Replay Manager Version 8.0 Administrator’s Guide Part Number: 680-008-017 January 2021 Rev.
Notes, cautions, and warnings NOTE: A NOTE indicates important information that helps you make better use of your product. CAUTION: A CAUTION indicates either potential damage to hardware or loss of data and tells you how to avoid the problem. WARNING: A WARNING indicates a potential for property damage, personal injury, or death. © 2019 - 2021 Dell Inc. or its subsidiaries. All rights reserved. Dell, EMC, and other trademarks are trademarks of Dell Inc. or its subsidiaries.
Contents About this Guide............................................................................................................................7 Revision History................................................................................................................................................................... 7 Related Publications............................................................................................................................................................
Chapter 4: Backing Up and Restoring Data.................................................................................. 25 Using the Replay Manager Explorer............................................................................................................................. 25 Display Storage Components and Restore Points...............................................................................................25 View Component Details...........................................................
Advanced Recovery Scenarios for SQL Server......................................................................................................... 44 Recover a Database Using Replay Manager and Transaction Log Backups................................................. 44 Recover System Databases...................................................................................................................................... 45 Recovering Databases in a Clustered Instance of SQL Server.....................
Protecting Microsoft SQL Server AlwaysOn Availability Groups..................................................................... 61 VMware............................................................................................................................................................................... 62 Backup Extensions for VMware...............................................................................................................................62 Data Recovery for VMware............
Preface This guide provides information on Replay Manager. Revision History Table 1. Document revision history Revision Date Description A August 2019 Initial release B June 2020 Updated supported VMware versions C January 2021 Added support for Microsoft SQL Server 2019 Related Publications In addition to this guide, refer to the following related publications for more information on related topics.
1 Overview This section provides an overview of Replay Manager and its components, and lists the installation requirements. Topics: • • • Introduction to Replay Manager Replay Manager Requirements IPv6 Support Introduction to Replay Manager Replay Manager is a client/server application that creates and manages application-consistent Replays on a Dell Storage Center.
Replay Manager Management Tools The Replay Manager Management Tools consist of the following: ● Replay Manager Explorer, a graphical user interface for creating and managing Replays. ● Replay Manager Command Set, a snapin to Microsoft Windows PowerShell that provides cmdlets for scripting Replay Manager functions. Verification Service for Microsoft Exchange If installed, the Verification Service provides verification for Microsoft Exchange backup and restore processes.
Replay Manager Service for VMware Replay Manager Service for VMware requires the following: ● DSITV virtual appliance version 5.0 or later. ● VMware vCenter Server version 6.5, 6.7, or 7.0. Replay Manager Service Extensions The following table lists requirements for using Replay Manager to take Replays.
Requirement Description ● Microsoft SQL Server 2017 ● Microsoft SQL Server 2019 NOTE: The Replay Manager service account requires system administrator privileges in SQL Server. In Microsoft SQL Server 2019, Microsoft SQL Server 2017, Microsoft SQL Server 2016, Microsoft SQL Server 2014, and Microsoft SQL Server 2012, the Local System account does not have system administrator privileges by default.
Replay Manager Management Tools The following table lists requirements for installing and using the Replay Manager Management Tools. Requirement Description Processor 86-64-bit (AMD64-compatible only, including Intel 64) NOTE: The Itanium 64-bit architecture is not supported. Operating System Any of the following Microsoft Windows operating systems: NOTE: Replay Manager Explorer can be used only on operating systems with a graphical user interface.
IPv6 Support Replay Manager supports IPv6 addresses for the following connections.
2 Installing Replay Manager Components This section provides the instructions for installing the Replay Manager Service and Replay Management Tools, and describes how to install and configure the Verification Service and HTTP Proxy Service.
NOTE: The Local Volumes extension is always installed as part of the Replay Manager Services feature. The Change Service Account page opens. 9. Select one of the following: ● Local System Account: Select this option to set the Replay Manager Service to use Local System as the service account. ● This Account: Select this option to set the Replay Manager Service to use a specific domain or local Windows user as the service account. Enter the user name and password.
