Dell Appassure 5 User Guide

							Dell AppAssure User Guide
Version 5.4.3 Revision B
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Protecting machines using the 
AppAssure Core
This chapter describes how to protect, configure, and manage the protected machines in your AppAssure 
environment. It includes the following sections:
•Dynamic and basic volumes support limitations
•About the Agent Installer
•Deploying the Agent (push install)
•Understanding bulk deploy
•Understanding protection schedules
•Protecting a machine
•Protecting multiple machines
To protect your data using AppAssure, you need to add the workstations and servers for protection in the 
AppAssure Core Console; for example, your Exchange server, SQL Server, Linux server, and so on.
In the AppAssure Core Console, you can identify the machine on which the AppAssure Agent software is 
installed, and specify which volumes, for example, a Microsoft Windows Storage Space, to protect. You can 
define the schedules for protection, add additional security measures such as encryption, and much more. For 
more information on how to access the AppAssure Core Console to protect workstations and servers, see 
Protecting a machine.
Dynamic and basic volumes support 
limitations
AppAssure supports taking snapshots of all dynamic and basic volumes. AppAssure also supports exporting 
simple dynamic volumes that are on a single physical disk. As their name implies, simple dynamic volumes are 
not striped, mirrored or spanned volumes.
Dynamic disks (except simple dynamic disks as previously described) are not available for selection in the 
Export Wizard. Non-simple, dynamic volumes have arbitrary disk geometries that cannot be fully interpreted. 
AppAssure therefore does not support the export of complex or non-simple dynamic volumes.
Notification appears in the user interface to alert you that exports are limited and restricted to simple dynamic 
volumes. If you attempt to export anything other than a single dynamic volume, the export job will fail.
CAUTION: AppAssure does not support bare metal restores (BMRs) of Linux machines with EXT2 boot 
partitions. Any BMR performed on a machine with this type of partition results in a machine that does 
not start. If you want to be able to perform a BMR on this machine in the future, you must convert any 
EXT2 partitions to EXT3 or EXT4 before you begin protecting and backing up the machine. 
						

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Version 5.4.3 Revision B100
About the Agent Installer
AppAssure lets you download installers from the AppAssure Core. From the Tools tab, you can choose to 
download the Agent Installer or the Local Mount Utility (LMU). For more information about the LMU, see 
Understanding the Local Mount Utility.
The Agent installer is used to install the AppAssure Agent application on machines that are intended to be 
protected by the AppAssure Core. If you determine that you have a machine that requires the Agent Installer, 
you can download the web installer from the Tools tab in the AppAssure Core.
Downloading the Agent Installer
You can download and deploy the AppAssure Agent Installer on any machine that will be protected by the 
AppAssure Core. Complete the steps in this procedure to download the web installer.
To download the AppAssure Agent installer
1 Download the AppAssure Agent installer file from the Dell AppAssure License Portal or from the 
AppAssure Core. For example:
Agent-X64-5.2.1.xxxxx.exe
2Click Save File.
For more information about installing agents, see the Dell AppAssure Installation and Upgrade Guide.
Deploying the Agent (push install)
AppAssure lets you deploy the AppAssure Agent Installer to individual Windows machines for protection. 
Complete the steps in the following procedure to push the installer to an agent.
To deploy agents to multiple machines at the same time, see Deploying to multiple machines.
To deploy the agent
1 In the AppAssure Core Console in the left navigation area, click Protected Machines to open the Machines 
page.
2In the Actions drop-down menu, click Deploy Agent.
The Deploy Agent dialog box appears.
3 In the Deploy Agent dialog box, enter the logon settings as described in the following table.
NOTE: For access to the Agent Installer, see Downloading the Agent Installer. For more information about 
deploying the Agent Installer, see the Dell AppAssure Installation and Upgrade Guide.
NOTE: Downloading of the Core is performed from the Dell AppAssure License Portal. For more 
information or to download the AppAssure Core installer, visit https://licenseportal.com.
NOTE: Agents must be configured with a security policy that makes remote installation possible.
Table 47. Machine logon settings
Te x t  B o x D e s c r i p t i o n
Machine Enter the host name or IP address of the agent machine that you 
want to deploy.
User name Enter the user name to connect to this machine; for example, 
Administrator or, if the machine is in a domain, [domain 
name]\Administrator). 
						

