5 0 0:Standard Restore Procedure

Overview

The following instructions for creating a restore task apply to using a restore wizard in the GUI. Although the steps and options are very similar, the preferred way for creating a restore task using the web interface is described in Standard Restore Procedure and in Web Single File Restore for Virtual Machines.

SEP sesam GUI restore is a process that browses for different versions of savesets and copies data from savesets to a client, thus recreating the original data. The restore wizard is triggered from the Menu bar -> Activities -> Restore.

Restore tasks can be saved, scheduled and run automatically in continuous intervals to check and control data integrity. For details, see About Scheduling.

The data restore granularity depends on the selected data type. SEP sesam provides three basic restore types: complete, generation and selective restore. The restore type is specified when configuring a restore task.

The following restore types are available:

Complete restore

A process by which an entire saveset is restored – all the files of a saveset are selected and restored.

Selective restore

Only a subset of a saveset's files is selected – only selected parts of data on the saveset, such as individual files and directories, are restored.

Generation restore

All generations of backed-up files, including differential or incremental backup files, can be browsed for and selected for restore. SEP sesam automatically switches to the generation view in which all the generations of the files are presented. The selection list displays all files since the last full backup.

Configuring a restore task

A restore task involves browsing and selecting the desired savesets by time and task/filename, selecting the restore type and restore target (the file system folder, for example) and other additional options. The restore can be run immediately or scheduled to run automatically at a specified time.

Prerequisites

• Depending on what you want to restore, make sure that you have the restore permissions and access rights.
• Make sure that there is enough free space on the target system where you want to restore your data.

Steps

From the SEP sesam GUI menu bar, select Activities -> Restore. The New Restore Task window opens.

Filter

On this page, you can enter search criteria for the file to be restored. You can use different criteria to quickly find the data you want to restore. Select the task from the drop-down list or search by filename or path to find the backups that match the search term. Use the drop-down list Saved in period to narrow the time range of the search requests.

Options

Searching by task name	Search for a certain task intended for restore by using the fields Task and Saved in period. If you use the wildcard [*], all tasks are selected. After clicking the button Next, all savesets created within the given period are shown in tabular form.
Searching by filename or path	Search for the known files or directories to find the backups that match the search term. Use input-field Search pattern for filename or path together with drop-down boxes Task and Saved in period to narrow the search requirements. After clicking the button Next, all savesets created within the given period and matching the search pattern are shown in tabular form.
Show external results	If this option is selected, the external backups will be displayed. Typically, these are the backups that would normally not be restored directly by the restore wizard (e.g., Oracle, DB2). You can restore a saveset directly from the backup media into the file system and then process it in a special way.

Screenshots

Select Task

This page shows a list of backup sets containing the target data. Select the backup you want to restore. Depending on the type of restore you want to perform, you can refine your selection using various criteria or specify a particular type of restore.

Note

*The Mount saveset option is available only in advanced UI mode (formerly expert GUI mode). To use the mount option, make sure your UI mode is set to advanced, as described in Selecting UI mode. To be able to access and mount the VM disk image on Linux, the guestfs-tools package must be installed on your SEP sesam Server or Linux RDS. If the guestfs-tools package is not installed on your SEP sesam Server or Linux RDS, it is not possible to mount VMDK and perform SFR. Refer to Installing guestfs-tools on Linux. As of v. 5.0.0 Jaglion, the Hide migrated option is no longer available. The migrated savesets are only displayed if there is no original (backup) saveset. If you want to use the migrated saveset instead of the original saveset for restore, you need to select it as Preferred Media pool in the Target Settings window (see below).

Options

Complete restore of selected task	If this option is selected, no further selections or additional options are available. You go directly to the final step of the restore wizard (start of the restore). If it is not selected, the file selection is available for selective restore.
Broken tasks	If you select this option, broken backups will also be displayed. Keep in mind that it is only possible to restore data from the backups that have completed successfully.
Generation restore	If a DIFF or INCR backup is chosen for restore and this option is enabled, SEP sesam calculates all required restore steps from the last FULL backup to the selected DIFF/INCR version. The whole backup chain is processed for restore without user intervention, including all media changes, etc. If this option is disabled, only the selected backup (INCR or DIFF) will be used. Once you selected the desired saveset for restore, click Next to display the Select Files window.
Disaster restore	This option is only available when a SEP sesam self-backup (SESAM_BACKUP) is going to be restored. This function provides a recovery of the SEP sesam Server after a system failure. For details, see SEP sesam Server Disaster Recovery.
Mount saveset	You can select the option Mount saveset under Single file restore to mount the target saveset to the disk and make it accessible as if it was a separate volume on the disk. It is a recommended option for restoring specific data, such as Exchange, Hyper-V and V-Sphere backups, because it provides faster restore time and performance. You can mount any non-compressed and non-encrypted file-based saveset stored to SEP sesam data store (Path, Si3, HPE StoreOnce, etc.). Mounting is not possible if the savesets are stored to tapes. The target saveset is mounted to the SEP sesam home directory var\tmp\mnt, e.g., C:\Program Files\SEPsesam\var\tmp\mnt\save_set_ID. In v. ≥ 5.0.0 Jaglion you can also select RDS to mount from the drop-down list and specify advanced mount options. For more information, see Cross-Platform Recovery File System Layer.
As path restore	This option (corresponds to the Restore Assistant option Restore (any) backup to file system) is available for restoring from task types that store directories and files similarly to path backup. You can use it instead of a Hyper-V or VMware task type, but it is not available for other types, such as MS SQL Server, SAP and DB2. It provides a simple and straightforward restore – by selecting files from the directory tree – also for special task types without their specific processing, e.g., restoring a Hyper-V VM to its original location or with relocation. Compared to the similar option As path backup option under the Expert options, As path restore allows you to select individual files for restore, while the As path backup option restores all files.

