> Expert > Backup and Restore Agents > Snapshot Management > Supported Agents > NDMP

IntelliSnap - FAQ for the NDMP Agent

Can I backup data residing on a NetApp 7-Mode vFiler?

Yes. If the data you want to backup resides on a vFiler, set it up as follows:

  1. Add the vFiler as a NAS client as explained in the Getting Started - NAS Configuration procedure.

    If you plan to add more vFilers as NAS clients, ensure they have unique names. vFilers with the same name are not supported.

  2. During the NAS client configuration, ensure not to include the vFiler root volume in the subclient content.

  3. When performing a snap backup, indexing is supported if the physical file server (where the vFiler resides) has been specified in Array Management. If not, ensure you select the Skip Catalog phase for IntelliSnap option during backup as indexing will not be supported.

  4. To restore the data, create a backup copy as explained in the Snap Backup Copy procedure and restore the files and volumes from the backup copy.

  5. Other operations you can also perform with the snapshot are mount and revert operations.

Can I configure a subclient to include the root volume of a file server?

No, data that resides on the root volume cannot be part of the NAS subclient content.

Can I use a vFiler as a destination for SnapVault or SnapMirror copies?

It depends on the OnCommand Unified Version. For OCUM 5.x, vFilers can be the destination location for SnapVault/SnapMirror copies. For OCUM 6.x, vfilers cannot be the destination location for SnapVault/SnapMirror copies as it is not supported by the OnCommand Unified Manager.

Can I restore NDMP snapshots to Windows and UNIX destinations?

Yes. Restoring NDMP snapshots to a Windows or UNIX computer is supported for the following vendors:

  • Dell EMC Isilon/PowerScale

  • Hitachi NAS

  • NetApp

Can I configure a full backup operation to create a new index?

You cannot configure it because a new index is always created for NAS backups. During a full backup, the existing index is copied and modified to create a new index. The new index will then be incrementally updated with the changes of the current full backup.

Can I enable the Image Backup Set option on a SnapVault copy?

Yes, you can enable the Image Backup Set option (for SnapMirror to Tape) on a backup set containing the SnapVault copy. However, for 7-Mode file servers the image backup of the SnapVault copy will not exactly match the primary (source) volume. For example, the non-qtree data on the primary volume will be in a qtree on the SnapVault copy; the SnapVault copy may also contain data from other primary volumes.

Do I have to restart SnapMirror to tape backups from the beginning?

Yes. You must restart SnapMirror To Tape backups from the beginning of the job. You cannot restart SnapMirror to Tape backups from another point in the backup.

Can I use filters for SnapMirror to tape backups?

No. Backup filters cannot be used for SnapMirror to Tape backups. If you add filters, they are ignored.

Can I perform an In-Place restore of root volumes for SnapMirror to tape backups?

No. In-Place restores of SnapMirror-To-Tape backups (also referred to as Image Backups) of the root volume on a NetApp file server are not supported. While you can perform a SnapMirror to Tape backup of the root volume, you cannot restore to it because the root volume cannot be turned offline.

Can I perform a Direct Access restore of an image backup?

No. The Direct Access Restore option is ignored for restores from image backups. If selected, the option does not affect the restore.

Which snap iDataAgents support catalog snapshots?

The File System agent and the NDMP agent are supported.

Which version of NAS supports catalog snapshots?

ONTAP version 7.3 and higher.

How can I manually select jobs for cataloging?

If you want to catalog snapshots for specific backup jobs, you can do so by enabling manual selection of backup job from the storage policy. Once this is enabled, you need to manually pick the backup jobs to catalog from the list of storage policy jobs.

  1. From the CommCell Browser, navigate to Policies | Storage Policies.

  2. Right-click the <Storage Policy> and click View | Jobs.

  3. Clear the Specify Time Range check box from the Job Filter for Storage Policy dialog box, and then click OK.

    By default, the jobs initiated in the past 24 hours are displayed. Clearing this option will display all the jobs associated with the copy.