							Dell AppAssure User Guide
Version 5.4.3 Revision B101 4Click Ve r i f y to validate the credentials you entered.
The Deploy Agent dialog box displays a message to indicate that validation is being performed. Click 
Abort if you want to cancel the verification process. After the verification process is complete, a 
message indicating that verification has been completed displays.
5Click Deploy.
A message indicating that the deployment has started displays. You can view the progress in the Events 
tab. Click Show details to view more information about the status of the agent deployment.
6Click OK.
Modifying deploy settings
Complete the steps in this procedure to modify deploy settings.
To modify deploy settings
1 Navigate to the AppAssure Core Console and click the Configuration tab, and then Settings.
2 In the Deploy Settings pane, click Change.
The Deploy Settings dialog box displays.
3 In the Agent Installer Name text box, enter the name of the agent executable file. The default is Agent-
web.exe.
4 In the Core Address text box, enter the address for the core.
5 In the Failed Receive Timeout text box, enter the number of minutes to wait without activity to timeout.
6 In the Max Parallel Installs text box, enter a number for the maximum installations that can be installed 
in parallel.
7 Select either or both of the following optional settings:
• Automatic reboot after install
• Protect After Deploy
8Click OK.
Understanding bulk deploy
This topic describes the tasks that administrators perform to deploy the AppAssure Agent software 
simultaneously to multiple Windows machines. This batch processing capability is known as the bulk deploy 
feature.
To deploy and protect multiple agents, perform the following tasks:
1 Deploy AppAssure Agent to multiple machines. See Deploying to multiple machines.
2 Monitor the activity of the batch deployment. See Verifying the deployment to multiple machines. Password Enter the password to connect to this machine
Automatic reboot after install Select to specify whether the Core should start upon the 
completion of the deployment and installation of the AppAssure 
Agent Installer. Table 47. Machine logon settings
Te x t  B o x D e s c r i p t i o n 
						

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Version 5.4.3 Revision B102 3 Protect multiple machines. See Protecting multiple machines.
4 Monitor the activity of the batch protection. See Monitoring the protection of multiple machines.
Deploying to multiple machines
You can simplify the task of deploying the AppAssure Agent software to multiple Windows machines by using the 
bulk deploy feature of Dell AppAssure. From within the Core Console, you can specifically bulk deploy to:
•Machines on an Active Directory domain
•Machines on a VMware vCenter/ESX(i) virtual host
•Machines on any other host
The bulk deploy feature automatically detects machines on a host and allows you to select those to which you 
want to deploy. Alternatively, you can manually enter host and machine information.
Deploying to machines on an Active Directory domain
Before starting this procedure, you must have the domain information and logon credentials for the Active 
Directory server.
To deploy to machines on an Active Directory domain
1 On the AppAssure Core Console, click the Tools tab, and then click Bulk Deploy.
2 On the Deploy Agent to Machines pane, click Active Directory.
3 In the Connect to Active Directory dialog box, enter the domain information and logon credentials as 
described in the following table.
4Click Connect.
5 On the Add Machines from Active Directory dialog box, select the machines to which you want to deploy 
the AppAssure Agent software, and then click Add.
The machines you added appear on the Deploy Agent to Machines pane. The system verifies each 
machine you added automatically.
6 Optionally, you can verify any machine by selecting the machine and then clicking Ve r i f y in the toolbar.
NOTE: This step can be skipped if you selected the Protect Machine After Install option during 
deployment.
NOTE: You can use the bulk deploy feature to deploy the Agent software to as many as 50 agent machines. 
The machines to which you are deploying must have access to the Internet to download and install bits, 
since the AppAssure Core uses the Web version of the AppAssure Agent Installer to deploy the installation 
components. If access to the Internet is not available, you will need to manually download the AppAssure 
Agent Installer from the Dell AppAssure License Portal and deploy it to the individual machines that you 
want to protect.