Screenshots

	Tip
	If the number of actual backup tasks is too big to show in a list, set a filter string by task name in the above search field. You can also store a default table view: After you have selected the columns you need and arranged them, you can save the settings by moving the mouse pointer over the column header, right-click it and select the Save View option.

Mounting a saveset

If you have selected the Mount saveset option, a mount action is triggered. The selected saveset is mounted to the SEP sesam home directory var\tmp\mnt, e.g., C:\Program Files\SEPsesam\var\tmp\mnt\save_set_ID.

Click Next to display the Select Files dialog. If you choose not to mount the saveset, this dialog is displayed immediately. Select the data you want to restore and click Next.

Screenshots

Select Files

On this page you can select the files you want to restore.

The selected task is displayed in the upper part of the window. In the tree view, select the directories and/or files you want to restore. When you select a directory, its subdirectories are automatically selected. The absolute path of the selected folders or files is displayed in the Position field at the top.

You can use the Search button below to find the items to be restored by their name, path or any other part of it.

Screenshots

Target Settings

On this page the target settings can be set.

In the upper field, the saveset selected for restore is displayed with its attributes. The available restore options depend on the selected task type for restore and show the current restore task settings. You can change the settings, e.g., the target node (the server where the files are restored), mount the saveset, restore to the original or another location, etc.

Options

Restore task name	The name of the task is assigned automatically. If the restore is planned to be started by scheduler, enter the corresponding task name.
Target node	The name of the server where the files are being restored to. Only computers with the same platform (Windows or UNIX) are available. If you need to perform a cross-platform restore, return to the task selection step of the wizard and choose Mount saveset.
Restore to original target path / Restore to original VM	This option is selected by default. It restores the data to the same location from which it was backed up. Note that this only applies if the target node is the same server from which the data was backed up, i.e., when source and target server are the same. In case of restoring to original VM, the original MAC address and UUID of the VM are preserved.
Original tree structure	This check box at the right is enabled by default when restoring to original location. The directory structure of the restored files is the same as the original directory structure of the backed up data. If this option is disabled, the directory structure is not recreated and only the files are restored (flat structure).
New restore target / Change VM target selection	This option enables you to restore data to some other location. The path to the directory to which the data should be restored can be entered manually or by using the Browser button to open the file explorer.
Restore with new VM name	Relevant only for VM restore; this option enables you to restore the data to the original or a different location with a new VM name. If you are restoring a VM to a different location with a different (or with the same) VM name, you also have to specify a new target path under Change VM target selection.
Execution options / VM restore options	if the files with the same name in the target directory already exist, you can select between the following options: Do not overwrite existing items: Selected by default. Files will be restored only if they are not already present on the target system. The original data will not be overwritten. For VM new MAC address and UUID are generated. Overwrite existing items: Files on the target system will be overwritten and replaced with their restored version. For VM the original MAC address and UUID are preserved. Create a new version: Data from backup is restored as a new version by appending a tilde to the original file name. The original data remains intact, for example: README.TXT -> ~README.TXT When performing a VM restore, you can also select to automatically start a virtual machine after restore.
Preferred media pool	If the data was migrated or replicated and different media pools were used for the process, the source media pool to restore from can be selected from the drop-down list of available media pools.
Used media/barcode	If the data was migrated, the migrated copy is stored to another media. Here the source media to restore from can be selected from the drop-down list of available media.
Drive	Optionally, select the drive number of the drive that will be used to read the data. Typically, you specify the drive if you have configured additional drives and want to use dedicated drives for restores. For details, see the option Create second drive.
Interface	The name of the server from which the files are being restored. This is either a Remote Device Server (RDS) or SEP sesam Server.