10. Click Finish to complete the installation. After installing the Replay Manager Management Tools, use the Replay Manager Explorer to add and configure the Replay Manager Service you manage. Related concepts Adding and Configuring Servers and Hosts on page 20 Install Replay Manager Service for Windows on Windows Server Core Use the following procedure to install Replay Manager Service for Windows Server Core. 1. Download the Replay Manager version 8.
2. Click Configure Server, and click the Exchange Verification tab. 3. Specify the following: ● Verification Server Host Name: Enter the host name or IP address of the server on which the Replay Manager Verification Service is installed. ● Verification Server Service Port: Enter the service port for communications between Replay Manager and the Replay Manager Verification Service. Unless a conflict would result, use the default service port value of 29176.
3 Getting Started After installing the Replay Manager Service and Management Tools, use the Replay Manager Explorer to add and configure the servers for which you will be creating and managing Replays.
Stop or Restart the Replay Manager Service for VMware For information on stopping and restarting Replay Manager Service for VMware, see the Dell Storage Integration Tools for VMware Administrator’s Guide. Viewing Replay Manager Explorer Use the Replay Manager Explorer to add and configure servers, and then select components on the server(s) to back up and restore. Navigation Pane The navigation pane provides controls to select and configure servers and backup sets.
● ● ● ● When Jobs is selected, it displays all backup jobs for all backup extensions. When Reports is selected, it displays General and Detailed reports for all backup jobs. When Queued Items is selected, it displays all the jobs waiting to run, and the currently running job. When the icon in the top left corner inside the component pane is clicked, a drop-down menu opens. It allows users to select all items, deselect all items, and invert selection.
Related tasks Configure Servers on page 22 Rename a Server or Host Use the Rename Server dialog box to change the server alias of a server or host. 1. In the Server Connections area of the navigation pane, right-click the server and select Rename [ server ]. The Rename Server dialog box opens. 2. Enter a new Server Alias, and click Rename. Disconnect from a Server or Host Follow these steps to disconnect from a server or host.
Remove a Server Folder The Remove Folder option removes a server folder and all objects within the folder. 1. Right-click the server folder to remove and click Remove [ folder ]. 2. Click Yes to permanently delete the server folder and all contained objects. Configure Servers Once a server is added, configure the server using the Configure Server dialog box.
b. Enter the host name or IP address in the Host field, User Name, and Password for the Storage Center. The user must have Administrator or Volume Manager privileges for the Storage Center. CAUTION: If reconfiguring a Storage Center user from an Administrator to a Volume Manager user, restores may fail if the new Storage Center user does not have access to the view volumes previously created by Replay Manager on the Storage Center.
becomes lost. Moreover, if the copy is placed on a Storage Center volume, the Storage Center can be used to replicate the volume to a remote Disaster Recovery (DR) site for additional safekeeping. By default, backup set information is not copied to another location. ● Mapping LUN Range (Low/High): Use these fields to specify a range of LUNs to be used by Replay Manager to map volumes back to a server. Default is 1 through 254.
4 Backing Up and Restoring Data This section provides an overview of the backup types, describes how to create and run backups, and identifies the steps for restoring data.
Replay Manager Extension Details ● Server/path location ● Affected volume mount point and volume label ● Disk serial number and product ID SQL Databases For each selected database, Replay Manager lists the following: ● Server/path location ● Affected volume mount point and volume label ● Disk serial number and product ID NOTE: Only the server/path location is displayed for components stored on SMB file shares.
Item Description Backup Type Shows the backup type: Copy (the default) or Full. Retention Policy Shows the retention policy for the restore point. Status Shows the status of the restore point: ● Available: Restore point is available for restore operations, including transporting the restore point to another server. For Exchange components that were backed up with the Verify Data option enabled, shows the verification status in parentheses. For example, (Verified) or (Not Verified).
that the backup application relies upon the transaction logs to create a successful backup. If Replay Manager is truncating logs in a full backup, then the transaction logs would not be available to the third party application. Related references Summary of Backup Set Options on page 31 VMware Backup Types During backups of VMware datastores and virtual machines, Replay Manager Service for VMware takes a temporary VMware snapshot.
