Restoring Guest Files and Folders for VMware

You can restore files and folders from a VMware virtual machine backup to the source VM, to another VM, or to a guest agent.

When restoring files from a Linux VM, the File Recovery Enabler specified for the hypervisor is used to recover files.

Before You Begin

If a passkey is configured for restores, you must have the passkey.

Procedure

1. From the navigation pane, go to Protect > Virtualization.

   The Virtual machines page appears.

2. On the Hypervisors tab, click the hypervisor.

   The hypervisor page appears. The VM groups area displays summary information for any existing VM groups.

3. On the VM groups tab, in the row for the VM group, click the action button , and then click Restore.

   The Select restore type page appears.

4. To restore from a specific copy of backup data, in the upper-right corner of the page, click Settings, and then from the Source list, select the copy.

   If you leave select Automatic selected, the restore operation searches for the requested data in the primary copy, and automatically selects a different copy if the data is not found in the primary copy.

5. Select Guest files to restore files or folders to the source virtual machine, to another virtual machine, or to a guest agent.

   The Restore page appears.

6. In the left pane, expand the list, and then in the right pane, select the objects you want to restore:

   • To browse the contents inside an item, under Name, click the item.

   • To return to a higher level of the hierarchy, for data such as files, folders, and disks, above the right pane, in the path list, click an item.

   • In the upper-right area of the page, a message indicates which backup data is displayed. Click the down arrow, and then select any of the following options:

     • Show latest backups: Display data only for the most recent backups.

     • Show backups as of a specific date: Display data only up to the date you specify.

     • Show backups for a date range: Display data only within the date range you specify.

7. Click Restore.

8. In the Restore options dialog box, specify the destination for recovered files.

   By default, files are restored to the source VM, using the same VSA proxy as the backup.

   1. To restore in place:

      1. Select the Select client tab (the default option).

      2. Ensure that the source VM is selected in the Destination client box (the default option).

      3. Optional: To use a different VSA proxy, change the value in the Access node box.

      4. In the Virtual machine login area, type the username and password for the destination VM.

   2. To restore to a different VM:

      1. Select the Other VM tab.

         By default, the same VSA proxy that was used for the backup performs the restore.

      2. Optional: To use a different VSA proxy, change the value in the Access node box.

      3. If the destination VM resides on another hypervisor, select the host name of the hypervisor from the Destination hypervisor list, and then browse to select the destination VM.

      4. In the Virtual machine login area, type the username and password for the destination VM.

   3. To restore to a guest agent:

      1. Select the Select client tab (the default option).

      2. Select the guest agent from the Destination list.

         By default, the Local System account on the destination client is used to perform the restore operation; but you can use the Impersonate user option to provide credentials for another user account.

      3. Optional: To use the Impersonate user option, type the host name and credentials for the new destination hypervisor.

         The user must have permissions to create files in the specified location on the destination.

9. For the Path box, type a full path or click Browse to select a destination folder.

   For VMware, this value is only needed when you are restoring to a guest agent.

10. To delete an existing file and replace it with the restored file, select Unconditionally overwrite if it already exists.

11. Click Submit.