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NAS Volume Snapshots and Restores#

Volume-level snapshots allow for customizing snapshot schedule and retention rules per individual NAS volume and provide the option for a quiesced snapshot. (Non-quiesced NAS volumes can be imported from cloud snapshots to be used for restore.)

Quiesced Snapshots#

Quiesced volume snapshots freeze file system I/O during the snapshot process. The Quiesce option can be selected when taking a manual volume snapshot and can be enabled within the snapshot profile for automated snapshots.

Scheduling Volume Snapshots#

Assign a Snapshot Profile to a Volume#

Snapshots can only be performed on volumes of type=local.

  1. From the volume dashboard, click Edit on the left menu.
  2. In the Snapshot profile field, select the desired profile from the dropdown list.
  3. Click Submit at the bottom of the page.

Manual Volume Snapshots#

Take a Manual Snapshot of a Volume#

Snapshots can only be performed on volumes of type=local.

  1. From the volume dashboard, click Take Snapshot on the left menu.
  2. Enter a Name for the snapshot (required).
  3. Enter a Description (optional).
  4. The Quiesce option can be selected to freeze I/O during the snapshot process.
  5. In the Expires field, select/enter a date and time for expiration.
  6. Click Submit at the bottom of the page.

Snapshot Expirations

Always consider vSAN Usage: When selecting expiration for a snapshot it is important to consider vSAN space utilization. Initially source and snapshot are the same and thus there is no impact on storage utilization; however, as source data diverges more from the snapshot data, there is less deduplication between the two and thus more vSAN usage. The Never Expires option is not recommended unless necessary.

Restoring a Volume from Snapshot#

To restore a volume from a cloud snapshot, the volume must first be imported from the cloud snapshot as detailed below. To restore from an individual volume snapshot, skip the import section of instructions and continue to Restore to overwrite -OR- Restore to create new instructions

Import Volume Snapshot from a Cloud Snapshot (to make it available for a volume restore).#

  1. From the volume dashboard, click Cloud Snapshots on the left menu.
  2. Click to select desired cloud snapshot.
  3. Click Import Snapshot on the left menu.
  4. *Name, Description and Expiration fields will default to the values from the cloud snapshot; make changes if desired; changes made will only apply to the import and will not affect the underlying cloud snapshot.
  5. Click Submit to continue.
  6. (If the process was continued,) a message should appear stating the import process has begun. Click the Ok button to acknowledge.
  7. When the import is complete, the snapshot will be available for restore using instructions below.

Restore a Volume (to overwrite existing current version of volume)#

  1. From the volume dashboard, click Snapshots on the left menu.
  2. A listing of available snapshots is displayed. Click to select the desired snapshot.
  3. Select Restore over Source from the left menu.

  4. A Warning message will appear to caution that this will overwrite the existing volume and all of its data. By default, Restore Data Only is selected; this option will restore over data within the volume, but not modify any current volume settings. The alternate option: Restore Data and Settings will both restore over volume data and will replace volume settings with those in the snapshot.

  5. Click the Proceed button to continue/ or Cancel to abort.

Restore a Volume (to create a new volume)#

  1. From the volume dashboard, click Snapshots on the left menu.
  2. A listing of available snapshots is displayed. Click to select the desired snapshot.
  3. Click Restore To New on the left menu.
  4. The Destination Service VM defaults to the NAS service of the source volume; if multiple NAS services exist on the system, a different service can be selected on which to restore the volume.
  5. The Volume Name (for the new volume instance) will default to ORIGINALVOLUMENAME_restored; change name if desired.
  6. Click the Submit button to create the new volume from snapshot. The new volume is brought online automatically. To view the new volume's dashboard, return to Volumes and double-click on the volume in the listing.


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