Introduce NetBackup Accelerator

What is NetBackup Accelerator?

Provides fast streamlined backups to disk
Implements an Accelerator track log and utilizes
the Windows NTFS change journal,
deduplication, and optimized synthetic backups
Enables full backups of files and folders with
speeds equivalent to incremental backups

Todays backup challenges

Completing backups within a backup window

Too much data growth, either through internal

expansion or acquisition
Significant data change rates
Shorter, overlapping, or non-existent backup windows

Protecting data

Large, mission-critical applications

Very large file systems
Virtual machines

Improving recovery time objectives (RTOs) and

recovery point objectives (RPOs)
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Requirements and prerequisites

System requirements

Any client OS platform that is supported by NetBackup

Windows change journal for optimized performance (optional)

Versions

NetBackup 7.5 for master server, media server, and client

Licenses

NetBackup Data Protection Optimization Option (formerly NetBackup Deduplication

Option)

Policies

Standard and MS Windows

Storage Units

PureDisk (MSDP, PureDisk, appliance)

Cloud storage plug-ins
OpenStorage (OST) vendor qualified for Accelerator support
(see NetBackup server hardware compatibility list)

Background
NetBackup currently supports NTFS change journal,
but is limited to:
Incremental backups
One backup policy
Inclusion of all NTFS volumes for the specified
clients

Architecture overview
The base architecture for this feature implements
a client track log and leverages Windows NTFS
change journal.
The device mappings file contains OST vender
and hardware information.
No new NetBackup processes or binaries are
being added.

Client track log files

The client track logs are key aspects of NetBackup
Accelerator:
The track log is specific for a given policy, client,
master server, storage server, and backup
selection.
The NetBackup client track logs are circular files.
The client track logs contain checksum entries for
each file being backed up.

Location of the client track log files

The client track logs are found on each client in the following
directory:
install_path\NetBackup\track\master_server\
storage_server\client\policy_name\backup_specification

The NTFS change journal

Is an optional feature that can be used with NetBackup
Accelerator
Is monitored by NetBackup to determine which files
and directories need to be included in a backup
Eliminates the need to perform a full file system scan
Maintains records pertaining to files and directories
Has records identified by an update sequence number
(USN)
Are circular databases
Is increased to one million entries
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NTFS change journal databases

There are three databases files created and maintained at the root
of each NTFS volume.
VxCJMon.dat contains records
pertaining to files and directories
that have been created and
modified.
VxCJDelete.dat
contains records pertaining
to files and directories that have
been deleted.
VxCJInfo.dat contains records
pertaining to the backup policies,
backup selections, and backup
schedules and their corresponding
USNs.
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Additional NTFS change journal information

Integration with the NTFS change journal does not guarantee
that the NTFS change journal is used on every backup.
The change journal data can be used with:
Incremental backups: The Use accelerator option is
enabled or not enabled.
Full backups: The Use accelerator option is enabled.
If the change journal data cannot be used for a backup:
NetBackup reverts to a full file system scan.
A message is logged in the Job Details dialog box for the
backup.

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Configuration

NetBackup Accelerator is installed with base NetBackup 7.5.

No new binaries are required.
NetBackup Accelerator must be enabled in the policy.
If NTFS change journal is used, it must be enabled in each
clients host properties.
NTFS change journal and NetBackup Accelerator can be used
independently of each other.
The verification of supported storage unit is done at policy
creation time.

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Modes of operation

Standard

Windows
Accelerator
NTFS change
forced rescan
journal

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Enabling Accelerator

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Setting the Accelerator forced rescan option

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Setting the Use Change Journal option

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Backup without NetBackup Accelerator or change

journal

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NetBackup Accelerator enabled; change journal not

enabled

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NetBackup Accelerator and change journal enabled

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Thank You!

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