Data Protector Introduction

HP Data Protector Introduction

HP Data Protector is a backup solution that provides reliable data protection and high accessibility for your fast growing business data. Data Protector offers comprehensive backup and restore functionality specifically tailored for enterprise-wide and distributed environments. 

The Major Data Protector features:

Scalable and Highly Flexible Architecture

Data Protector can be used in environments ranging from a single system to thousands of systems on several sites. Due to the network component concept of Data Protector, elements of the backup infrastructure can be placed in the topology according to user requirements. The numerous backup options and alternatives to setting up a backup infrastructure allow the implementation of virtually any configuration you want. Data Protector also enables the use of advanced backup concepts, such as synthetic backup and disk staging.

Easy Central Administration

Through its easy-to-use graphical user interface (GUI), Data Protector allows you to administer your complete backup environment from a single system. To ease operation, the GUI can be installed on various systems to allow multiple administrators to access Data Protector via their locally installed consoles. Even multiple backup environments can be managed from a single system. The Data Protector command-line interface allows you to manage Data Protector using scripts.

High Performance Backup

Data Protector enables you to perform backup to several hundred backup devices simultaneously. It supports high-end devices in very large libraries. Various backup possibilities, such as local backup, network backup, online backup, disk image backup, synthetic backup, backup with object mirroring, and built-in support for parallel data streams allow you to tune your backups to best fit your requirements.

Data security

To enhance the security of your data, Data Protector lets you encrypt your backups so that they become protected from others. Data Protector offers two data encryption techniques: software-based and drive-based.

Supporting Mixed Environments

As Data Protector supports heterogeneous environments, most features are common to the UNIX and Windows platforms. The UNIX and Windows Cell Managers can control all supported client platforms (UNIX, Windows, and Novell NetWare). The Data Protector User interface can access the entire Data Protector functionality on all supported platforms.

Easy Installation for Mixed Environments

The Installation Server concept simplifies the installation and upgrade procedures. To remotely install UNIX clients, you need an Installation Server for UNIX. To remotely install Windows clients, you need an Installation Server for Windows. The remote installation can be performed from any client with an installed Data Protector GUI.

High Availability Support

Data Protector enables you to meet the needs for continued business operations around the clock. In today's globally distributed business environment, company-wide information resources and customer service applications must always be available. Data Protector enables you to meet high availability needs by:

                        • Integrating with clusters to ensure fail-safe operation with the ability to back up virtual nodes. For a list of supported clusters, see the HP Data Protector Product Announcements, Software Notes, and References.

                        • Enabling the Data Protector Cell Manager itself to run on a cluster.

                        • Supporting all popular online database Application Programming Interfaces.

                        • Integrating with advanced high-availability solutions like EMC Symmetrix, HP StorageWorks P6000 EVA Disk Array Family, HP StorageWorks P9000 XP Disk Array Family, or HP StorageWorks P4000 SAN Solutions.

                        • Providing various disaster recovery methods for Windows and UNIX platforms.

                        • Offering methods of duplicating backed up data during and after the backup to improve fault tolerance of backups or for redundancy purposes.

Backup Object Operations

To provide flexibility in the choice of backup and archive strategy, advanced techniques are available for performing operations on individual backup objects. These include copying of objects from one medium to another, useful for disk staging and archiving purposes, and consolidation of multiple object versions from incremental backups into a single full-backup version. To support such functionality, there is also the ability to verify both original and copied or consolidated backup objects.

Easy Restore

Data Protector includes an internal database that keeps track of data such as which files from which system are kept on a particular medium. In order to restore any part of a system, simply browse the files and directories. This provides fast and convenient access to the data to be restored.

Automated or Unattended Operation

With the internal database, Data Protector keeps information about each Data Protector medium and the data on it. Data Protector provides sophisticated media management functionality. For example, it keeps track of how long a particular backup needs to remain available for restoring, and which media can be (re)used for backups. The support of very large libraries complements this, allowing for unattended operation over several days or weeks (automated media rotation). Additionally, when new disks are connected to systems, Data Protector can automatically detect or discover) the disks and back them up. This eliminates the need to adjust backup configurations manually.

Service Management

Data Protector is the first backup and restore management solution to support service management. The integration with Application Response Management (ARM) and Data Source Integration (DSI) enables powerful support of Service Level Management (SLM) and Service Level Agreements (SLA) concepts by providing relevant data to management and planning systems. The DSI integration provides a set of scripts and configuration files from which users are able to see how to add their own queries using Data Protector reporting capabilities.