For more information, see the Dell AppAssure License Portal User Guide.
Table 48. Domain information and credentials
Te x t  B o x D e s c r i p t i o n
Host The host name or IP address of the Active Directory domain.
User name The user name used to connect to the domain; for example, Administrator or, if the 
machine is in a domain, [domain name]\Administrator).
Password The secure password used to connect to the domain. 
						

							Dell AppAssure User Guide
Version 5.4.3 Revision B103 7 Check the status icon and message for each machine on the Deploy Agents to Machines page. These 
reflect the readiness of each machine for deployment, as follows:
•Green icon - AppAssure is able to connect to the machine and it is ready to be deployed.
•Yellow icon - AppAssure is able to connect to the machine; however, the AppAssure Agent on the 
machine is already paired with an AppAssure Core.
•Red icon - AppAssure cannot connect to the machine. This may be because the logon credentials 
are incorrect, the machine is shut down, the firewall is blocking traffic, or another problem.
•If the status message for each machine indicates that it is ready to deploy, skip to Step 9.
•Optionally, if the status message shows a Details link, click on Details to determine if you can 
correct the issue.
8 To correct issues connecting to any machine showing a red status, or to enable automatic protection, 
change port or authentication information, change the display name, specify a repository or establish an 
encryption key, click Settings on the toolbar or click the Edit link next to the machine, and then do the 
following:
a In the Edit Settings dialog box, specify the settings as described in the following table.
bClick Save.
9 After machines are successfully verified, select each machine to which you want to deploy the AppAssure 
Agent, and then click Deploy.
If you proceed with protecting an agent that is already protected by another Core, that protection will 
be stopped and the machine will now be protected by this Core.
If you chose the Protect machine after install option, after deployment is successful, the machines 
automatically reboot and protection is enabled.
NOTE: The Agent software will not be deployed to any machine with a red status icon.
Table 49. Active Directory settings
Te x t  B o x D e s c r i p t i o n
Host name
Automatically provided from 
Step 3.
User name
Automatically provided from 
Step 3.
Pa s sw or dEnter the password for the machine.
Automatic reboot after 
installMandatory. Reboots the machine after deployment, which is required before 
protecting any agent machine.
Protect machine after 
installSelected by default. If selected, the system will automatically protect the 
machine after deployment. (This allows you to skip Pr ote ct in g m ul ti ple  
machines.)
Display name
Automatically assigned based on the host name provided in 
Step 3.
This is the name that appears in the Core Console for the selected machine.
Port The port number on which the AppAssure Core communicates with the agent 
on the machine.
The default port is 8006.
Repository Use the drop-down list to select the repository on the AppAssure Core where 
the data from the specified machines should be stored.
This option is only available when you select Protect machine after install.
Encryption key (Optional) Use the drop-down list to specify whether encryption should be 
applied to the data on the specified machine. The encryption key is assigned 
to all machines that are being protected.
NOTE: This option is only available when you select Protect machine after 
install. 
						

