Using CA ARCserve Central Host-Based VM Backup › How to Manage Policies for CA ARCserve Central Host-Based VM Backup › Create Backup Policies

Create Backup Policies

The process of creating backup policies uses the CA ARCserve D2D interface for configuring backup settings, with a few distinctions. You can create policies that are based on similar backup needs, for example, by installed application or by schedule.

The following procedure summarizes the steps that are required for creating a simple CA ARCserve D2D backup job policy. For complete details on creating CA ARCserve D2D backup policies, see the appropriate CA ARCserve D2D topics in the Appendix.

Note: During a host-based backup operation, the following message appears if you are using hotadd as the transport mode:

You need to format the disk in drive <driveLetter> before you can use it. Do you want to format it? 

Click Cancel to ignore this message. The message occurs when the operating system detects that the virtual hard disk was added to the backup proxy server. The operating system assumes that the virtual hard disk is a new device that requires formatting. If you click Format Disk in error, no damage occurs since the virtual hard disk is read-only.

Follow these steps:

1. Log in to the application.

   Click Policies on the Navigation bar to open the Policies screen.

2. Click New on the toolbar to open the New Policy dialog.
3. Enter a Policy Name that appropriately describes the policy.
4. On the Backup Settings tab, click Protection Settings and specify the following information:
   • Backup Destination--Specify the local volume or remote shared folder where you want to save your backup sessions.
   • CA ARCserve D2D VM Backup Proxy--Specify the Hostname or IP address of the server where CA ARCserve D2D has been installed. If CA ARCserve D2D is not already installed, you can use CA ARCserve Central Protection Manager to deploy it. Provide the appropriate credentials for this server. The Port number defaults to 8014. If you changed this default during CA ARCserve D2D installation, specify the correct port number.
   • Retention Setting--You can set the retention policy that is based on the number of recovery points to retain (merges sessions) or based on the number of recovery sets to retain (deletes recovery sets and disables infinite incrementals). The default option is Retain Recovery Points. For more details, see Specify Protection Settings from the CA ARCserve Central Protection Manager User Guide.
   • Compression--Select a compression level. The default value is Standard. You can specify no compression or Maximum compression.
   • Encryption--Specify an encryption level. The default value is no encryption. When specifying an encryption level, provide an encryption password that is used to restore encrypted data.
   • Throttle Backup--Enter the rate at which backups are written to disk. Lower this rate to reduce CPU or network load but note that doing so increases backup times. This option is disabled by default.
5. Click Schedule and complete the following information:
   • Start date and time--Specify the date and time you want to begin your backup jobs.
   • Incremental Backup--Define a repeat schedule for your incremental backup jobs. The default value is to repeat Incremental Backups once a day.
   • Full Backup--Define a repeat schedule for your full backup jobs. By default, this value is set to Never Repeat.
   • Verify Backup--Define a repeat schedule for verify backup jobs. By default, this value is set to Never Repeat.
6. Click Advanced and complete the following information:
   • Truncate log--Enable the following options when you want to truncate application log files:
     • SQL Server--Specify a daily, weekly, or monthly truncation schedule.
     • Exchange Server--Specify a daily, weekly, or monthly truncation schedule.
   • Reserve Space on Destination--Specify the percentage of space to reserve to perform one backup. This amount of continuous space is then immediately reserved on the destination before the backup starts writing data and helps improve backup speed.
   • Catalogs--Select the Generate File System catalog for faster search after each backup option to reduce your browser search wait time.

     If this option is not selected, the restores can be performed immediately after backup without having to wait for the catalog job to finish. By default, this option is not enabled. Be aware of the following considerations:

     • When you generate a File System catalog for each backup job; it results in an increased amount of disk storage that must store the metadata files and catalog files and an increase in CPU usage. In addition, if the backup source contains many files, the process of generating a catalog could be a time consuming task.
     • When you select ReFS volumes as the backup source, catalogs cannot be generated. Warning message then display to inform you of this condition.
7. Click Pre/Post Backup Settings and specify any desired pre/post-backup commands. If needed, provide the proper credentials:
   • Run a command before backup is started--Enter the script command to run before starting the backup job.
   • On exit code--Enable this option if you want to trigger the script command on a specific exit code.
   • Run Job--If selected, the software continues running the job if the specified exit code is returned.
   • Fail Job--If selected, the software aborts the backup job if the specified exit code is returned.
   • Run a command after snapshot is taken--Enter the script command to run after the snapshot is taken.
   • Run a command after backup is over--Enter the script command to run after backup completes.
8. (Optional) Click the Preferences tab. Configure any of the following email alerts, as needed:
   • Missed Jobs
   • vCenter/ESX cannot be reached (before backup)
   • License failure
   • Backup, Catalog, Restore or Copy job failure/crash/cancel
   • Backup, Catalog, Restore or Copy job success
   • Destination free space is less than
   • Merge job stopped, skipped, failed or crashed
   • Merge job success
   • Skip/Merge job waiting in the job queue

   If you enable these options, click Email Settings to configure your email server. Provide the Service type, Mail Server, and Port. If authentication is required, enable that option and provide credentials.

   • Specify the Subject to appear in the email, for example, CA ARCserve Central Host-Based VM Backup Alert.
   • Specify a From value, for example, CA ARCserve Central Host-Based VM Backup.
   • Specify an email address for all Recipients. Separate each address with a semi-colon (;).

   You can enable the Proxy Settings by providing the Proxy Server name, Port, and the required credentials.

   Click OK.

9. Click Save.