● The existence of VMs with non-unique names within the same datacenter cause backups to fail. If two or more source components included in a backup set have the same name, the backup set fails. For this reason, make sure all source components in each datacenter have unique names. Guidelines for Backup Jobs Follow these guidelines when working with backup jobs. ● Replay Manager queues a maximum of one scheduled job per backup set at a time.
Summary of Backup Set Actions This table lists actions available for creating and managing backup sets. Backup Set Actions Action Description Components Refresh Components Refreshes the component pane display. Scheduling Suspend Schedule Suspends the schedule for the selected backup set. Resume Schedule Resumes a backup set schedule that is suspended. Modify Schedule Modifies an existing backup set schedule. Delete Schedule Deletes a backup set schedule.
Action Description Transport to Server Moves the restore point and its metadata to a compatible Replay Manager server. Summary of Backup Set Options This table lists the backup options displayed when you create a backup set. Summary of Backup Set Options Backup Option Description User Defined Name Enter a name for the backup set, or accept the default. The user‐defined name is displayed as the Replay description in Storage Center.
Backup Option Description extension. This is a known issue with Windows VSS snapshot integration and VMware snapshot creation. If a failure occurs, use the vSphere Client to change the value of the disk.EnableUUID parameter to FALSE. For further instructions, see: HTTP:// KB.vmware.com/KB/1031298 Backup Type Select from the following: ● Run now: Creates a backup set without a schedule and immediately submits a backup job.
3. Select the components to include in the backup set. Right‐click the name of a server and select Select All to select all components listed for a server or Select All Children to select all components that are children of the selected item. Verify backup selections by viewing the Component Details. 4. In the Backup area of the action pane, click Create Backup Set. The Create Backup Set dialog box opens. 5. In the User Defined Name field, type in a name or use the name suggested. 6.
The Modify Backup Set dialog box opens. 5. Modify options for the backup set. ● To add a component, select the component and click Add Component. ● To remove a component, select the component and click Remove Component. Related references Summary of Backup Set Options on page 31 Modify Schedules for an Existing Backup Set Use the Modify Backup Set dialog box to change the schedule for an existing backup set. 1.
Managing Restore Points and Restoring Data When a backup job is successfully finished, a new restore point is listed for the backup set in the Replay Manager Explorer. A restore point is an instance of a backup. It is a point in time from which data can be exposed or restored. NOTE: Storage Center controls access to volumes based on user groups and corresponding volume folders. When restoring a volume or component, make sure to restore it to a location that maintains data security.
Restore Point Action Description NOTE: Because a backup set may have multiple volumes, there may be more than one Replay for a given restore point. Force Keep / Allow AutoDeletion Toggles between Force Keep and Allow Auto-Deletion. ● Force Keep: Sets the retention flag of a restore point to Never Expire. These restore points will not be automatically deleted based on the backup set’s retention policy.
NTFS with data deduplication Windows Server 2019 Windows Server 2016 Windows Server 2012 Windows Server 2012 R2 Allowed Allowed Not Allowed Not Allowed Windows Server 2016 Source The following table defines the allowable Transport to Server scenarios for Windows Server 2016 source.
Display Restore Points for a Component When components are selected, the available restore points are displayed on the right side of the explorer. 1. In the Server Connections area of the navigation pane, connect to a server or host. 2. In the Backup Extensions area of the navigation pane, select a data source. 3. Select a component. Right‐click the name of a server or host and click Select All to select all listed components or Select All Children to select all its components.
7. Select Do Not Recover Databases. 8. Review the restore point details, and click Restore. Rename and Restore SQL Server Components Stored on a Volume Use the Restore Snapshot dialog box to rename and restore SQL Server components on a volume. 1. In the Server Connections area of the navigation pane, connect to a server or host. 2. In the Backup Extensions area of the navigation pane, select the SQL Server Databases backup extension. 3. In the left side of the explorer pane, select a component.
