Maximum Restore Points, GFS and EMC Data Domain

[He-Man]

Hi
We have recently invested in an EMC Data Domain. I have been asked if it is possible to have a whole year of daily backup (e.g. 365 restore points). I know that if I for example have 30 restore points I need to do an Active Full every week or so, but how many restore points is the maximum recommended?
Also, is it best to have a single job with hundreds of VMs, both VSS and non-VSS aware VMs? Or is it better to have multiple jobs seperating VSS aware and non-vss aware VMs?

[Dima P.]

Hello Thomas,

I know that if I for example have 30 restore points I need to do an Active Full every week or so, but how many restore points is the maximum recommended?

You have a weekly Active Full active full you are good with any desired number of restore points. Keep in mind that we have a wonderful KB article, which can help a lot: EMC Data Domain Storage Best Practices

Also, is it best to have a single job with hundreds of VMs, both VSS and non-VSS aware VMs? Or is it better to have multiple jobs seperating VSS aware and non-vss aware VMs?

Both methods looks good, but I like the idea of ‘not keeping all eggs in one basket’ – so spreading VMs in multiple backup jobs is a better idea if you do not care about the deduplication.

[foggy]

Thomas, please review this thread and also check the links mentioned there, will give you some additional thoughts. Are you going to use DataDomain as a primary or secondary storage?

There're also a number of existing threads on combining VMs into jobs, worth searching to review them.