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Version 5.4.3 Revision B104
Deploying to machines on a VMware vCenter/ESX(i) 
virtual host
Before starting this procedure, you must have the host location information and logon credentials for the 
VMware vCenter/ESX(i) virtual host.
To deploy to machines on a vCenter/ESX(i) virtual host
1 Navigate to the AppAssure Core Console, click the Tools tab, and then click Bulk Deploy.
2 In the Deploy Agent to Machines window, click vCenter/ESX(i).
3 In the Connect to vCenter Server/ESX(i) dialog box, enter the host information and logon credentials as 
follows and click Connect.
4 In the Add Machines from VMware vCenter Server/ESX(i) dialog box, or the following:
a Under Options, enter the user name and password for the virtual machines you select.
b Drill through the machines, expanding or collapsing through the clusters, resource pools, vApps 
and virtual machines by clicking the arrows next to each node.
c Select the machines to which you want to deploy and then click Add.
The machines you added appear on the Deploy Agent to Machines window. The system verifies each 
machine you added automatically.
5 Optionally, you can verify any machine, check the status of the machine, or edit connection settings for 
a machine, as described in Step 6 to Step 8 of the procedure Deploying to machines on an Active 
Directory domain.
6 After machines are verified successfully, check the box next to each machine to which you want to 
deploy the AppAssure Agent, and then click Deploy.
If you proceed with protecting an agent that is already protected by another Core, that protection will 
be stopped and the machine will now be protected by this Core.
If you chose the Protect machine after install option, after deployment is successful the machines are 
rebooted automatically and protection is enabled.
NOTE: All virtual machines must have VM Tools installed; otherwise, AppAssure cannot detect the host 
name of the virtual machine to which to deploy. In lieu of the host name, AppAssure uses the virtual 
machine name, which may cause issues if the host name is different from the virtual machine name.
Table 50. vCenter/ESX(i) connection settings
Te x t  B o x D e s c r i p t i o n
Host The name or IP address of the VMware vCenter Server/ESX(i) virtual host.
Port The port used to connect to the virtual host.
The default setting is 443.
User name The user name used to connect to the virtual host; for example, Administrator or, if 
the machine is in a domain, [domain name]\Administrator).
Password The secure password used to connect to this virtual host. 
						

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Version 5.4.3 Revision B105
Deploying to machines on any other host
Complete the following procedure to deploy the AppAssure Agent to multiple machines on any other type of 
host.
To deploy to machines on any other host
1 Navigate to the AppAssure Core Console, click the Tools tab, and then click Bulk Deploy.
2 On the Deploy Agent on Machines window, do one of the following:
•Click New to enter a new machine host, logon credentials, optional display name, repository, 
encryption key, and other information. For details on each setting, see Deploying to machines on 
an Active Directory domain.
After you enter this information, click OK to add it to the Deploy Agent on Machines list, or click 
OK & New to add another machine.
•To specify multiple machines in a list, click Manually, enter the machine details in the Add 
Machines Manually dialog box, and click Add. For each machine, you will need to enter the IP 
address or name for the machine, the user name, the password separated by a double-colon 
delimiter, and port as shown in the following format:
hostname::username::password::port
For example:
10.255.255.255::administrator::&11@yYz90z::8006
abc-host-00-1::administrator::99!zU$o83r::168
The machines you added appear on the Deploy Agent to Machines window. The system verifies each 
machine you added automatically.
3 Optionally, you can verify any machine, check the status of the machine, or edit connection settings for 
a machine, as described in Step 6 to Step 8 of the procedure Deploying to machines on an Active 
Directory domain.
4 After machines are verified successfully, check the box next to each machine to which you want to 
deploy the AppAssure Agent, and then click Deploy.
If you proceed with protecting an agent that is already protected by another Core, that protection will 
be stopped and the machine will now be protected by this Core.
If you chose the Protect machine after install option, after deployment is successful the machines are 
rebooted automatically and protection is enabled.
Verifying the deployment to multiple machines
Once you have bulk deployed the AppAssure Agent software to two or more machines, you can verify the 
success by viewing each agent machine listed under the Protected Machines menu.
You can also view information regarding the bulk deploy process from the Events tab. Complete the steps in this 
procedure to verify the deployment.
To verify the deployment to multiple machines
1 Navigate to the AppAssure Core Console, click the Events tab, and click Alerts.
2 Navigate to the AppAssure Core Home tab and then click the Events tab.
NOTE: If you want to automatically protect the machine after deployment, check the 
Protect Machine after Install box. If you check the box, the machine will be rebooted 
automatically prior to enabling protection. 
						

