Technical Note

File-Based Backup and Restore of VxRail

VCSA and PSC

Abstract
This document describes the procedures for the file-based
backup and restore of VxRail vCenter Server Appliance
(vCSA) and Platform Services Controller (PSC) in VxRail v4.5.

July 2019

H17869

1 | File-Based Backup and Restore of VCSA and PCS

Dell Customer Communication - Confidential

 The information in this publication is provided “as is.” Dell Inc. makes no representations or warranties of any kind with respect to
the information in this publication, and specifically disclaims implied warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose.

Use, copying, and distribution of any software described in this publication requires an applicable software license.

Copyright © 2017-2019 Dell Inc. or its subsidiaries. All Rights Reserved. Dell, EMC, Dell EMC and other trademarks are trademarks
of Dell Inc. or its subsidiaries. Other trademarks may be trademarks of their respective owners. [7/29/2019]

2 | File-Based Backup and Restore of VCSA and PCS

Dell Customer Communication - Confidential

 TABLE OF CONTENTS

Executive Summary .......................................................................................................................................................... 4

Intended Audience ............................................................................................................................................................ 4
Overview of VMware Native File-based Backup and Restore .......................................................................................... 5
File-based Backup in VxRail 4.5 ....................................................................................................................................... 5
Backup Overview .......................................................................................................................................................... 5
Backup Procedure for vCSA and PSC ......................................................................................................................... 5
File-based Restore in VxRail 4.5....................................................................................................................................... 9
Overview ....................................................................................................................................................................... 9
Restore Procedure ........................................................................................................................................................ 9
Primary Node Configuration Prior to Restore Operation .......................................................................................... 9
Restore PSC to the Primary Node ......................................................................................................................... 11
Restore vCSA to the Primary Node ........................................................................................................................ 21
Delete the Old vCSA and PSC VMs ....................................................................................................................... 31
Deleting VMs in Power-off State ............................................................................................................................ 32
Deleting VMs in Orphaned State ............................................................................................................................ 33
Migrate from tempportgroup to DVS vCenter Server portgroup ................................................................................. 35
Reboot the Newly Deployed vCSA and PSC ............................................................................................................. 40
VxRail Manager Configuration for the Restored vCSA and PSC ............................................................................... 42
Obtain UUID, morefid, VM name for vCSA and PSC ............................................................................................. 42
Update VxRail Manager Database ......................................................................................................................... 46
Conclusion....................................................................................................................................................................... 48
References ...................................................................................................................................................................... 49
VMware File-based Backup and Restore ................................................................................................................... 49
SolVe Procedures for Changing the IP of vCSA and PSC ......................................................................................... 49

3 | File-Based Backup and Restore of VCSA and PCS

Dell Customer Communication - Confidential

 Executive Summary
vSphere 6.5 supports a file-based backup and restore mechanism that enables the recovery of an environment after
failures. The Virtual Appliance Management Interface (VAMI) can be used to create a file-based backup of
the vCenter Server Appliance (vCSA) and the Platform Services Controller (PSC). After a backup is created, the
restore can be achieved by using the vCSA-UI installer.
VxRail 4.5 is based on vSphere 6.5, and as such, it can take advantage of VMware’s native file-based backup and
restore feature supported by vSphere 6.5. This document describes the procedures for the file-based backup and
restore of VxRail vCSA and PSC in VxRail 4.5.

Intended Audience
This document is intended for customers and Dell EMC service providers who are authorized to work on a VxRail
cluster and VxRail administrators.

4 | File-Based Backup and Restore of VCSA and PCS

Dell Customer Communication - Confidential

 Overview of VMware Native File-based Backup and Restore
The Virtual Appliance Management Interface (VAMI) can be used to perform a file-based backup of a vCenter
Server’s core configuration, inventory, and historical data of choice. The backed-up data is streamed over FTP, FTPS,
HTTP, HTTPS or SCP to a remote system. The backup is not stored on the vCSA.
A file-based restore operation can be performed only for a vCSA that has been previously backed up using the VAMI.
Such a restore operation is performed using the vCSA-UI installer. The process consists of deploying a
new vCSA and copying the data from the file-based backup to the new appliance.
For more information on the native file-based backup and restore of vCSA, see the VMware document:
https://docs.vmware.com/en/VMware-vSphere/6.5/com.vmware.vsphere.install.doc/GUID-3EAED005-B0A3-40CF-
B40D-85AD247D7EA4.html

File-based Backup in VxRail 4.5

The procedure for file-based backup in VxRail 4.5 follows VMware’s native file-based backup procedure. This built-in
functionality supports the backup of vCSA and PSC both in internal and external deployment cases.

