Use the IBM Storage Ceph Plugin for vSphere to take a snapshot of a virtual machine File System (VMFS) datastore.
Before you begin
In the vSphere Client inventory, identify the VMFS datastore of which you want to take a snapshot.
About this task
This task identifies the storage system that presents the Ceph Block Device (RBD) image that backs the VMFS datastore and creates an RBD snapshot.
Define an optional snapshot name to help identify the reason for the snapshot.
Procedure
-
Select the VMFS datastore that requires a snapshot.
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Select Take Snapshot.
- From Actions, select IBM Storage Ceph, and click Take Snapshot.
- Navigate to the Configure tab on the selected datastore, scroll to Datastore Snapshots, and click Take Snapshot.
The Take Snapshot form opens.
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Fill in the Take Snapshot form and click TAKE SNAPSHOT to complete.
The
Take Snapshot form includes the following optional fields and checkboxes:
- Snapshot name
- Define a name to help identify the snapshot in the future. If a name is not provided, the snapshot is automatically named by appending the current timestamp to the source datastore’s name.
- Protected
- Select to protect the snapshot.
- Clone
- Select to create a clone of the snapshot that you are currently creating.
Note: This option is available from the
Configure tab
Take Snapshot form.
To clone a snapshot after snapshot creation, or when creating through the Actions menu, use the Copy icon.
An error message displays if there is a problem with the snapshot creation. For example, if a snapshot with an identical name exists.
What to do next
The new snapshot appears with the protection status on the Configure tab. If Clone was selected, the Copy SNAPSHOT_NAME to New Datastore wizard displays after the snapshot has been created. When complete, monitor the Recent Tasks view in the vSphere Plugin to confirm the task is completed successfully.