							Dell AppAssure User Guide
Version 5.4.3 Revision B106 Alert events appear in the list, showing the time the event initiated and a message. For each successful 
deployment of the Agent software, you will see an alert indicating that the protected machine has been 
added.
3 Optionally, click on any link for a protected machine.
The Summary tab for the selected machine appears, showing pertinent information including:
•The host name of the protected machine
•The last snapshot, if applicable
•The scheduled time of the next snapshot, based on the protection schedule you selected
•The encryption key, if any, used for this protected agent.
•The version of the Agent software.
Understanding protection schedules
A protection schedule defines when backups are transferred from protected agent machines to the AppAssure 
Core.
Protection schedules are initially defined using the Protect Machine Wizard or the Protect Multiple Machines 
Wizard. You can then modify the existing schedule at any time from the Summary tab for a specific agent 
machine.
AppAssure provides a default protection schedule, which includes a single period spanning all days of the week, 
with a single time period defined (from 12:00 AM to 11:59 PM). The default interval (the time period between 
snapshots) is 60 minutes.
When protection is first enabled, the schedule is activated. Thus, using the default settings, regardless of the 
current time of day, the first backup will occur every hour, on the hour (12:00 AM, 1:00 AM, 2:00 AM, and so on).
The first backup transfer saved to the Core is called a base image snapshot. All data on all specified volumes 
(including the operating system, applications, and settings), are saved to the Core. Thereafter, incremental 
snapshots (smaller backups, consisting only of data changed on the protected machine since the last backup) 
are saved to the core regularly, based on the interval defined (for example, every 60 minutes).
You can create a custom schedule to change the frequency of backups. For example, a simple change you can 
make is to change the interval for the weekday period to 20 minutes, resulting in three snapshots every hour. Or 
you can increase the interval on weekends from 60 minutes to 180 minutes, resulting in snapshots once every 
three hours when traffic is low.
You can also define peak and off-peak times. For example, if your protected machines are mostly in use on 
weekdays, you could define Period #1 to include only weekdays, by clearing the selections for Sunday and 
Saturday in the Period #1 drop-down menu. Then, select Period #2, which automatically covers the time period 
not included in Period #1 (in this case, Saturday and Sunday). You can then increase the interval for period two, 
for example to 360 minutes, resulting in snapshots once every six hours on weekends, and once hourly on 
weekdays.
Alternatively, you can change the default schedule to define peak and off-peak times daily. To do this using the 
Protection Schedule Wizard, change the default start and end time to a smaller range of time (for example, 
12:00 AM to 4:59 PM), and set an appropriate interval (for example, 20 minutes). This represents frequent 
backups during peak periods.
Then, select Period#2, change the time range to the remaining period (5:00 pm to 11:59 pm) and set an 
appropriate (presumably larger) interval (for example, 180 minutes). These settings define an off-peak period 
NOTE: For information about protecting a single machine, see Protecting a machine. For information 
about bulk protect (protecting multiple machines), see Protecting multiple machines. For information on 
customizing protection periods when protecting an agent using either of these wizards, see Creating 
custom protection schedules. For information about modifying an existing protection schedule, see 
Modifying protection schedules. 
						

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Version 5.4.3 Revision B107 that includes 5:00 PM to midnight every day. This results in snapshots every 3 hours from 5:00 PM through 11:59 
PM, and snapshots every 20 minutes from midnight to 4:59 PM.
Other options in the Protection Schedule Wizard page include for a setting a daily protection time. This results 
in a single backup daily at the period defined (the default setting is 12:00 PM).
The option to initially pause protection prevents a base image from occurring (and in fact, prevents all backups) 
until you explicitly resume protection. When you are ready to begin protecting your machines based on the 
established protection schedule, you must explicitly resume protection. For more information on resuming 
protection, see Pausing and resuming protection. Optionally, if you want to protect a machine immediately, you 
can force a snapshot. For more information, see Forcing a snapshot.
Protecting a machine
This topic describes how to start protecting the data on a single machine that you specify using the Protect 
Machine Wizard.
To protect multiple machines using one process simultaneously, see Protecting multiple machines.
When you add protection, you need to define connection information such as the IP address and port, and 
provide credentials for the machine you want to protect. Optionally, you can provide a display name to appear 
in the Core Console instead of the IP address. If you change this, you will not see the IP address for the 
protected machine when you view details in the Core Console. You will also define the protection schedule for 
the machine.
This process includes optional steps you can access if you select an advanced configuration. Advanced options 
include repository functions and encryption. For example, you can specify an existing AppAssure repository to 
save snapshots, or create a new repository. You can also specify an existing encryption key (or add a new 
encryption key) to apply to the data saved to the Core for this machine.
The workflow of the wizard may differ slightly based on your environment. For example, if the AppAssure Agent 
software is installed on the machine you want to protect, you will not be prompted to install it from the wizard. 
Likewise, if a repository already exists on the Core, you will not be prompted to create one.
To  p r o t e c t  a  m a c h i n e
1 If you have already installed the AppAssure Agent software on the machine you want to protect, but 
have not restarted it yet, restart the machine now.
2 On the core machine, navigate to the AppAssure Core Console, and from the button bar, click Protect.
The Protect Machine Wizard appears.
NOTE: The machine must have the AppAssure Agent software installed in order to be protected. You can 
choose to install the Agent software prior to this procedure, or you can deploy the software to the target 
machine as a part of completing the Protect Machine Wizard. For more information on installing the Agent 
software, see “Installing the AppAssure Agent software” in the Dell AppAssure Installation and Upgrade 
Guide.