Backup Overview
The file-based backup feature requires no quiescing or downtime of the selected appliance because the backup can
be performed while the appliance is running. Furthermore, it does not require any agents; the backup can be started
directly from the VAMI accessed using the FQDN or the IP address of the appliance at port 5480. From there, a
wizard guides you through the backup process. You first select the protocol that you have already configured.
VMware supports FTP, FTPS, HTTP, HTTPS and SCP protocols. You then specify the location where the backup will
live and enter the username and password of the backup location. Optionally, you can encrypt the backup by using
the AES 256, in which case you will be prompted for a password. This encryption password is not stored, and if lost,
there is no way to recover the backup files. Therefore, this password must be stored in a safe location. By default,
only the configuration and inventory data are backed up, but you can choose whether to include the historical and
performance data in the backup. In the event of a disaster, the backup is used to recover the appliance.

Backup Procedure for vCSA and PSC

To begin the backup workflow, log into the VMware vSphere Appliance Management Interface (VAMI) as root
using the FQDN or the IP address of the vCSA or PSC at port 5480.

5 | File-Based Backup and Restore of VCSA and PCS

Dell Customer Communication - Confidential

 Click the Summary tab on the Navigator pane and then click the Backup button on the Summary pane to launch
the Backup Appliance wizard.

The Backup Appliance wizard launches.

In the Backup Appliance wizard, enter the backup details.

6 | File-Based Backup and Restore of VCSA and PCS

Dell Customer Communication - Confidential

 a. The backed-up data can be streamed over FTP, FTPS, HTTP, HTTPS, or SCP to a remote system. Select
one of these protocols from the Protocol pull-down menu. The corresponding port number for the selected
protocol is automatically filled in the Port field. The corresponding port numbers for these protocols are 21, 21,
80, 443, and 22 respectively.
b. In the Location field, enter the backup target’s IP address followed by the specific target folder in a simple
syntax, such as 10.244.9.147/vcsa_backup. You must also provide the required credentials in the User name
and the Password fields to establish connection with the server.
An option to encrypt the backup files using AES 256 is available by enabling a check-box named Encrypt
Backup Data and entering a password. The encryption password is not stored, and if lost, there is no way to
recover those backup files.
c. After you have entered the backup details, click Next. This step triggers an action for validating the entered
information. If the information is not valid, you will be prompted to correct it. For instance, if the location does
not exist, you will be notified as shown in the following figure.

If the validation passes, you will move to the next step in the Backup Appliance wizard where you select the
files you want to backup. By default, the inventory and configuration data of the vCSA are backed up. There is
also the option of backing up the historical and performance data of the vCSA. Keep in mind that selecting this
option could increase the backup time of the vCSA. The PSC will not have this option because all historical
and performance data is kept in the vCSA database. You can optionally provide a description for your backup
in the next screen. Click Next to proceed.

The following figure from a PSC backup workflow shows that unlike vCSA, the PSC does not have the option
of backing up the historical and performance data.

7 | File-Based Backup and Restore of VCSA and PCS

Dell Customer Communication - Confidential

 Review your selections presented in the Summary page before finishing the wizard. If you need to make changes,
click Back. If everything looks okay, click Finish.

The backup files are then streamed to the backup target using the selected protocol. The backup process will
produce a set of files for the designated appliance.

When the backup job finishes successfully, click OK.

When the backup workflow completes successfully, the files become visible at the backup target. The backup
workflow is nearly identical for vCSA and PSC. The following illustration shows the files at the backup target for
both types of appliances.

8 | File-Based Backup and Restore of VCSA and PCS

Dell Customer Communication - Confidential

 File-based Restore in VxRail 4.5
The file-based restore procedure is for recovery of the VxRail vCSA in the event of a disaster where the vCSA, or the
PSC, or both are no longer available.

Overview
You can perform a file-based restore of an appliance that has previously been backed up using the Virtual Appliance
Management Interface (VAMI). You can perform such a restore operation using the vCSA-UI installer. You can mount
the ISO of the vCSA from which you deployed and click the Restore button right from the installer. You must use the
specific vCSA installer ISO, matching the vCSA version which was backed up (e.g., VMware-VCSA-all-6.5.0-
7515524.iso). The Installer will then do a two-stage deployment: Stage 1 deploys the appliance, and Stage 2
configures and restores from the backup selected.

