NFS ObjectStore provides NFS, SMB, and CIFS interfaces to the Commvault Content Store so that UNIX and Windows Domain users can protect and recover their data by using native NFS, SMB, or CIFS client software.
NFS ObjectStore does not require any dedicated Commvault Data Agent package on clients, because after the share is mounted, it becomes part of the file system namespace and is accessible to applications through the native file system interface. Applications can seamlessly access their data directly from the backup media.
NFS ObjectStore can support powerful use cases, for example running SQL queries on database backups without actually recovering the entire database.
Key Features
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Provides native NFS, SMB, and CIFS interfaces for the Commvault ContentStore.
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No need to install the Commvault data agent packages on the clients.
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Supports multiple versions of files.
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Windows client users can back up data to the Commvault ContentStore using the SMB and CIFS protocol.
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Unix clients can backup and recover data using the NFS protocol.
Solution Overview
The following components comprise an NFS ObjectStore system:
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A CommServe server.
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A Linux MediaAgent with the NFS ObjectStore software. The NFS ObjectStore software runs the service that provides an NFS server that interfaces with the ContentStore. A configured disk cache provides quick access to recently used data.
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A client with Index Store installed and an Index Server configured for NFS ObjectStore in the CommCell Console. The Index Store package must be on the same machine as the Web Server.
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A backup MediaAgent. You can install the MediaAgent on the same machine as NFS ObjectStore, or a different machine.
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NFS clients. NFS clients are any machines that can mount an NFSv3 or NFSv4 share.
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Windows clients. Windows clients are any Windows systems that can mount a remote share over the SMB and CIFS protocol.
Note
A minimal server install requires one Windows machine for the CommServe, and Index Store Server (with the Web Server package installed), and one Linux machine for the NFS ObjectStore software.
The table describes the requirements for each component.
|
Component |
Requirements |
|---|---|
|
CommServe |
Windows |
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Index Store Server (packaged with the Web Serveror Index Gateway). |
Windows or Linux Web Server is not supported on Linux platforms, so the Index Gateway package must be installed along with the Index Store package. |
|
NFS ObjectStore (packaged with the MediaAgent on Linux) |
Linux For information on disk size guidelines, see NFS ObjectStore Disk Cache Size Guidelines. |
|
NFS Clients |
Any Operating System with NFS support. |
|
Windows clients |
Any Windows systems that can mount a remote share over the SMB and CIFS protocol. |
NFS Protocol Support
You can choose the option to use versioning when you create an NFS ObjectStore client.
When you enable versioning, the software creates a new version every time the content changes.
Clients must use the NFSV4 protocol for a share that has versioning. NFSV3 clients cannot use a versioning share.
Configuration Interfaces
You can add and manage NFS ObjectStore shares through the CommCell Console, or through a command line interface.