● Or click and delete the new name to cancel the name change. 11. To begin the restore, click Restore. File names are not changed when the database is renamed. Expose a Restore Point (Windows Extensions Only) Exposing a restore point allows it to be mapped to a local drive or mount point and provides the option of making the volume writable. 1. In the Server Connections area of the navigation pane, connect to a server or host. 2. In the Backup Extensions area of the navigation pane, select a data source.
2. In the Backup Extensions area of the navigation pane, select a data source. 3. Select a restore point. 4. In the Restore Points area of the action pane, click Expose. The Expose Restore Point Volumes dialog box opens. The Expose Path column displays the SMB path where the data is exposed. This path is automatically generated by Replay Manager and cannot be changed. 5. (Optional) To make the exposed restore point writable, select Make exposed volumes writable.
NOTE: Once an exposed restore point has been made writable, the operation cannot be undone. Attempting to undo the operation will sever the connection. Unmanage an Exposed Restore Point (VMware Extensions Only) Remove an exposed VMware restore point from management by Replay Manager if you want to attach virtual machines or use raw device mappings. Unmanaged restore points must be managed by Storage Center. 1. In the Server Connections area of the navigation pane, connect to a server or host. 2.
Unimport a Restore Point Use this procedure to unimport a transportable restore point that has been previously restored or exposed. NOTE: For VMware restore points, use the Unexpose action. 1. In the Server Connections area of the navigation pane, connect to a server or host. 2. In the Backup Extensions area of the navigation pane, select a data source. 3. Select a restore point that has been restored or exposed by a prior action. (Restore point status is Imported or Imported and Exposed.) 4.
NOTE: In a clustered-server environment, transporting a restore point to a node in the same cluster is not supported. 1. In the Server Connections area of the navigation pane, connect to a server or host. 2. In the Backup Extensions area of the navigation pane, select a data source. 3. Select the restore point you want to transfer to another server. 4. In the Transfer Restore Points area of the action pane, click Transport to Server. The Choose Target Server dialog box opens. 5.
Related tasks Restore SQL Server Components without Recovering the Database on page 38 Recover System Databases The Expose action in Replay Manager can be used as part of a recovery plan for the following system databases: master, model, and msdb. Use Replay Manager to recover these system databases by manually copying system database files from exposed volumes back to their original location. NOTE: This method will recover the system databases back to the point in time that the restore point was created.
b. If assigning drive letters, choose drive letters that are available on all nodes of the cluster. 2. Map the exposed volumes to all nodes of the cluster. NOTE: Ensure that all servers (nodes) of the cluster are added in Storage Center under a cluster object. a. Connect to the Storage Center and locate the exposed volumes. b. Right-click each exposed volume and select Promote Mappings to Server Cluster. The Promote Mappings to Cluster dialog box opens. c. Click Promote Now. d.
Expose a Restore Point Stored on an SMB File Share on page 40 Use a Replay to Manually Recover a Database Dell recommends using Replay Manager to manage Replays. However, databases can be recovered using Storage Center rather than Replay Manager during disaster recovery. This manual process provides the same functionality as the Expose action in Replay Manager. 1. Create a view volume on the desired Replay for each database volume and map it to the database server.
e. Close the Command Prompt window by typing exit and pressing Enter. 4. Attach the desired databases from the new volumes. For information about how to attach SQL Server databases, see the Microsoft SQL Server documentation. Locating Replays on a Storage Center Recover any Replay stored on a Storage Center with the Data Instant Replay feature of Storage Center. NOTE: Use Replay Manager to expire Replays. Do not use Storage Center to perform that action for the volumes managed by Replay Manager.
5 Working with Backup Set Jobs This section provides information on how to work with backup sets to create and manage schedules and view the status of queued jobs. Topics: • • • • • View the Backup Jobs Display Summary of Backup Job Actions Display the Backup Schedule Run Time Report Managing Job Schedules Viewing Queued Items View the Backup Jobs Display To view Jobs, select a server or a host. From the Backup Sets pane of Replay Manager, select Jobs.