Restore Procedure
Primary Node Configuration Prior to Restore Operation
Before starting the restore operation, some prerequisite steps must be performed. In particular, the file-based restore
operation requires a vSphere Standard Switch (vSwitch) or an ephemeral portgroup. By default, VxRail 4.5 with vCSA
and PSC does not use a vSphere Standard Switch (VSS). You must create a temporary VSS on the primary node and
take vmnic1 out of the default Distributed Virtual Switch (DVS) before performing the restore operation. Generally, we
can regard the first node as the primary-node. Even when VxRail vCSA and PSC are unavailable, the primary-node
can still be accessed through its management IP because DVS configuration still works for the nodes.

Perform the following steps to prepare the system for the actual restore operation:

Verify that the primary node is not in lockdown or maintenance mode.

Verify that DNS records for vCSA and PSC addresses exist.
[Important] If you are attempting to restore a vCSA or a PSC instance that is still running, power it off before
starting the restore.
Note: Failure to power it off could compromise the restore operation and cause data corruption.

9 | File-Based Backup and Restore of VCSA and PCS

Dell Customer Communication - Confidential

 Enable the SSH service for the primary node using the node’s web interface or the DCUI Troubleshooting menu.
SSH to the primary-node.
Run the following command to identify the vmnic1 DVPort ID in the DVS configuration.
esxcfg-vswitch -l

In the sample command output, {DVS name is VMware HCIA Distributed Switch} and {vmnic1 DVPort ID is 7}.

Having acquired the vmnic1 DVPort ID, run these commands to remove the vmnic1 from the DVS and to
confirm that it was successfully removed:

esxcfg-vswitch -Q vmnic1 -V 7 "VMware HCIA Distributed Switch"

esxcfg-vswitch –l

After confirming that the vmnic1 was removed from the DVS, run these commands to create a temporary VSS
and a portgroup with the vmnic1:
esxcli network vswitch standard add –v tempswitch
esxcli network vswitch standard uplink add –u vmnic1 –v tempswitch
esxcli network vswitch standard portgroup add –p tempportgroup –v tempswitch

10 | File-Based Backup and Restore of VCSA and PCS

Dell Customer Communication - Confidential

 To confirm that VSS portgroup tempportgroup with vmnic1 was created, run this command:
esxcfg-vswitch –l

The system is ready for the actual restore operation.

Restore PSC to the Primary Node

To begin the restore workflow, the VMware-VCSA-all-6.5.0.iso for vSphere 6.5 is required. You must use the specific
vCSA installer ISO. It must match the vCSA version which was backed up (e.g., VMware-VCSA-all-6.5.0-
7515524.iso).

To perform Stage 1 of the restore process:

Mount the ISO file by double-clicking on the ISO file.

In the vCSA installer, navigate to the vcsa-ui-installer directory, and then to the subdirectory for your operating
system, and run the installer.
• For Windows OS, go to the win32 subdirectory, and run the installer.exe file.
• For Linux OS, go to the lin64 subdirectory, and run the installer file.
• For Mac OS, go to the mac subdirectory, and run the Installer.app file.

11 | File-Based Backup and Restore of VCSA and PCS

Dell Customer Communication - Confidential

 The vCenter Server Appliance Installer launches. The Installer allows you to restore a vCSA or a PSC. Click
Restore to initiate the restore from a previously created appliance backup.

Restoring the appliance from backup is a two-stage process. The first stage is deploying a new appliance to the
target ESXi host (i.e., the primary-node). The second stage transfers data from the backup to the deployed
appliance. Click Next to proceed with Stage 1.

Accept the End User License Agreement (EULA) and click Next.

12 | File-Based Backup and Restore of VCSA and PCS

Dell Customer Communication - Confidential

 In the Enter backup details step, select the protocol and enter location details and credentials to retrieve backup
metadata. Click Next.

Review your backup information and click Next to proceed with the restore.

13 | File-Based Backup and Restore of VCSA and PCS

Dell Customer Communication - Confidential

 In the Appliance deployment target step, specify the appliance deployment target settings. The target is the
ESXi host on which the appliance will be deployed. In this example, the primary ESXi node configured earlier with
the temporary VSS must be set as the deployment target. Click Next.

