Restoring files from virtual machines

By browsing and restoring files and folders from VM backups, you can restore specific data without restoring the entire VM.

File restores use live browse to temporarily mount backup data and discover the file structure. For large data volumes, restoring the full VM or attaching disks might provide better performance than a file restore.

Requirements

Linux and Windows

• You must have a completed backup of the VM.

• File indexing must be enabled.

Linux

Linux VM file browse and restore operations require a Linux access node. Select a node that meets the following conditions:

• The node is compatible with the Linux VM operating system and file systems that you need to browse or restore.

• The node can communicate with the hypervisor and VM environment through the required network, DNS, and Commvault connectivity.

• The node has the components required for Linux VM file browse and restore operations in your environment.

• The node has sufficient temporary and JobResults space for staging and restore activity.

Select the Linux access node

Use the Node for guest file restores of Linux VMs setting to control which Linux access node mounts, browses, and restores files from Linux VM backups.

Select a specific node when automatic node selection is incompatible with the Linux VM, does not provide the required locality, or does not provide sufficient staging and processing capacity. A dedicated File Recovery Enabler for Linux (FREL), including a MediaAgent converted to a FREL, can be selected when you want Linux VM file restores to use that node.

Configure the setting in the hypervisor or VM group configuration:

1. Select a Linux access node that meets the requirements in this topic.

2. Set Node for guest file restores of Linux VMs to the selected node.

3. Save the configuration.

The setting applies to the VMs associated with the configuration level where you set it. Configure it at the VM group or VM level when you need a more specific node than the hypervisor-level selection.

Agentless file restore

Agentless file restore lets you restore files and folders from VM backups without installing a Commvault package on the source VM.

Depending on the hypervisor and restore scenario, you can use either native guest file restore capabilities or the Restore via CV tools option.

Native agentless restore

For supported workloads, files are restored by using platform-specific mechanisms without deploying a Commvault package to the destination VM.

Selected files are staged on an access node and then transferred to the destination VM. After the restore completes, temporary data that was created for the restore operation is removed automatically.

Restore via CV tools

The Restore via CV tools option extends agentless file restore to environments where native guest file restore support is unavailable or limited.

When you select Restore via CV tools, Commvault deploys the File System Core package to the destination VM and uses it to restore the selected files.

Requirements

For destination VMs:

• The destination VM name must be resolvable from the control plane, or the VM name and IP address must be added to the control plane hosts file.

• The firewall on the destination VM must allow communication that is required for the restore operation.

For Windows destination VMs:

• OpenSSH Server must be installed and running.

• TCP port 22 must be accessible.

• A Windows access node with a software cache or remote cache must be available to deploy the File System Core package. Linux access nodes cannot deploy the package to Windows guest VMs.

Remote Procedure Call (RPC) and Server Message Block (SMB) communication requirements

Some Restore via CV tools operations use RPC and SMB communication between the access node and the destination VM.

Direct network connectivity is required between the access node and the destination VM. Network configurations that rely on NAT or floating IP addresses might not be supported.

Requirements

• Allow TCP ports 135, 445, 5985, 5986, and dynamic RPC ports (49152-65535) between the access node and the destination VM.

• Verify that the following Windows services are running on the destination VM:

• Remote Procedure Call (RpcSs)

• DCOM Server Process Launcher (DcomLaunch)

• Windows Management Instrumentation (Winmgmt)

• Windows Remote Management (WinRM)

• Configure Windows Firewall to allow RPC, SMB, WinRM, and dynamic RPC traffic.

• Verify that the security groups allow the required traffic.

OpenStack requirement

For OpenStack environments, use a Windows VM as the hypervisor access node in the same tenant network as the destination VM.