Deployment storyboard for IBM Spectrum Protect Plus

The deployment storyboard is designed to help you to successfully deploy IBM Spectrum® Protect Plus in a production environment.

The storyboard lists each task in the required sequence and provides links to task instructions, videos, and guidelines in the IBM Spectrum Protect Plus Blueprints if applicable. The storyboard describes the expected outcome of tasks so that you can verify your progress as you deploy the product.

Before you start, review the system requirements for your environment. For more information, see technote 304861.

If you installed IBM Spectrum Protect Plus as a virtual appliance, see the stories in Table 1 and table Table 3.

Tip: If IBM Spectrum Protect Plus is installed as a virtual appliance, the steps in Table 1 rely on the information in the IBM Spectrum Protect Plus Blueprints and on the functioning of the Sizer tool.

If you installed IBM Spectrum Protect Plus as a set of OpenShift® containers, see the stories in Table 2 and table Table 3.

Stories that reference the vSnap server apply only if a vSnap server is the primary backup storage location. For information about the storage types that are available for workloads, see Managing backup storage.

Table 1. IBM Spectrum Protect Plus installed as a virtual appliance
Story Procedure Expected outcome
Prepare for sizing your capacity requirements by downloading the Blueprints and the Sizer Tool spreadsheet.

Download the IBM Spectrum Protect Plus Blueprints. The download includes the Sizer Tool.

For sizing guidelines, see Chapters 1-3 of the Blueprints.

You have the Sizer Tool spreadsheet and information you need to size your IBM Spectrum Protect Plus capacity requirements.
Size the capacity that is required for the primary storage in your environment.

Use the Sizer to size the primary storage.

  1. Open the downloaded Sizer Tool spreadsheet and enable macros. Save a copy of the spreadsheet to your local drive for primary storage.
  2. Complete the Start Here sheet by specifying your choices for global options for the primary storage.
  3. Open the VMware tab and enter data for the vCenter capacity that includes daily rate change and annual growth.
  4. Open the HyperV tab and enter data for your Hyper-V capacity.
  5. For each application that you are planning to use, open an application tab and enter data for your capacity needs.
  6. When all the data is entered, click the Sizing Results tab to review the calculated results.
  7. Set the preferred vSnap server size. To automatically specify the value for the vSnap storage pool size, click Automatic.
  8. Enter the percentage of vSnap server reserve that you require. This reserve is the percentage of the vSnap server storage that is reserved for usage, restore operations, and for any reuse.
  9. Open IBM Spectrum Protect Plus, and navigate to System Configuration > Global Preferences. Input the global preferences percentages as shown in the Sizer Tool. Use these percentages to set the following options:
    • Target free space error (percentage)
    • Target free space warning (percentage)
  10. Review the results of the Sizer for your primary storage. Save the Sizer, but leave it open for inputting settings that are required for secondary storage.

The Sizer Tool spreadsheet helps you to calculate the sizing information for primary storage.

You saved a copy of the Sizer sizing spreadsheet. If capacity requirements change, you can update the spreadsheet accordingly.

You also have details about the required number and size of the vSnap servers and, optionally, the number of required VMware vStorage API for Data Protection proxies.

You have details about an eight-year view of growth based on your input into the spreadsheet. You set global preferences for triggering warning and errors from the vSnap when it reaches a specified threshold based on percentage usage.
Size the capacity that is required for the secondary storage in your environment.

Use the Sizer to size the secondary storage by following these steps. Refer to Chapter 5 of the Blueprints.

  1. Download the sizing spreadsheet from the Blueprints page and enable macros. Save a copy of the Sizer sheet to your local drive for secondary storage.
  2. If there are any values, reset the Sizer Tool spreadsheet by clicking Click to reset.
  3. Complete the Start Here sheet by specifying your choices for global options for the secondary storage.
  4. Go to the Results tab of the primary storage Sizer Tool spreadsheet you previously saved. Copy the results that are listed in the Replication workload table and enter the values into the Optional Replication Input Workload table on the Start Here tab of the secondary storage Sizer Tool spreadsheet.
  5. If you plan to protect application data, complete the application tabs. For example, you can specify options for copying data to object storage and replication policies.
  6. Review the sizing results for your secondary storage. Save and close both Sizer Tool spreadsheets.
You have the sizing for the capacity for the secondary storage for your IBM Spectrum Protect Plus environment.

