much space a backup image uses. With SIS enabled on the storage unit, NetBackup cannot know exactly how much space a particular backup image occupies.

The following storage unit configurations use SIS:
PureDisk storage units
NearStore storage units that have either the Enable file system export option enabled or the Enable block sharing option enabled.
Some OpenStorage storage units, depending on the vendor characteristics.

So that’s why we can’t use Capacity Managed SLP’s with a Puredisk based storage unit.

VMware Backups using NetBackup 7

Configuring NetBackup 7 for VMware backup (using vStorage API)

Configure VMware backup host in Netbackup

right-click on master server, select “Properties”

Add VMware Backup Host

Configure Credentials on vCenter

Create the backup policy for Virtual Machine Backup

The parameters shown are not the default but reflect a configuration that seems to be optimal for test environment. Your mileage may vary.

These specific parameters have been changed from the default
Client Name Selection determines how Virtual Machines are identified to Netbackup.  VM Display name option matches the VM name as identified in vCenter
Transfer type determines how VM data is transfered to Netbackup host.  The san option uses Fibre Channel or iSCSI SAN (Note:, LUNs containing VMWare Data Stored must be presented to Netbackup host).  The nbd option resorts to a network copy, should the san option fail.
Existing snapshot handling, when set to Remove NBU, will remove stray NetBackup snapshots from VMs if encountered but ignore all other snapshots.

Configure remaining backup policy options based on backup windows etc.

If options need to be changed (‘cuz mine didn’t work in your environment 😉 ) , change on the policy’s attributes window

What’s New in Symantec NetBackup 7

Netbackup 7 is now available for all customers under Support/Maintenance. This lesson will show some useful information on What’s New in NetBackup 7, as presented by the Symantec webinar on February 2nd, 2010. The notes presented under each slide were notes from the webinar presentation including questions and answers from that presentation.

Presented by Symantec, Posted by Lewan & Associates!

NetBackup 7.0 GA code is also now available on FileConnect.

Reminder: The FA and GA bits are exactly the same.

Upgrade Portal http://entsupport.symantec.com/docs/332137
7.0 Compatibility Lists http://entsupport.symantec.com/docs/303344
7.0 Documentation Links http://entsupport.symantec.com/docs/341274
7.0 Download Information http://entsupport.symantec.com/docs/341272
7.0 Late Breaking News http://entsupport.symantec.com/docs/341271

I encourage you to read “Top Seven Reasons to Move to Symantec NetBackup™ 7”
http://entsupport.symantec.com/docs/341275

NetBackup 7 Main Areas

Deduplication

Puredisk technology now built into Media Server. Can point disk to commodity disk, this is the dedup target.
Client level dedup, built into the Netbackup 7 client. Push out upgrade to clients in order to use.
For customers that use Puredisk already, NBU 7 still works with it through backwards compatibility.
You can dedupe in NBU 7 and also send it to a PureDisk storage pool if that’s needed.
Newer limits, new limit of 32TB of deduplicated data behind each media server (Puredisk pools was 16TB).
Cost for deduplication is an additional license, licensed per front-end capacity (how much data are you protecting).

Virtual Machine Protection

Improved recovery process through guided VM recovery. Recover single file from block level backup. No need to stage data for recovery. Integration with vStorage API allows NBU to identify unused blocks, allows to store ~30% less data (option that needs to be enabled on backup).

Virtual Machine Backups

When using the vStorage API, no Backup Proxy server needed. Can perform block level incremental backup of VM’s, while enabling file level restores.
vStorage API can also backup previous versions of ESX 3.5, without proxy server.

Virtual Machine Restores & Recovery

Can recover entire VM from "Friday" with 1 step. Don’t need to rebuild each incremental in order to restore.

Optimized Replication

Example of Storage Lifecycle Policy. Copying data (duplicating or replicating) with different retention times. Can also use an OST aware device to store and replicate data.

NetBackup RealTime

Application consistant recovery point, from multiple locations. New features in NBU 7.
Customers can also use NBU RealTime to protect/replicate only the NetBackup Catalog to another location for no charge.

NetBackup OpsCenter

Optional software that is a replacement for Veritas Backup Reporter (VBR) and Netbackup Operations Manager (NOM).
No additional charge for OpsCenter. Included with NetBackup code.
There is a licensed option for advanced analytics, business reporting, 3rd party backup application reporting but the licensed feature is optional.

OpsCenter and OpsCenter Analytics Comparison

Additional Enhancements

Simplified licensing for virtual environments, per physical host, no longer cares about O/S on that host.
Terabyte based licensing now also includes clients. Licensed per Front-end data, doesn’t matter how many media servers, tape devices, clients, etc.

Customer Resources

www.netbackup.com
www.symantec.com/netbackup
www.netbackupdemo.com

Top 7 Reasons to Upgrade

NetBackup 7 is built on NetBackup 6.5.4 code base.
First Availability program had over 600 customers and partners. Lewan was one of these.

Lewan & Associates – Certified Symantec Platinum Partner!

Please post any questions that you might have regarding NetBackup 7 on this thread! We’ll do our best to answer them or find an answer for you!
If you’re interested in viewing a NetBackup 7 demo or would like to discuss your plans on moving to NetBackup 7 with our Professional Services Team, please contact your Lewan IT Solutions Sales Representative!

Symantec Backup Exec 2010 and Netbackup 7 Super Post

Here’s a great post which discusses pricing with Backup Exec 2010 and Netbackup 7.

http://www.infostor.com/index/articles/display/4701464753/articles/infostor/storage-management/data-de-duplication/2010/january-2010/symantec-integrates.html

Note, Backup Exec 2010 Trialware is out now. Netbackup 7 First Availability (FA) program is available now, which is the same as the General Availability (GA) code.
Netbackup 7 is now on the Symantec site, with the announcement that General Availability (GA) is: February 1st!
http://www.symantec.com/business/products/family.jsp?familyid=netbackup&inid=us_ghp_promo_hero3_netbackup

Backup Exec 2010 is also available February 1st! and it’s on the Symantec site as well:
http://www.symantec.com/business/products/family.jsp?familyid=backupexec&inid=us_ghp_promo_hero1_backupexec

Update – Ready to start upgrading or testing Backup Exec 2010? Symantec has released trialware as of yesterday so you can start before the actual release on 2/1/10.
http://www.symantec.com/connect/blogs/are-you-ready-upgrade
Symantec’s blog post copied below for your reference, as it has some additional links on it:

Good news! Backup Exec 2010 has launched today with the Trailware available for download from February 1, 2010. The new product encompasses great new features like Deduplication and Unified Archiving. To read the complete list of new features key benefits and to download the trailware, please visit  the Backup Exec website.

Have questions on how to upgrade?  Please refer to this document that walks you through the upgrade process.

Getting back to Connect, we have created some great information in regards to the new product launch. Here is a video that explains the product’s deduplication feature. Check this Group page for finding all the BE 2010 and BESR 2010 information in one place.  Don’t forget to add it to your favourites. 

In the process of your upgrade,  with any questions, comments, suggestions and great information you are sharing with the community regarding the new product, we encourage you to please make sure to tag the content with the appropriate Version (2010), the Topics (Installation, Upgrade etc) and the public group “BE 2010 and BESR 2010 Launch”. It helps us track the common issues and escalate it to support as needed. (end of symantec blog article)

Here are some great screenshots of some slides discussing some of the new features and enhancements to Backup Exec 2010.