VM backups

The platform uses backup systems, such as Veeam or Networker, and it creates backups for VMs that are deployed on the hypervisor.

When you configure a backup for your VM, the platform will display the disks backup symbol in the lower right-hand corner of the VM icon. 

In some environments the backup system may support restore for VMs that were previously deployed and are now undeployed. If you delete the VM, you cannot access the backup system through the platform. 

To request a manual backup of a VM now:

1. Go to Virtual datacenters → edit VM → Backup
2. At the bottom of the Backup tab, click the Backup now button

The platform will request an immediate backup of the VM or a VM snapshot

To configure your VM backup by selecting the backup policy and the disks, do these steps:

1. Edit the virtual machine and go to Backup → Backup policies
   
   
2. Select from the list of Backup policies
3. Click Show details. Depending on your system configuration and user privileges, you may be required to configure different backup options. Examples of backup options
   
   

4. If required, enter backup frequency, or date and/or time

   Backup Times

   Abiquo uses ISO 8601 and you should check the time standard used in each datacenter with the datacenter owner

   Time zones in ISO 8601 are represented as local time (with the location unspecified), as UTC, or as an offset from UTC

5. If required, select disks
   
   • Note: Some backup systems will ignore your disk selection and create a backup of all disks. Check your cloud provider's documentation for more information

To display backup results:

1. Go to Virtual datacenters → edit VM → Backup → Backup results

The results shown may vary depending on your datacenter's backup system. Backups with a status of "done" or "completed" will have a Restore link enabled in the Action column. 

The administrator may allow users to restore their own backups.

To restore a VM backup:

1. Go to Virtual datacenters → edit VM → Backups → Backup results
2. In the Latest backups section, in the Action column on the right, click the Restore link
   

To display the details of the restore, click on the backup in the Latest backups list. 

After the platform finishes the restore, it will display a status, such as "done" or "failed".

After you restore a backup, the VM disks are under the control of the backup system, not the platform. So when you undeploy after restoring a VM, the platform will display a warning popup and delete and remove the VM's disks.

If your environment permits, you may request more than one restore of the same backup. If the status of the restore request is "success" or "failed", Abiquo will reactivate the Restore link and you can click it to request a new restore of the same backup.

For users the backup feature will produce the events described on the Events table page in the Virtual machine section, under METADATA_MODIFIED and RESTORE_BACKUP.

To display VM backup events:

1. Go to Virtual datacenters → edit VM → Backup → Events

This page will display events from backup integrations. 

To view the details of an event, click on the event.