1. Rapid Backup and Recovery Strategies for NT/Linux Matthew F. Reagan Centocor, Inc. mreagan@fast.net

2. Purpose n The purpose of this presentation is to identify a problem with traditional backup and recovery strategies and propose alternative or supplemental solutions

3. Presentation Goals n Discuss the problems encountered n Identify alternative or supplemental solutions n Propose a supplemental solution n Present a snapshot of research into rapid backup and recovery solutions n Emphasis on non-production environments

4. Presentation Non-Goals n Present the only solution n Present the best solution n Present the cheapest solution n Present the fastest solution n Ignore the subjective side of the issue n Replace backups

5. Production Environments n Standard hardware configurations n OS installed using SOPs n Documented software installation n Usually static configurations n Centralized, regular backup

6. Non-production Environments n Development n Validation n Evaluation n Sandbox

7. Non-production Environments (cont) n Not always standard hardware n Baseline OS/software configuration n Myriad extensions to the baseline n Loose documentation requirements n Usually not backed up (regularly)

8. Description of Problem n How do you recover from media failure n How do you recover from accidents n How do you recover from bad installs n … with YOUR deadlines?

9. Checklist for System Recovery n Repair the hardware n Reinstall NT Server n Reinstall the Service Pack(s) as Needed n Reinstall the required drivers n Reinstall the appropriate applications n Recover the OS from backup tape

10. Problems with Recovery n Requires installation and configuration knowledge of –NT Server –Service Packs –OS baseline –Application Software –Drivers (you know where they are, right?)

11. Rapid Recovery Options n Implement robust backups n RAID n Drive “snapshots”

12. Implement robust backups n Requires additional hardware (tape drives) n Requires additional software (backup) n Requires (more) operations staff n Train personnel in NT, service pack, driver and software installation and configuration

13. Implement robust backups (cont) n Recovery requires extensive configuration and installation knowledge n Recovery is complex n Recovery is time consuming

14. Implement local backups n Requires additional hardware (tape drives) on each server n Requires additional software (backup) n Train personnel in backup procedures n Needs tape storage/retention policies n (not much better than previous option)

15. RAID n Requires additional hardware (drives) n Requires additional software (backup) n Train personnel in RAID installation, configuration and operation

16. RAID (cont) n Recovery requires extensive configuration and installation knowledge n Recovery is complex n Recovery is time consuming n Implementation nightmare

17. Drive “Snapshots” n Wouldn’t it be nice if we could just take a snapshot of the hard drive?

18. Imagine, if you will, taking a snapshot... n Prior to installing a service pack n Prior to installing a new software version n Prior to modifying an existing configuration n Just after finishing an install

19. Recovery would be… n Simply putting back the snapshot

20. Functional Requirements n OS independent n Floppy based –Avoids open files –Avoids configuration differences n Simple to use n Cheap

21. PowerQuest Drive Image n Provides a drive snapshot capability n Supports DOS, Windows 3.x, Windows 95, Windows NT, Linux n Reads IDE and SCSI hard drives n Writes to IDE and SCSI hard drives, ZIP, Jaz drives, network drives, etc. n Creates an optionally compressed image file (~40%)

22. Possible Configurations n Local hard drive n Internal/External ZIP drive n Internal/External JAZ drive n Network drive

23. Local Hard Drive n Destination drive must be mountable under boot floppy (native IDE, ASPI driver for SCSI) n Destination drive must have a FAT partition n Boot using supplied floppy n Point and click snapshot done!

24. Internal/External ZIP Drive n Internal uses IDE or SCSI n External uses PP or SCSI n Destination cartridge must have a FAT partition n Boot using supplied floppy n Point and click snapshot done!

25. Internal/External JAZ Drive n Internal uses SCSI n External uses PP (traveler) or SCSI n Destination cartridge must have a FAT partition n Boot using supplied floppy n Point and click snapshot done!

26. Network Drive n Create a network boot floppy (see NT client administrator) n Must have write privs on share n Boot using network boot floppy n Point and click snapshot done! n (took 5 minutes for 2 gb partition with 50% of disk in use

27. Recovery n Boot using supplied (or network) floppy n Gain access to the image n Run PQDI n Point and click snapshot recovered! n Network recovery took 5 minutes for a 2 gb partition with 50% of space in use

28. Caveats n Only supports non-RAID configurations n Only supports Intel (or clone) CPUs n Have not tested larger than 6.4 gb HDs n There are other options (Symantec’s Ghost)

29. Conclusions n Several untraditional options available n Each is a balance between cost, convenience, and efficacy n Drive Image is a strong contender n Additional research is necessary

30. Questions?