Configuring Tivoli Storage Manager for NDMP operations in a NetApp clustered environment

You can back up data from a NetApp cluster to a directly attached tape device or to a Tivoli® Storage Manager server, which stores the data in a storage pool. You can back up the entire cluster to a single Tivoli Storage Manager node or parts of the cluster to multiple nodes.

Before you begin

For an overview of NDMP functionality in Tivoli Storage Manager and NetApp file servers, see technote 7046965. This technote also lists system requirements.

About this task

You can back up data in a NetApp clustered environment to the following storage media:

Tape device that is directly attached to a NAS file server: You can back up data to a tape device that is directly attached to a NAS file server. This is the preferred method. Typically, it is faster to back up data to a directly attached tape device than it is to back up data to a Tivoli Storage Manager storage pool by using a network connection.
Storage pool in the local Tivoli Storage Manager hierarchy: You can back up data to a Tivoli Storage Manager server, which stores the data in a storage pool of type DISK, FILE, or tape. The advantage of storing data in a storage pool is that you can replicate the data for added data protection. You can use existing storage pools or create storage pools. You must have a network connection between the NAS file server and the Tivoli Storage Manager server. The network connection must have sufficient bandwidth to transfer the NAS backup data.
Tip: This type of backup is sometimes called a filer-to-server backup.

You can use one of the following backup methods:

Full cluster backup: When you apply this method, the backup data of the entire cluster is owned by a single Tivoli Storage Manager node. Even if you move the volumes within the cluster, full cluster backup operations continue and you do not have to reconfigure backup operations. This is the preferred method.
Partial cluster backup: When you apply this method, you specify a NetApp storage virtual machine (SVM), which determines the scope of the backup operation. The SVM is a virtual server that provides access to part of a cluster. You can specify that each SVM in the cluster backs up data to a separate Tivoli Storage Manager node. This method requires more configuration than the full cluster backup method, and it requires a network connection to transfer data from the SVM to the Tivoli Storage Manager node.
Restriction: You cannot use this method to back up data to a tape device because SVMs do not have direct access to tape devices.

Procedure

Select the storage media based on the following questions:

Question	Storage media
Based on your business requirements, is it necessary to back up data to a local tape device?	If the answer is yes, use a directly attached tape device. If the answer is no, use either a directly attached tape device or a local Tivoli Storage Manager storage pool.
Does your organization require high-speed backup operations?	If the answer is yes, use a directly attached tape device. If the answer is no, use either a directly attached tape device or a local Tivoli Storage Manager storage pool.
Does your organization have sufficient network bandwidth for NAS backup data?	If the answer is yes, use either a directly attached tape device or a local Tivoli Storage Manager storage pool. If the answer is no, use a directly attached tape device.
Does your organization want to enhance data protection by using replication?	If the answer is yes, use a local Tivoli Storage Manager storage pool. If the answer is no, use either a directly attached tape device or a local Tivoli Storage Manager storage pool.
Are your NAS file servers at remote locations without access to directly attached tape libraries?	If the answer is yes, use a local Tivoli Storage Manager storage pool. If the answer is no, use either a directly attached tape device or a local Tivoli Storage Manager storage pool.

Select a backup method based on the following questions:

Question	Backup method
Based on your business requirements, is it necessary to back up data to a directly attached tape device?	If the answer is yes, use the full backup method. If the answer is no, use either the full or partial backup method.
Does your system have sufficient network bandwidth to back up several SVMs without affecting network performance?	If the answer is yes, use either the full or partial backup method. If the answer is no, use the full backup method. The partial backup method might adversely affect system performance.
Are the SVMs distributed across several organizations? For example, are any SVMs controlled by third parties, such as cloud-platform providers?	If the answer is yes, use the partial backup method because SVM owners can control backup operations for individual SVMs. If an SVM owner also owns a Tivoli Storage Manager server, the owner can set up backup operations from the SVM to a server node. In this way, the owner can control the end-to-end process. If the answer is no, use either the full or partial backup method.

Configure the system environment based on the storage media and backup method that you chose. Follow the instructions for your selected method:
Tip: If you configured Tivoli Storage Manager to back up NetApp clusters by using node-scoped NDMP, consider reconfiguring Tivoli Storage Manager to use NDMP Cluster Aware Backup (CAB). In this way, you can optimize backup operations for NetApp clusters. Follow the instructions in Reconfiguring Tivoli Storage Manager to optimize clustered backups.