Screenshots

Expert Options

You can specify additional restore settings by clicking the Expert Options button, for example, modify the log level settings, define the pre/post script for the restore, etc.

	Note
	The Expert Options button for setting advanced restore options is only available in advanced UI mode. To use Expert Options, make sure your UI mode is set to advanced. For details, see Selecting UI mode.

Options tab

Verbose level	Allows you to change the verbosity of the main and trace logs to display more information than the default logging mode. For details, see Setting Log Level.
Restore options	Allows you to specify additional options for restore. This is useful for specific options of the sbc command. For details on the commands, see SBC CLI.
Restore the complete saveset	Restores all files from the saveset.
Restore according to the composed list	Restores previously selected directories and files according to the regular expression-based filtering; see Filter tab below.
disk_info disaster recovery	This option is available when restoring from DISK_INFO backup of a Linux host. It is required when recovering a Linux server for restoring the backed up file partition information. A special BSR license (Bare System Recovery) is required. For details, see Licensing.

Relocation tab

No relocation (default setting)	Restores the savesets to the original target path with the original tree structure.
With relocation	Allows specifying a new target location for restored files. Individual files can be restored to separate paths. For example, the files from C:\Program Files\Java are going to be saved as a new restore target in the directory C:\Java, where all sub-directories are recreated.

Filter tab

Filter

Files for selective restore can be defined using pattern-based filtering. Filtering is first applied to the client, i.e., all data is sent over the network. Filtering is particularly useful if you want to perform a selective restore and there is no metadata (LIS file). Use something like *.txt to restore all text documents. For an individual file you have to provide the full path, e.g., var/opt/sesam/var/ini/sm_lic.ini or C:/ProgramData/SEPsesam/var/ini/sm_lic.ini. To restore all files of a given name regardless of location, use */file.txt. Click New to add more patterns per line.

Task Type tab

Task type	By default, the task type by which the data is backed up is selected (default is Path; other task types include Hyper-V, SAP Hana, Exchange Server, MySQL, VMware vSphere, etc.).
As path backup	This option allows you to restore your data directly to the file system without any additional action. This option can be used if you have backed up data with task type other than the default Path, e.g., Hyper-V.
Write saveset into file	(corresponds to the Restore Assistant option Write backup into dump file) allows you to restore the entire saveset to a single file rather than to its original location.

Pre/Post tab

Specifies whether to apply a pre or post script for this restore task.

Note

To use a pre/post interface, you must first activate it and create your own commands. Interfaces can be activated in GUI: in the menu bar, click Configuration -> Interfaces -> select the interface you want to activate and the client. The interface script window opens, allowing you to configure the desired action. Once done, click Save to activate the interface. The interface is saved to the <SESAM_ROOT>/bin/sesam directory. For more details, see Using Pre and Post Scripts.

Retention Time tab

Specifies for how long (in days) this restore task is kept and can be accessed by using GUI. The default value is 7 days. The value 0 means that a restore task is kept permanently unless you manually delete it.

Execution Time tab

Start time frame	You can specify the maximum allowed start time (the amount of time an event can be in the queue) in days and/or hours. The actual start time of the event depends on the processor load of the system. At the start time of the event, every event is forwarded into the queue, where it might wait until jobs with a higher priority finish. For jobs with the same priority, the FIFO rule (first in first out) applies. If the event cannot be executed within this specified time frame, it will not be executed at all.
Cancel execution after	You can specify the amount of time (days and/or hours) after the event's scheduled start time, after which the event will be cancelled.
Cancel execution at	Depending on the previous setting, it specifies the exact date and time when the task will be stopped.
Follow up	You can specify the follow-up event to trigger the predefined event on the SEP sesam Server once the restore is completed For details, see Follow-up Events.

Screenshots

Summary

Check the summary for your restore configuration. Click Start to run the restore or Save to save the task under the assigned name in the Name field.

If you have mounted a saveset, click OK to unmount it and end your restore session.

Note

All started and scheduled restores are saved in SEP sesam under Main selection -> Tasks -> Tasks by clients/Tasks by groups with the current timestamp. A restore can be restarted via the menu item Activities -> Restore or from Main selection -> Job state -> Restore -> right-click selected restore -> Immediate start. A restore task can be scheduled like any other task. If you want to add a restore task to the schedule, see Scheduling Restore.

Monitoring restore

You can monitor the restore progress using the Web UI (Monitoring -> Restores) or view the status in the GUI (Main Selection -> Job State -> Restores). The restore overview provides detailed information on the last run of restore jobs, including task name, status (successful, error, in queue...), start and stop time of the last backup, data size, throughput, etc. For details, see SEP sesam Web UI or About Monitoring.

See also

Restore Overview – Scheduling Restore – Restore Assistant – Web Single File Restore for Virtual Machines – Schedules – Standard Backup Procedure

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