How to snapshot disks of a Windows Server Failover Cluster (WSFC)

Ops Center Protector User Guide

Version

7.7.x

Audience

anonymous

Part Number

MK-99PRT002-08

ft:lastEdition

2023-10-26

It is assumed that the following actions have been performed:

The Protector Master software has been installed and licensed on a dedicated node. See Installation Tasks and License Tasks
The Protector Client software has been installed on all nodes of the Microsoft Windows Cluster setup, which should be protected, and the nodes have been authorized in Protector.
The Protector Client software has been installed on the node that will act as a proxy for the Hitachi storage device where the Windows Server Failover Cluster data is located.
The block storage device has been set up as per the Protector requirements and prerequisites. Refer to Hitachi Block prerequisites.
The primary storage devices have been set up as per the Protector requirements and prerequisites. Refer to Hitachi Block prerequisites.
The disks are mapped to all cluster nodes of the Windows Server Failover Cluster
All disks that should be snapshotted together should be same member of the same cluster resource group.
Note: You cannot take a snapshot of both traditional clustered disks and cluster shared volumes at the same time. You can only take a snapshot of either one or more clustered disks or one or more Cluster Shared Volumes (CSV).
Permissions have been granted to enable the Protector UI, required activities and participating nodes to be accessed. In this example all nodes will be left in the default resource group, so there is no need to allocate nodes to user defined resource groups. Refer to How to configure basic role based access control.

This task describes the steps to follow when snapshotting clustered disks that reside on a Hitachi Block storage device. The data flow and policy are as follows:

Classification Type	Parameters	Value
File System	Node	File System application node hosting the cluster disks
	Cluster Resource Group	The cluster resource the clustered disks belong to
	Included Paths	The paths or mount points of the clustered disks

Operation Type	Parameters	Value
Snapshot	Mode	Hardware
	Hardware Type	Hitachi Block
	Run Options	Run on RPO
	RPO	1 day
	Retention	5 days

Locate the source OS Host nodes for your Microsoft Windows Server Failover Cluster (WSFC) environment in the Nodes Inventory and check that the nodes are authorized and online. These nodes represent the Protector Clients installed on your Microsoft Windows Server Failover Cluster environment.
Create a new Fileserver node (unless a suitable one already exists) using the File System Node Wizard. The File System node type is grouped under Application in the Node Type Wizard.
1. Select one node which is part of your Windows Server Failover Cluster environment.
2. Select which configuration you want the File System node to represent. In case of a standalone system, you will only have one option. In the case of a clustered system, you can choose if the application node should represent just this host or a clustered instance.
Locate the node in the Node Inventory that will control the Hitachi Block Device via a CMD (Command Device) where the Microsoft Windows Server Failover Cluster data is located. Check that the node is authorized and online.

This node is used by Protector to orchestrate snapshot creation and is identified as the Proxy Node when creating the Hitachi Block Device node in the next step. This node is known as an ISM (Intelligent Storage Manager) node. The ISM node does not appear in the data flow.
Create a new Hitachi Block Device node (unless one already exists) using the Hitachi Logical Block Device Node Wizard and check that it is authorized and online.

The Hitachi Block Device node type is grouped under Storage in the Node Type Wizard. Note that this node does not appear in a Failover Cluster snapshot data flow diagram but is identified when assigning the snapshot policy
Define a policy as shown in the table above using the Policy Wizard, File System Classification Wizard and Snapshot Operation Wizard.

The File System classification is grouped under Application in the Policy Wizard.
Draw a data flow as shown in the figure above, that shows only the File System source node, using the Data Flow Wizard. At this stage, the snapshot icon is not shown.
Assign the Snapshot operation to the File System source node. The File System Snapshot policy will then be assigned automatically. The Block Snapshot Configuration Wizard is displayed.
Select the Storage Node corresponding to the Hitachi Block Storage device where the File System data is located. Then select a Snapshot Pool from one of the available Thin Image or hybrid pools.
Leave the remaining Advanced Configuration options at their default settings, then click OK.

Tip: Using Cascade mode (the default setting) will allow the data to be used for reverts after it has been mounted. The snapshot icon is now shown superimposed over the source node.
Compile and activate the data flow, checking carefully that there are no errors.
Locate the active data flow in the Monitor Inventory and open its Monitor Details. The policy will be invoked automatically to create a snapshot repeatedly according to the RPO specified in the policy. The policy can also be manually triggered from the source node in the monitor data flow.
Watch the active data flow via the Monitor Details to ensure the policy is operating as expected.
You should periodically see:
- Backup jobs appearing in the Jobs area below the data flow that show progress percentage, ending in Progress - Completed.
- Information messages appearing in the Logs area below the data flow indicating rules activation and snapshot events.
Review the status of the Hitachi Block Device to ensure snapshots are being created. New snapshots will appear in the Block Snapshot Inventory periodically as dictated by the RPO of the policy. Old snapshots will be removed periodically as dictated by the Retention Period of the policy.