A Certificate Warning is presented. To accept and continue, click Yes.

14 | File-Based Backup and Restore of VCSA and PCS

Dell Customer Communication - Confidential

 In the Set up target appliance VM step, specify the settings for the target appliance VM to be deployed. In this
example, we named the VM PSC_VM_restored. Using the password of the old PSC for the target PCS is
recommended. Click Next.

Depending on the backup metadata, available deployment sizes are listed. If there are choices, select one. For
PSC, typically, there is no choice. Click Next to continue.

15 | File-Based Backup and Restore of VCSA and PCS

Dell Customer Communication - Confidential

 In the Select datastore step, select the VSAN datastore as the storage location for the PSC VM. Click Next.

In the Configure network settings step, configure the network settings for the appliance VM. Select the
tempportgroup created earlier. Note that the file-based restore procedure is for failed VxRail VCSA or PSC only.
Do not make changes to the IP address, subnet mask, gateway and DNS in this step. If the IP address is
changed, you will have to fix the VxRail Manager configuration after the restore. Refer to Change the Internal
vCSA Virtual Machine IP Address or Change the Internal PSC Virtual Machine IP Address procedures in SolVe.

16 | File-Based Backup and Restore of VCSA and PCS

Dell Customer Communication - Confidential

 Review your settings, and then click Finish to start the appliance deployment.

The appliance deployment is initiated. Observe the progress of the deployment process until it successfully
completes. The completion of the deployment marks the end of the Stage 1 of the restore process. Click
Continue to proceed to Stage 2.

17 | File-Based Backup and Restore of VCSA and PCS

Dell Customer Communication - Confidential

 To perform Stage 2 of the restore process, follow these steps:

When the Stage 1 completes, the installer prompts for the Stage 2, which will copy the data from the backup
location to this appliance and then complete the setup. In the Introduction step, click Next to proceed with Stage
2.

In the Backup details step, enter the credentials to retrieve the backup details. If the backup was performed with
encryption, enter the encryption password here also. Click Next.

18 | File-Based Backup and Restore of VCSA and PCS

Dell Customer Communication - Confidential

 Review your settings before completing the wizard. Notice the warning at the bottom of the page that reminds you
to shut down the original appliance to avoid network conflicts. Verify at this point that the original PSC is powered
off. If you have not already done so per instructions stated earlier, power off the original PSC now. Click Finish.

Once started, the restore operation cannot be paused or stopped. When presented with a warning message to that
effect, click OK to start the restore operation.

19 | File-Based Backup and Restore of VCSA and PCS

Dell Customer Communication - Confidential

 The restore operation starts.

Just before the end of the restore operation, a warning is presented. This warning is for the vCSA service and it
does not impact the PSC restore process. Click Close.

The restore operation completes. The PSC appliance is successfully restored.

20 | File-Based Backup and Restore of VCSA and PCS

Dell Customer Communication - Confidential

 Restore vCSA to the Primary Node
Once the internal PSC is restored, you can proceed to restore the internal vCSA. The restore process is the same for
both types of appliances except for some minor differences. However, there is an additional and important post-
restore step for vCSA only. To begin the restore workflow, the VMware-VCSA-all-6.5.0-xxxxxx.iso for vSphere 6.5 is
required. You must use the specific vCSA installer ISO; it must match the vCSA version which was backed up (e.g.,
VMware-VCSA-all-6.5.0-7515524.iso).

To perform Stage 1 of the restore process:

Mount the ISO file by double-clicking on the ISO file.

In the vCSA installer, navigate to the vcsa-ui-installer directory, and then to the subdirectory for your operating
system, and run the installer.
• For Windows OS, go to the win32 subdirectory, and run the installer.exe file.
• For Linux OS, go to the lin64 subdirectory, and run the installer file.
• For Mac OS, go to the mac subdirectory, and run the Installer.app file.

The vCenter Server Appliance Installer launches. The Installer allows you to restore a vCSA or a PSC. Click
Restore to initiate the restore from a previously created appliance backup.
21 | File-Based Backup and Restore of VCSA and PCS

Dell Customer Communication - Confidential

 Restoring the appliance from backup is a two-stage process. The first stage deploys a new appliance to the target
ESXi host (i.e., the primary-node). The second stage transfers data from the backup to the deployed appliance.
Click Next to proceed with Stage 1.