4. Click Schedule Run Time. The Backup Schedule Run Time Report dialog box opens. Related concepts Managing Existing Backup Sets on page 33 Managing Job Schedules This section describes how to manage backup set schedules. Suspend a Schedule Use the following procedure to pause a schedule. Restart the schedule at any time by clicking Resume Schedule. 1. In the Server Connections area of the navigation pane, connect to a server or host. 2.
7. When you have finished modifying the schedule, click OK. Delete a Schedule Deleting a schedule does not delete restore points already created based upon the schedule. 1. In the Server Connections area of the navigation pane, connect to a server or host. 2. In the Backup Extensions area of the navigation pane, select data source. 3. In the Backup Sets area of the navigation pane, click Jobs. 4. Select the backup job to delete. he Backup Jobs display opens, showing all backup jobs for the server. 5.
6 Viewing Backup Job Reports The Reports Explorer provides summary information for backup sets and their associated restore points. The Details tab of the Reports Explorer provides the run time messages generated by Replay Manager when the backup job runs and indicates the success or failure of the restore point. In cases of failure, viewing the error messages on the Details tab can be helpful in troubleshooting why the failure occurred.
Item Description Last Success Date and time of the last successful job for the backup. Last Run Date and time of the last job for the backup. Options Lists options for the backup set. Components Lists components included in the backup set. Extension Lists the backup extension of the backup set: Local Volumes, Exchange Stores, SQL Databases, Hyper-V guests, VMware Datastores, or VMware Virtual Machines.
Item Description ● VMware Virtual Machines = VMwareVM ● VMware Datastore = VMwareDS Backup Type Shows the backup type: Copy (the default) or Full. Retention Policy Shows how many restore points to keep. Unchecking Delete Old Restore Points keeps all the restore points. The default is to keep 3 restore points. NOTE: If you decide to keep large number of restore points, check LUN availability. Schedule If scheduled, shows a brief description of the schedule.
7 Replay Manager Best Practices This section provides best practices for restoring and backing up data. Guidance is given specific to the backup extension type. Topics: • • • • • • • Backing Up Replay Manager Data Recovering Data from a Remote Storage Center Local Volumes Microsoft Exchange Server Microsoft Hyper-V Microsoft SQL Server VMware Backing Up Replay Manager Data The following options exist to create a backup of the Replay Manager data that can be leveraged for disaster recovery.
Because the Replay Manager application is not used at remote sites, it has no knowledge of the Replays being replicated from the source system, or that Replays now exist on a different storage system at the recovery site. The Replays created on remote sites outside of the Replay Manager environment can be used by changing the ReadOnly, ShadowCopy, and Hidden attributes for the volume. The following procedure outlines the steps required using the Dell Storage Manager and the DISKPART command.
Local Volumes Replay Manager provides the ability to create VSS backups of one or more local volumes mapped from the server to the Dell Storage Center. VSS for Local Volumes Using the Local Volumes option, an administrator can use VSS to create backups of applications without using a Replay Manager application-specific extension; however, it is up to the administrator to determine which volumes are needed for a complete backup set.
The LUN mapping range is configurable through the Exchange Verification Setup screen. If you have LUN numbering requirements or want to reserve certain ranges for verification, it is possible to configure it accordingly. Replay Manager allows LUN numbers 1 through 254. See for information on installing and configuring the Verification Service. ● Use of Expose and Restore to Recover Exchange: Replay Manager offers two methods for recovering data: Restore or Expose.
8. Create a restore request for the mailbox to recover. For example, to restore an entire mailbox: H:\Replay Users>newmailboxrestorerequest -sourcedatabase emailrecovery1 -sourcestoremailbox "John Hancock" -targetmailbox jhancock@2010test.local where the target mailbox is the email address of the mailbox you are restoring. NOTE: In the preceding example, the directory H:\Replay Users contains both the log and database files.