If the Agent software is not installed prior to protecting a machine, you will not be able to select specific 
volumes for protection as part of this wizard. In this case, by default, all volumes on the agent machine 
will be included for protection.

AppAssure supports the protection and recovery of machines configured with EISA partitions. Support is 
also extended to Windows 8 and 8.1, and Windows 2012 and 2012 R2 machines that use Windows Recovery 
Environment (Windows RE).
CAUTION: AppAssure does not support bare metal restores (BMRs) of Linux machines with EXT2 boot 
partitions. Any BMR performed on a machine with this type of partition results in a machine that does 
not start. If you want to be able to perform a BMR on this machine in the future, you must convert any 
EXT2 partitions to EXT3 or EXT4 before you begin protecting and backing up the machine. 
						

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Version 5.4.3 Revision B108 3 On the Welcome page, select the appropriate installation options:
•If you do not need to define a repository or establish encryption, select Ty p i c a l.
•If you need to create a repository, or define a different repository for backups for the selected 
machine, or if you want to establish encryption using the wizard, select Advanced (show 
optional steps).
•Optionally, if you do not wish to see the Welcome page for the Protect Machine Wizard in the 
future, select the Skip this Welcome page the next time the wizard opens option.
4 When you are satisfied with your choices on the Welcome page, then click Next.
The Connection page appears.
5 On the Connection page, enter the information about the machine to which you want to connect as 
described in the following table, and then click Next.
6 If the Upgrade Agent page appears next in the Protect Machine Wizard, this means that an older version 
of the AppAssure Agent software exists on the machine you want to protect. Do one of the following and 
then click Next:
•To deploy the new version of the Agent software (matching the version for the AppAssure Core), 
select Upgrade the Agent to the latest version of the software.
•To continue protecting the machine without updating the Agent software version, clear the 
Upgrade the Agent to the latest version of the software option.
7 If the Protection page appears next in the Protect Machine Wizard, skip to Step 8.
If the Install Agent page appears next in the Protect Machine Wizard, this indicates that the Agent 
software is not yet on installed on the designated machine. Click Next to install the Agent software.
The Protection page appears.
8 Optionally, if you want a name other than the IP address to display in the AppAssure Core console for this 
protected machine, then in the Display Name field, type a name in the dialog box.
You can enter up to 64 characters. Do not use the special characters described in the topic prohibited 
characters. Additionally, do not begin the display name with any of the character combinations 
described in the topic prohibited phrases. Table 51. Machine connection settings
Te x t  B o x D e s c r i p t i o n
Host The host name or IP address of the machine that you want to protect.
Port The port number on which the AppAssure Core communicates with the Agent on the 
machine.
The default port number is 8006.
User name The user name used to connect to this machine; for example, Administrator (or, if the 
machine is in a domain, [domain name]\Administrator).
Password The password used to connect to this machine.
NOTE: The Agent software must be installed on the machine you want to protect, and that 
machine must be restarted, before it can back up to the Core. To have the installer reboot the 
protected machine, select the After installation, restart the machine automatically 
(recommended) option before clicking Next.