Accept the End User License Agreement (EULA) and click Next.

22 | File-Based Backup and Restore of VCSA and PCS

Dell Customer Communication - Confidential

 In the Enter backup details step, select the protocol and enter location details and credentials to retrieve backup
metadata. Click Next.

Review your backup information and click Next to proceed with the restore.

In the Appliance deployment target step, specify the appliance deployment target settings. The target is the
ESXi host on which the appliance will be deployed. In this example, the primary ESXi node configured earlier with
the temporary VSS was set as the deployment target. Click Next.

23 | File-Based Backup and Restore of VCSA and PCS

Dell Customer Communication - Confidential

 A Certificate Warning is presented. To accept and continue, click Next.

In the Set up target appliance VM step, specify the settings for the target appliance VM to be deployed. In this
example, we named the VM VCSA_VM_restored. Using the password of the old VCSA for the target VCSA is
recommended. Click Next.

24 | File-Based Backup and Restore of VCSA and PCS

Dell Customer Communication - Confidential

 Depending on the backup metadata, available deployment sizes are listed. If there are choices, select one.
However, the default values are recommended. Click Next to continue.

In the Select datastore step, select the VSAN datastore as the storage location for the VCSA VM. Click Next.

25 | File-Based Backup and Restore of VCSA and PCS

Dell Customer Communication - Confidential

 In the Configure network settings step, configure the network settings for the appliance VM. Select the
tempportgroup created earlier. Note that the file-based restore procedure is only for failed VxRail VCSA or PSC.
Do not make changes to the IP address, subnet mask, gateway and DNS in this step. If the IP address is
changed, you will have to fix the VxRail Manager configuration after the restore. Refer to Change the Internal
vCSA Virtual Machine IP Address or Change the Internal PSC Virtual Machine IP Address procedures in SolVe.

Review your settings, and then click Finish to start the appliance deployment.

The appliance deployment is initiated. Observe the progress of the deployment process until it successfully
completes. The completion of the deployment marks the end of the Stage 1 of the restore process. Click
Continue to proceed to Stage 2.

26 | File-Based Backup and Restore of VCSA and PCS

Dell Customer Communication - Confidential

 To perform Stage 2 of the restore process:

When the Stage 1 completes, the installer prompts for the Stage 2, which will copy the data from the backup
location to this appliance and then complete the setup. In the Introduction step, click Next to proceed with Stage
2.

In the Backup details step, enter the credentials to retrieve the backup details. If the backup was performed with
encryption, enter the encryption password here also. Click Next.

27 | File-Based Backup and Restore of VCSA and PCS

Dell Customer Communication - Confidential

 Review your settings before completing the wizard. Notice the warning at the bottom of the page that reminds you
to shut down the original appliance to avoid network conflicts. Verify at this point that the original PSC is powered
off. If you have not already done so, power off the original PSC now. Click Finish.

Once started, the restore operation cannot be paused or stopped. When presented with a warning message to that
effect, click OK to start the restore operation.

28 | File-Based Backup and Restore of VCSA and PCS

Dell Customer Communication - Confidential

 The restore operation starts.

The restore operation completes. The vCSA appliance is successfully restored.

29 | File-Based Backup and Restore of VCSA and PCS

Dell Customer Communication - Confidential

 Log into the vSphere Web Client to verify.

Run a post-recovery script to complete the restore process (this is only for vCSA, not applicable to PSC). Log into
the bash shell of the newly restored vCSA via Putty or via the VM console on the vSphere Web Client, and run this
command:
/usr/bin/vcenter-restore

30 | File-Based Backup and Restore of VCSA and PCS

Dell Customer Communication - Confidential

 • Note that the script prompts for the SSO administrator username and password (e.g.,
[email protected]) to execute.
• Note that in vSphere 6.0, the script name is psc-restore, not vcenter-restore; i.e.,
/usr/bin/psc-restore

Delete the Old vCSA and PSC VMs

It is a best practice to delete the old vCSA and PSC VMs once the recovery operations are completed. Once the
internal vCSA and PCS are restored, the vSphere Web Client becomes accessible. When logged into the vSphere
Web Client, you might face either of these two situations:
1. The old vCSA VM and/or the old PSC VM is in normal power off state.
2. The old vCSA VM and/or the old PSC VM is in orphaned state. This happens if the old VMs are removed before
the restore procedure.

