Azure VM Backups using EndPoint

[BillyBob]

Yes, the subject line is correct. I loved using Veeam on-prem and learned I could use Veeam EndPoint for Azure VM. So here is my case.

Environment: Microsoft Azure
Issue: Azure VM Backup is not friendly; MS DPM works buts takes too long and no dedupe is not as Veeam setup (Win2012 SMB share with Dedupe enabled and Veeam HyperV Dedupe).

Possible Solution: I host a MS DPM server (backup server) in Azure. So I attached a 1tb disk and put it in my backup storage pool of Azure Storage groups. I enabled Windows 2012 dedupe on that volume. I created a SMB share to domain admins. Added NSG rules for my DMZ servers so SMB share could be seen. Started to install Veeam Endpoints on DEV and some Prod servers. Put the backup storage location to the SMB share I just created on the backup server in Azure. Backups worked like clockwork. So I have to run Full Backup manually (after my monthly patching is done, I would normally run the full on Veeam Endpoint), otherwise all automatic backups are incremental. Disk usage for backups is comparable to on-prem usage. I had to get innovative on how to restore C drive, system drive. Say the VM is corrupted in Azure, more common when running 2008r2 than 2012 or higher. When that occurs, how do I restore it. So here is how I did it, attached a 127gig disk to already running VM's (not the backup server). This particular server had Veeam Endpoint installed on it so all I had to do was a Volume Restore and change the SMB share folder location within backup server to the VM that was backed up but now corrupted. I pushed the restore to the newly created disk and it took time to restore, not the same as on-prem Veeam. Why? It's doing Partition/file level restore. When completed, detach disk and recreate the VM and attach all disks, including any Data Disk attached to original but corrupted VM and start VM.

This type of Backup/Restore is NOT Supported by anyone so please do it at your own risk.

File Level recovery works perfectly fine.

What I want to see happen.....

Take the Veeam HyperV/VMware Console (mothership) and install it on a backup server in Azure, as done on-prem. Backups could be done using the Veeam Endpoint, as agent based backups. Restores of C drive (system drive) will need to be tweaked so it's faster in some fashion. Such as restore job kicks off a process to attach empty disk to backup server while placing it in correct Storage Group (use Storage Explorer API to learn location of original disk and recreate in same location using different name variable) and once attached, Veeam rebuilds the disk using backup then detaches disk from backup server. Then leave it up to the admin to re-create VM and attach disk. This is just my perception but you, the developers, are programming gurus so I expect you to know how to make it better.

Please contact me for anymore feedback.

[Mike Resseler]

Hey BillyBob,

First... I figured someone would come up with this sooner or later . You are indeed right that BMR recovery is not possible as long as Microsoft won't allow us to boot from an ISO for an Azure VM. It is what it is...

It seems like you have found a method to do what you want to achieve, although it is kind of a "way-too-many-steps" solution

What I was thinking (and playing with)... My Azure VMs are known by my on-premises infrastructure. I have a VPN between the two of them, all done with the standard Azure functionality.

My main backup server is located on my on-premises environment. I have an Azure VM running that holds a WAN accelerator component and a repository. My backups with VEB are stored on that repository, attached to the Azure VM. Then I use once a day backup copy job to sent the data to the repository on-premises. (So I have my data with me in case something goes terribly wrong with Azure.)

For the recovery, I have 2 options...

[*] I can do exactly what you do.
[*] I recover to a VHD and upload it to Azure and then create a VM from there. (Depending on bandwidth... not so good of course but faster restore than in Azure itself)

Ideally it isn't, but at least it keeps us going already, and for me, the most important part, is that my Azure VMs are backupped to my local infrastructure...

Comments?

Cheers

Mike