● Hyper-V guests (VMs) can use only single path I/O. Multipath cannot be installed. These VMs must be gen 2. Gen 1 is not supported. ● Dell has opened a ticket with Microsoft to address this situation. Creating Backup Sets in a Hyper-V Cluster Virtual machines may be moved among cluster nodes for a variety of reasons. Virtual machines may be moved manually, for example, in preparation for planned server maintenance.
extension for volumes containing SQL Server databases because it provides an enhanced backup and recovery process for the administrator. Some recovery features are only available through the SQL Databases backup extension. ● Determine optimal selections for database backup sets The administrator must determine the optimal configuration of backup sets, and backup job schedules based on the site environment. Replay Manager allows multiple databases within one backup set.
VMware Replay Manager supports backing up and restoring VMware datastores and virtual machines on VMware ESXi hosts that are managed by a vCenter Server. Backup Extensions for VMware Two VMware-specific backup extensions, VMware Datastores and VMware Virtual Machines, support VMware integration. Although both extensions provide flexible options to create VM embedded Replays, you should understand each backup extension to determine which backup extension is best suited for a particular job or environment.
Virtual Machines backup extension. This is a known issue with Windows VSS snapshot integration and VMware snapshot creation. If a failure occurs, use the vSphere Client to change the value of the disk.EnableUUID parameter to FALSE. For further instructions, see: HTTP://KB.vmware.com/KB/1031298 ● Backing up virtual machine memory By default, a backup of a VMware virtual machine does not include machine memory.
SRM can leverage Replays created by Replay Manager, however, the following points should be considered to ensure that the disaster recovery design meets expectations during testing or execution of the recovery plan: ● Replays created by Replay Manager will contain vSphere snapshots. By default, when SRM recovers these virtual machines, they will still be in a vSphere snapshot state. ● The application and data consistency through VSS is frozen in the read-only snapshot.
8 Using Replay Manager Cmdlets The Replay Manager Command Set provides Windows PowerShell scripting support for all Replay Manager functions. NOTE: For Windows PowerShell downloads, as well as additional Windows PowerShell information, go to technet.microsoft.com/en-us/scriptcenter/default.
Cmdlet Description Get-RMBackupSet Gets backup set definitions. Get-RMCommandSetVersion Gets the version of the Replay Manager command set currently in use. Get-RMComponentInfo Gets the available components for use in a backup set. Get-RMComponentRestoreOptions Gets an array of component options that can be passed into Restore‐RMRestorePoint. These options include the ability to exclude components from restore and perform restore with rename on SQL Server Databases.
Cmdlet Description Remove-RMRestorePoint Deletes a restore point. Remove-RMSystemSettings Deletes a Storage Center connection. Restore-RMRestorePoint Restores a component from an available restore point. Resync-RMRestorePoint Resyncs a volume back to its original location. NOTE: The Resync-RMRestorePoint cmdlet is not supported for SMB file shares. If the resync fails with the message VSS restore completed with failure and the disk appears offline: 1. Open Server Manager and select Disk Management.
9 Troubleshooting This section identifies solutions to specific problems in Replay Manger and provides instructions for generating a log file. Topics: • • Troubleshooting Table Collecting Replay Manager Log Files Troubleshooting Table Use the following table to help troubleshoot issues with Replay Manager. Problem Solution Backup set name is different in Storage Center than in Replay Manager Names are truncated to 31 characters in Storage Center.
Problem Solution ● Expose a Restore Point (VMware Only) ● Expose a Restore Point on an SMB File Share Email notifications not working ● Verify SMTP settings. ● Adjust spam settings on email server and/or client. Hyper-V/VMware backup fails In a clustered server environment, make sure the VM owner and disk owner match. Partial Replays created— Microsoft and VMware environments If components are moved after configuring a backup set, only the components in the original locations get backed up.
Problem Solution Scheduled backup did not happen after volume was failed over Confirm that the Replay Manager Service is installed on the owner node, and that the Replay Manager Service is running as a user with proper privileges. For more information: Replay Manager Service for Windows Failed or missing VSS Writers Restart the correct service for the missing VSS Writer. To view the current VSS Writers, open an elevated command prompt and run vssadmin list writers.
