Back up virtual machines manually

Before you begin

You have created a datastore that contains one or more virtual machines.

Procedure overview

You can back up a virtual machine manually rather than using a policy to create backups automatically.

Procedure

  1. Click Virtual Machines.
  2. Right-click a virtual machine, and then select All HPE SimpliVity Actions > Backup Virtual Machine.
  3. Specify the following information:
    • Backup Name: A meaningful name for the backup. If you do not specify a name, HPE OmniStack assigns an auto-generated name that contains the virtual machine name and the date, time, and timezone when the backup is created.

    • Destination Cluster: The cluster where you want the backup to reside.

  4. Click Advanced.
  5. Accept the default values for all advanced settings:
    • Retention: Retain the backup, which never expires, unless you delete it or set a retention period and specify how long to retain the backup before deleting it automatically.

    • Application Consistent: Back up application data on the virtual machines with the contents of the memory and any pending writes. It uses the default VMware snapshot method to create the application-consistent backup. If the virtual machine contains a Windows guest, you see an option for VSS.

      NOTE:

      For the process to use VSS, the virtual machine must have a Windows Server 2008 R2, 2012 R2, or 2016 operating system and VMware Tools installed. You must also store your credentials to the virtual machine using the SimpliVity "Save Credentials for VSS" option. In addition, the only supported VSS-aware application is SQL Server 2012 R2 or later. For more information, refer to Save credentials for VSS in the Help.

  6. Click OK to create the backup.
  7. Right-click the virtual machine you backed up, and then select All HPE SimpliVity Actions > Search Backups.

    In the example above, the backup appears in the table. In the Status column, Protected confirms that the backup completed sucessfuly.