31 | File-Based Backup and Restore of VCSA and PCS

Dell Customer Communication - Confidential

 Deleting VMs in Power-off State
If an old VM is in the power-off state, you simply need to delete it from disk as follows:
Right-click-VM > Delete from Disk and then click Yes to confirm the delete action when prompted as shown in
the following screen shots where the name of the old PSC VM is psc_restored and the name of the restored PSC
is PSC_VM_restored.

32 | File-Based Backup and Restore of VCSA and PCS

Dell Customer Communication - Confidential

 Deleting VMs in Orphaned State
If an old VM is in the orphaned state, delete it as follows:

Right-click-VM > All Virtual Infrastructure Actions > Remove from Inventory, or
Right-click-VM > All Virtual Infrastructure Actions > More uncategorized Actions > Remove from Inventory

33 | File-Based Backup and Restore of VCSA and PCS

Dell Customer Communication - Confidential

 34 | File-Based Backup and Restore of VCSA and PCS

Dell Customer Communication - Confidential

 Migrate from tempportgroup to DVS vCenter Server portgroup
The next step is to bring vmnic1 back to DVS and remove the temporary VSS.
Log into vSphere Web Client.
Click on the Networking tab.
Right-click on the Datacenter > Select Migrate VMs to Another Network…

The Migrate VMs to Another Network window opens.

For Source network, click Specific network, then Browse and select tempportgroup.

35 | File-Based Backup and Restore of VCSA and PCS

Dell Customer Communication - Confidential

 For Destination network, Browse and select vCenter Server Network-####

Click Next to select VMs to migrate.

36 | File-Based Backup and Restore of VCSA and PCS

Dell Customer Communication - Confidential

 The newly restored VMs on the tempportgroup are displayed.

Select the VMs and click Next.

37 | File-Based Backup and Restore of VCSA and PCS

Dell Customer Communication - Confidential

 In the Summary page, review the settings and click Finish.

Monitor the progress of the migration in the Recent Tasks pane until it completes.

38 | File-Based Backup and Restore of VCSA and PCS

Dell Customer Communication - Confidential

 SSH to the primary-node.
Run this command to identify the free DVPort ID
esxcfg-vswitch –l

In the preceding sample command output, {DVS name is VMware HCIA Distributed Switch} and {the free DVport ID is
7}.
Having acquired the free DVport ID, run the following commands to delete the tempswitch VSS on the primary-
node and to move the vmnic1 back to the DVS:
esxcli network vswitch standard portgroup remove –p tempportgroup –v tempswitch
esxcli network vswitch standard uplink remove –u vmnic1 –v tempswitch
esxcli network vswitch standard remove –v tempswitch
esxcfg-vswitch –P vmnic1 –V 7 “VMware HCIA Distributed Switch”

39 | File-Based Backup and Restore of VCSA and PCS

Dell Customer Communication - Confidential

 To confirm that the preceding commands have worked, run this command:
esxcfg-vswitch –l

Reboot the Newly Deployed vCSA and PSC

To ensure the stability of the newly deployed vCSA and PSC, they must be rebooted.
Log into VMware vSphere Appliance Management Interface (VAMI) of vCSA at port 5480.

40 | File-Based Backup and Restore of VCSA and PCS

Dell Customer Communication - Confidential

 Click the Summary tab on the Navigator pane and then click the Reboot button on the Summary pane.

Click Yes to confirm and proceed with the reboot.

Log into VMware vSphere Appliance Management Interface (VAMI) of PSC at port 5480.

Click the Summary tab on the Navigator pane and then click Reboot on the Summary pane.

41 | File-Based Backup and Restore of VCSA and PCS

Dell Customer Communication - Confidential

 Click Yes to confirm and proceed with reboot.

VxRail Manager Configuration for the Restored vCSA and PSC

After vCSA and PSC are restored, the VxRail Manager database must be updated with the UUID, morefid and VM-
name of the new vCSA and PSC. If this step is skipped, the VxRail upgrade feature will be impacted.
Obtain UUID, morefid, VM name for vCSA and PSC
The UUID, morefid and VM names can be obtained using the Managed Object Browser.
Log into the mob via https://vCenter-Server-IP/mob or via https://vCenter-Server-FQDN/mob and enter
SSO account credentials (e.g., [email protected]).