  4. A list of jobs associated with the copy is displayed in the right pane of the CommCell browser.

  5. Right-click the job and select Pick for Catalog.

Can I re-catalog the snap backup job?

No. The option to re-catalog a snap backup job is not available.

Will Data Aging prune the backups although they are in picked state?

Yes. The data will be pruned according to the retention criteria in the storage policy even though the backups are in picked state.

Can I have a vault copy as the source for cataloging data during an IntelliSnap backup?

Yes, you can use a Vault copy as the source for cataloging data for NAS IntelliSnap backup.

Note

However, it is strongly recommended that you use a Mirror copy which has Primary or Mirror as the source. This is because the SnapVault copy may not exactly match the source volume.

For instance, if a qtree is created on a volume after the snap creation, it may not be included in the catalog and hence might not be available for browse and restore. Following is an example in which case a qtree added after snap creation will not be available for browse and restore:

  1. Create snap1 on Primary volume

  2. Create qtree1 on Primary volume

  3. Create snap2 on Primary volume

  4. Replicate snap1 and snap2 to the Vault node

In this case qtree1 will be transferred to the destination during baselining. After this snap1 and snap2 will be moved.

Note: (The following scenario is only valid for NetApp 7-Mode file servers. This scenario does not apply to NetApp Cluster-Mode (C-Mode) file servers.)

Since SnapVault works at the qtree level and not the volume level, when copying snap1 it will not copy qtree1 on the destination volume since qtree1 was not part of snap1. On the other hand since Snapdiff works at the volume level, when snapdiff is done between snap1 and snap2, it won’t find qtree1 as qtree1 is present in both snap1 and snap2 on the destination volume.

Will Cluster-Mode work with an older version of MediaAgent?

No. In order to properly configure and use Cluster-Mode arrays, all components must be version 10 or later.

Can I back up infinite volumes using Cluster-Mode arrays?

Infinite Volumes can be backed up using the Network Share Backup support as described in the documentation for Network Backup IntelliSnap Support. It is not recommended to use the NDMP agent to protect infinite volumes because there is limited snapshot indexing support and NDMP backups are not supported.

Can I back up Flexgroup volumes using Cluster-Mode arrays?

Flexgroup volumes can be backed up using Network Share backups and NDMP backups.

Can I back up physical cluster nodes?

No. You can back up either Vservers or the entire cluster. You cannot back up physical cluster nodes.

Are junction points supported for Cluster-Mode arrays?

No. You must follow mount points for Cluster-Mode NetApp arrays. Junction points are not supported.

Is SnapMirror to tape (SMTape) supported for Cluster-Mode?

SMTape is only supported for Cluster-Mode NetApp arrays running ONTAP 8.3 or later. The array must also belong to a Commvault version 10 CommCell updated to SP9 or later.

Why don't I see "Skip Catalog Phase for Snap Backup" when creating a schedule policy?

When creating a Schedule Policy, the Skip Catalog Phase for Snap Backup option only appears for NDMP agents. If a non-NDMP agent is selected, the Skip Catalog Phase for Snap Backup option will not be visible. Refer to Skip Catalog Phase for IntelliSnap Backup for more information.

How can I revert a snapshot operation on an Infinite Volume?

  • Manually unmount the Infinite volume at a junction point

  • Perform revert operation through GUI

  • Manually mount the Infinite volume at a junction point

Note that GUI mount from infinite volumes are read-only, CIFS share/NFS export is mounted from a snapshot because infinite volume does not support volume clone from snapshot.

Consult NetApp documentation to volume mount and unmount at a junction path for more information.

How do I mount CIFS/NFS for Infinite Volume?

GUI mount from infinite volumes are read-only, CIFS share/NFS export is mounted from a snapshot because Infinite volume does not support volume clone from snapshot.

Why are the statistics inaccurate when I browse the index of an Infinite Volume snap backup?

Indexing Infinite Volume snap backups has limited support. Therefore, the statistics shown might be inaccurate.

Does Infinite Volume backup support SnapVault or SnapMirror?

No, infinite volume does not support SnapVault or SnapMirror because it is not supported by OnCommand Unified Manager 6.0.

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