Monitoring, Reporting and Notification

Superior web reporting and notification capabilities allow you to easily view the backup status, monitor active backup operations, and customize reports. Reports can be generated using the Data Protector GUI, or using the omnirpt command on systems running UNIX or Windows, as well as using Java-based online generated web reports. You can schedule reports to be issued at a specific time or to be attached to a predefined set of events, such as the end of a backup session or a mount request. In addition, the Data Protector auditing functionality enables you to collect a subset of backup session information and provides an overview of backup operations. Backup session information is recorded to the audit log files.

Integration with Online Applications

Data Protector provides online backup of Microsoft Exchange Server, Microsoft SQL Server, Microsoft SharePoint Server, Oracle, Informix Server, SAP R/3, SAP MaxDB, Lotus Notes/Domino Server, IBM DB2 UDB, Sybase database objects, and VMware Virtual Infrastructure and Hyper-V objects. For a list of supported versions for a particular operating system, see the HP Data Protector Product Announcements, Software Notes, and References.

Integration with Other Products Additionally, Data Protector integrates with EMC Symmetrix, Microsoft Cluster Server, MC/ServiceGuard and other products.

Data Protector History

The first version of Data Protector was released in 1994, back then it was called OmniBack II. It is not important to know all the different versions and what are their release dates, but as the first releases were called OmniBack II the directory structure has still OmniBack in its name and all command line tools begin with omniback in its name.

Commands and directories still named OmniBack, some examples:

- directory on Unix systems: /etc/opt/omni 

- directory on Windows systems: C:\Program Files\OmniBack

- CLI command: omnisv status

What is also good to know is that in previous releases the Cell Manager was called Cell Server, therefore the patch is still called CS patch. 

And the patches for the user interface are still called CC patch, which is because in former versions user interface (GUI) was called Cell Console.

Direct Attached Backup

The concept of direct attached backup means that only one host is included in the backup process. The data is read by the Data Protector Disk Agent and written to the backup device by Data Protector Media Agent. In this scenario both Agents (Disk and Media) are running on the same system, no other host is included in the backup process. 

A direct attached backup device is a device which is controlled by the Media Agent installed on the host, e.g.:

                        • direct attached tape drive (SCSI)

                        • via SAN attached tape library

                        • via NAS attached device (NDMP)

Network Backup

In opposite to the direct attached backup, where both Agents (Disk and Media Agent) are running on the same system, when talking about network backup the network (LAN) is included in backup process.

The Disk Agent installed on one system is reading the backup data and sending the data via LAN to the Media Agent installed on the system where the backup device is connected.

Array Based Replica Backup (ZDB)

In today's storage environment, the requirements for data availability are constantly growing. For the information resources to be highly available, Data Protector zero downtime backup (ZDB) solution helps you meet your business needs, eliminating the application downtime and making mission-critical data available 24x7.

Zero downtime backup is a backup approach in which replication techniques are used to minimize the impact of backup operations on an application system. A replica of the data to be backed up is created first, and all subsequent backup operations are performed on the replicated data rather than the original data.

As a backup occurs in the background while the application remains online and available for use, the impact on your environment during a backup is minimal. The recovery window is reduced as well by using the instant recovery (IR) functionality, which enables recovery of vast amount of data in minutes rather than hours. This makes ZDB and IR capabilities suitable for high-availability systems and mission-critical applications.

Cell Concept

The Data Protector cell is a network environment that has a Cell Manager, client systems, and backup devices. The Cell Manager is the central control point where Data Protector software is installed. After installing Data Protector software, you can add systems to be backed up. These systems become Data Protector client systems that are part of the cell. When Data Protector backs up files, it saves them to media in backup devices.

The Data Protector internal database (IDB) keeps track of the files you back up so that you can browse and easily recover the entire system or single files. Data Protector facilitates backup and restore jobs. You can do an immediate (or interactive) backup using the Data Protector user interface. You can also schedule your backups to run unattended.

The Data Protector architecture breaks down the size and complexity of the enterprise network by allowing systems to be configured into Data Protector cells. This cell is a loosely coupled collection of systems, organized to allow for central management of backup processes.

A Data Protector cell consists of a Cell Manager system and of the systems that are to have their backup and restored tasks managed by it.

The Data Protector cell configuration can reflect the organization within a company, with each department having its own administrators. However, there is no reason that two machines, thousands of miles apart, cannot be in the same cell.

Note: A system may belong to only one cell.

