How to create VM restore points with block snapshots

It is assumed that the following tasks have been performed:

The Protector Master software has been installed and licensed on a dedicated node.
The Protector Client software has been installed on the node that will act as the proxy for the vCenter.
The Protector Client software has been installed on the node that will act as a proxy for the Hitachi Block storage device where the VMware datastore is located. Note that for a Thin Image snapshot, the source and destination LDEVs are located on the same device.
The block storage device has been set up as per the Protector requirements and prerequisites. Refer to Hitachi Block prerequisites.
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.
A VMware user has been created that provides the required privileges as detailed in VMware user privileges. This user will be required when creating the VMware proxy node in the steps that follow.

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

Figure. VMware Block Snapshot Data Flow

Table. VMware Snapshot Policy
Classification Type	Parameters	Value
VMware	VMware Node	myVMwareServer
VMware	Included Items	Refer to About VMware policy classifications for details on how to specify VMs that are to be included in a backup.

Operation Type	Parameters	Value	Assigned Nodes
Snapshot	Mode	Hardware	VMware
	Hardware Type	Hitachi Block
	Run Options	Run on RPO
	RPO	1 hours
	Retention	1 days

Locate the source OS Host node in the Node Inventory and check that it is authorized and online.
This node will be used as the proxy for the VMware source node. It is identified as the Proxy Node when creating the VMware node in the next step.
Create a new VMware node (unless a suitable one already exists) using the VMware Node Wizard.
The VMware node type is grouped under Hypervisor in the Node Type Wizard.
1. Specify the Host name or IP Address of vCenter.
2. Specify the Username and Password of a user having the required privileges as detailed in VMware user privileges.
3. Check that this node is shown as authorized and online.
Locate the node in the Nodes Inventory that will control the Hitachi Block Device (via a CMD) where the VMware datastore 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 Block Storage 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 VMware 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, VMware Classification Wizard and Snapshot Operation Wizard.
The VMware classification is grouped under Hypervisor in the Policy Wizard.
Draw a data flow as shown in the figure above, that shows only the VMware source node, using the Data Flow Wizard.
At this stage the snapshot icon is not shown.
Assign the Snapshot operation to the VMware source node. The VMware-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 VMware Server's datastore 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.

CAUTION:
If you want to preserve VMware snapshots after restoring from VMs them, use Cascade mode (the default setting) when assigning the snapshot operation on the data flow. This will enable the Mount duplicate option in the Hitachi Block VMware Snapshot Restore Wizard when performing a restore.
The process of restoring a VM removes it from the snapshot. The metadata for the snapshot will be updated to show that the VM has been restored and the VM is no longer available for restoring.

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.