42 | File-Based Backup and Restore of VCSA and PCS

Dell Customer Communication - Confidential

 Click on the link in the VALUE column on the row: content

Click on the link in the VALUE column on the row: rootFolder

Click on the link in the VALUE column on the row: childEntity

Click on the link in the VALUE column on the row: vmFolder

43 | File-Based Backup and Restore of VCSA and PCS

Dell Customer Communication - Confidential

 Click on the link described as Discovered virtual machine in the VALUE column on the row: childEntity

Managed Object Reference IDs (morefid) for the newly deployed vCSA and PSC VMs are displayed in the VALUE
column on the row: childEntity. In this example, {morefid for vCSA is 163}, and {morefid for PSC is 162}. Next,
follow each link (vm-163 and vm-162) separately to obtain the UUID and the name of each VM. First click on the
link for vCSA.

On the page displayed, the VM-name is in the VALUE column on the row: name. To obtain the UUID, click the
config link in the VALUE column on the row: config on the same page.

44 | File-Based Backup and Restore of VCSA and PCS

Dell Customer Communication - Confidential

 The UUID is displayed in the VALUE column on the row: uuid.

Go back and click on the link for PSC to obtain its UUID and VM-name.

45 | File-Based Backup and Restore of VCSA and PCS

Dell Customer Communication - Confidential

 On the page displayed, the VM-name is in the VALUE column on the row: name. To obtain the UUID, click the
config link in the VALUE column on the row:config on the same page.

The UUID is displayed in the VALUE column on the row:uuid.

vCSA and PSC information obtained in this step will be used to update the VxRail Manager database in the next step.

Update VxRail Manager Database

Log in to the VxRail Manager using Putty or the VM console on the vSphere Web Client.

46 | File-Based Backup and Restore of VCSA and PCS

Dell Customer Communication - Confidential

 Run this command to enter the database shell
psql –U postgres marvin

In the database shell, run this query to collect the current information for old vCSA and PSC.
select * from virtual_machine;

Update the database table with the information obtained in the previous step for the new vCSA and PSC.

47 | File-Based Backup and Restore of VCSA and PCS

Dell Customer Communication - Confidential

 update virtual_machine set uuid='564dd4e1-86db-fdd9-d14b-f9be1dc5ac0f',
morefid='vm-163', vm_name='VCSA_VM_restored' where system_vm_type='VCSA';

update virtual_machine set uuid='564d0177-fa83-fe75-e942-9a3a3b4335a0',

morefid='vm-162', vm_name='PSC_VM_restored' where system_vm_type='PSC';

Run this query to verify the database is updated with the new data.
select * from virtual_machine;

Run this command to quit the database session.

\q

Elevate to root account and restart the VxRail Manager’s vmware-marvin and runjars services.
sudo –i

service vmware-marvin restart

service runjars restart

Conclusion
The file-based backup and restore operation provides a simple and reliable way to rebuild the vCSA and PSC, which
are the two of VxRail’s core system VMs. Image level backup and restore operations can be arduous, time-
consuming, and restored images might not be reliable. Moreover, fundamental VxRail features and functionality such
as cluster shutdown, upgrade, hardware replacement, etc. are not impacted by this type of restore operation. VxRail
4.5 takes advantage of this native data protection feature provided by vSphere 6.5.

48 | File-Based Backup and Restore of VCSA and PCS

Dell Customer Communication - Confidential

 References
VMware File-based Backup and Restore
For more information on the native file-based backup and restore feature of vSphere 6.5, see this VMware document:
https://docs.vmware.com/en/VMware-vSphere/6.5/com.vmware.vsphere.install.doc/GUID-3EAED005-B0A3-40CF-
B40D-85AD247D7EA4.html

SolVe Procedures for Changing the IP of vCSA and PSC

Do not make changes to the network configuration during the restore operation. If a different IP address than the
original address of the vCSA or PSC is used anyway, the VxRail Manager configuration will have to be fixed after the
restore. Refer to Change the Internal vCSA Virtual Machine IP Address and Change the Internal PSC Virtual
Machine IP Address procedures in SolVe at https://solveonline.emc.com. These two procedures can be accessed by
navigating through this selection path: VxRail > How To Procedures > How To Change VxRail IP Addresses.

© 2019 Dell Inc. or its subsidiaries. All Rights Reserved. Dell, EMC and other trademarks are
trademarks of Dell Inc. or its subsidiaries. Other trademarks may be trademarks of their respective
owners.

49 | File-Based Backup and Restore of VCSA and PCS

Dell Customer Communication - Confidential