Roles In The Data Protector Cell 

Before installation you need to determine the role of each system in your Data Protector cell. The following cell components must be selected in order to set up the environment properly.

Cell components	Roles in the cell	Description
Cell Manager	The computer that is the central point for managing the backup environment.	Only one Cell Manager system can be present in each cell. You cannot run Data Protector without having the Cell Manager system installed.
Installation Server	The computer that holds the Data Protector software depots for remote installation.	This computer must have the Installation Server for the particular platform (UNIX or Windows) installed. By default, the Cell Manager and Installation Server are on the same system.
Client system	Computers that are backed up.	These computers must have the Disk Agent installed. The Disk Agent is also installed on the Cell Manager, allowing you to back up the Data Protector configuration, the IDB, and data on the Cell Manager.
Client system (Backup system)	Computers with backup devices.	These computers must have a Media Agent installed. A backup device can be connected to any system in the cell, not only to the Cell Manager.
DP User Interface	Computers that can access Data Protector functionality.	You can install the graphical user interface on many systems, and are therefore able to access the Cell Manager from different locations.

Client Server Architecture

The basic Data Protector implementation utilizes only two architecture layers, the Cell Manager, and the Cell Client layers. The User Interface is installed on the Cell Manager but it may be distributed on multiple client systems as well.

Data Protector is composed of separate client/server modules, each of which performs a specialized task. The major component is the Cell Manager; it is responsible for the control of the entire Data Protector Cell and the invocation of the specialized agent processes.

The agent processes are used for accessing disk and tape devices for backup, restore and media management tasks. The two fundamental agents are:

                        • Disk Agent – responsible for read/write actions from disk drives for backup and restore

                        • Media Agent – responsible for read/write actions to backup media (may be tape or disk)

 The basis of the client/server model is that the Data Protector software consists of client modules and a server module. These modules can all be installed on a single system (a single client cell) or be distributed across many systems. Communication between modules is accomplished via TCP/IP sockets, initiated on port 5555.

Cell Manager

The Cell Manager is the main control center for the cell and contains the Internal Database (IDB). It runs the core Data Protector software and the Session Manager, which starts and stops backup and restore sessions and writes session information to the IDB.

Any system within a chosen cell environment can be set up as a Data Protector Client. Essentially, a client is a system that can be backed up, a system connected to a backup device with which the backup data can be saved, or both. The role of the client depends on whether it has a Disk Agent or a Media Agent installed.

A client that will be backed up using Data Protector must have a Disk Agent installed. Data Protector controls the access to the disk. The Disk Agent lets you back up information from, or restore information to, the client system.

A client system with connected backup devices must have a Media Agent installed. This software controls the access to the backup device. A Media Agent controls reading from and writing to a backup device’s media.

Disk Agent

The Disk Agent is a component needed on a client to back it up and restore it. Disk Agent controls reading from and writing to a disk. During a backup session, the Disk Agent reads data from a disk and sends it to the Media Agent, which then moves it to the device. During a restore session the Disk Agent receives data from the Media Agent and writes it to the disk. During an object verification session the Disk Agent receives data from the Media Agent and performs the verification process, but no data is written to disk.

The Disk Agent component consists of specialized processes that are started on demand by the respective Backup or Restore Manager process (Session Manager). These programs are installed in the /opt/omni/lbin directory on HP-UX and C:\Program Files\Omniback\bin on Windows.

 Disk Agent program names: (*.exe files on Windows)

vbda Volume Backup Disk Agent

vrda Volume Restore Disk Agent

rbda Raw Backup Disk Agent

rrda Raw Restore Disk Agent

fsbrda File system Browser Disk Agent

dbbda Database Backup Disk Agent (for internal database)

Media Agent

Media Agent is a process that controls reading from and writing to a backup device, which reads from or writes to a medium (typically a tape). During a backup session, a Media Agent receives data from the Disk Agent and sends it to the backup device for writing it to the medium. During a restore session, a Media Agent locates data on the backup medium and sends it to the Disk Agent for processing. For a restore session, the Disk Agent then writes the data to the disk. A Media Agent also manages the robotics control of a library.

A Media Agent component must be installed on the client system to which the backup device is physically attached (direct attached or SAN attached). The Media Agent component consists of specialized processes that are started on demand by the respective Backup, Restore or Media Manager process (Session Manager). These programs are installed in the /opt/omni/lbin directory on HP-UX and C:\Program Files\Omniback\bin on Windows.

Media Agent program names: (*.exe files on Windows)

bma Backup Media Agent

rma Restore Media Agent

mma Media Management Agent

cma Copy Media Agent

uma Utility Media Agent (used for tape library control; may be started interactively)

devbra Device Browser Agent (used for auto-discovery/configuration. May be run from the command line)

Integration Agent

Data Protector provides a set of integration components that enable data to be exchanged between the most popular applications (databases) and Data Protector. Data Protector accesses the application vendors API in order to perform online backups and restores. The ability to perform online backups is a highly desirable feature in mission-critical, high-availability environments. Data Protector also provides integrations with many other applications that assist in areas such as high availability, system control, and monitoring.

Application Integrations

                        • Oracle

                        • SAP, SAPDB/MaxDB

                        • IBM Informix

                        • IBM DB2

                        • Sybase

                        • Microsoft SQL, Exchange, SharePoint, VSS, DPM

                        • VMware

                        • Lotus Notes/Domino

                        • Citrix XenServer  

                        • … and many more

Installation Server

Data Protector Installation Server is a computer system that holds a repository of the Data Protector software packages for a specific architecture. The Installation Server is used for remote installation of Data Protector clients. In mixed environments at least two Installation Servers are needed: one for UNIX systems and one for Windows systems. The Installation Server must be registered as such with a Cell Manager.

NOTE: The Installation Server is not restricted to a single cell, it may provide installation services for more than one cell. But is limited to distribution services for its native platform (Windows or UNIX)

When the Cell Manager system pushes agent software to a client system, the particular Installation Server from which the software is to be obtained is specified. 

Data Protector patches are applied to the Installation Servers(s) and then distributed to clients during an update/push request from the Cell Manager.

User Interface 

Data Protector provides easy access to all configuration and administration tasks using the Data Protector GUI on Windows and UNIX platforms. You can use the original Data Protector GUI (on Windows) or the Data Protector Java GUI (on Windows and UNIX). Both user interfaces can run simultaneously on the same computer. Additionally, a command-line interface is available on Windows and UNIX platforms.

The Data Protector architecture allows you to flexibly install and use the Data Protector user interface. The user interface does not have to be used from the Cell Manager system; you can install it on any desktop system and it allows you to transparently manage Data Protector cells with Cell Managers on all supported platforms.

Data Protector provides a rich and powerful command line interface. The CLI can be used in situations where a GUI is not available, for example, when dialing in to a system for remote support, or when writing shell scripts or batch files. Most of the Data Protector commands will reside in the bin directory below the product home.

Internal Database

The Data Protector internal database (IDB) is an embedded database, located on the Cell Manager, which keeps information regarding what data is backed up; on which media it resides; the result of backup, restore, copy, and media management sessions; and what devices and libraries are configured.

There are three key reasons for using the IDB:

                        • Fast and convenient restore: The information stored in the IDB enables you to browse the files and directories to be restored. You can quickly find the media required for a restore and therefore make the restore much faster.

                        • Backup management: The information stored in the IDB enables you to verify the result of backup sessions.

                        • Media management: The information stored in the IDB enables you to allocate media during a backup and copy sessions, track media management operations and media attributes, group media in different media pools, and track media locations in tape libraries.

The IDB consists of the following parts:

                        • MMDB (Media Management Database)

                        • CDB (Catalog Database)

                        • DCBF (Detail Catalog Binary Files)

                        • SMBF (Session Messages Binary Files)

                        • SIBF (Serverless Integrations Binary Files).

Typical Data Protector Session

Data Protector uses the standard inet (inetd) facility to start up remote processes. This mechanism requires that a fixed port number be allocated for Data Protector. Within a Data Protector Cell, all systems must have the same port number configured, but it may vary from cell to cell. The default port number used is 5555.The Data Protector session manager invokes specific agent processes, depending on the request it has received, and uses the following mechanism to achieve this:

                        1. The session manager connects to the system on which it wants to start a Media or Disk Agent process via the predefined port number, 5555.

                        2. On the Windows client platforms, the Data Protector Inet service is already running on port 5555 to handle incoming requests.

                        3. The Session Manager sends a control block that informs the remote system exactly which agents to start and the ports that are to be used for communication, etc.

                        4. The Data Protector inet process then starts the desired agents.

·         Before you start to install the Data Protector software, make a plan how your cell should look like. If you have a huge environment, consider to create several cells and to use them either independently of each other or to manage them through one central Cell Manager using the MoM (Manager of Managers) concept.

Mukesh Handa
muk_handa@yahoo.com
+673-8813507