You saved a copy of the Sizer for the secondary storage in your environment. If anything changes, you can alter the Sizer and make changes as required.

You also have details about the vSnap server quantity for each year, the VADP proxy quantity, and the size of each vSnap server.

You have details of an eight-year view of growth based on your inputs into the sizer. You set global preferences for triggering warning and errors from the vSnap when it reaches a percentage of usage.
Install or upgrade IBM Spectrum Protect Plus by using the ISO image for the version that you require. If you update the system environment, a new kernel is installed, and a restart is required.

Install IBM Spectrum Protect Plus, follow the instructions in Installing IBM Spectrum Protect Plus as a VMware virtual appliance or Installing IBM Spectrum Protect Plus as a Hyper-V virtual appliance.

IBM Spectrum Protect Plus is installed.
Install or upgrade the vSnap server by using the ISO image for the version that you require. If you are using data deduplication, the vSnap server restart can take up to 15 minutes. Install the vSnap server, follow the instructions in Installing a physical vSnap server. If you are installing a virtual vSnap server, follow the instructions in Installing a virtual vSnap server in a Hyper-V environment. The vSnap server is installed. To verify that the vSnap server is installed, run the vsnap show command.
Build the vSnap server with capacity that you derived from sizing by using the Blueprints and the Sizing Tool.
  1. Create volumes and map vSnap devices.
  2. Map volumes to VM cluster.
  3. Refer to the steps for setting up a virtual or physical vSnap server in the IBM Spectrum Protect Plus Blueprints.
The vSnap server is built.
Add log space. Create a Linux® Multiple Device driver with three partitions to store the vSnap server storage cache, cloud cache, and log files. For the cloud cache, the capacity is set at 128 GB by default. If you plan to copy data to the cloud, you must increase the capacity. For physical vSnap servers copy data to cloud storage, you must create the /opt/vsnap-data file system with the required capacity.

For more information about this step, see Configuring a physical vSnap server using storage software provided RAID, and Chapter 7 Configuring Cloud Object Storage in the IBM Spectrum Protect Plus Blueprints.

You have set up log space for your virtual or physical vSnap servers.
Table 2. IBM Spectrum Protect Plus installed as a set of OpenShift containers
Story Procedure Expected outcome
Prepare for installation. See the container requirements in technote 304861. You are ready to install IBM Spectrum Protect Plus.
Install or upgrade IBM Spectrum Protect Plus by using one of the following methods:
  • Install the product from an online environment.
  • Download the product package and install the product in an airgap environment.

Install IBM Spectrum Protect Plus, follow the instructions in Installing IBM Spectrum Protect Plus on Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform.

IBM Spectrum Protect Plus is installed.
Install or upgrade the vSnap server by using the ISO image for the version that you require. If you are using data deduplication, the vSnap server restart can take up to 15 minutes. Install the vSnap server, follow the instructions in Installing a physical vSnap server. If you are installing a virtual vSnap server, follow the instructions in Installing a virtual vSnap server in a Hyper-V environment. The vSnap server is installed. To verify that the vSnap server is installed, run the vsnap show command.
Table 3. IBM Spectrum Protect Plus installed as a virtual appliance or as a set of OpenShift containers
Story Procedure Expected outcome
Complete post installation tasks.

After you install IBM Spectrum Protect Plus, complete post-installation configuration tasks before you complete system management tasks.

For more information and steps, see Post installation tasks.
You are ready to complete system management tasks to configure your IBM Spectrum Protect Plus environment.
Register the vSnap server. Register the vSnap server. For more information and steps, see Registering a vSnap server as a backup storage provider. The vSnap server is registered and added to IBM Spectrum Protect Plus.
Initialize the vSnap server. After you install or upgrade IBM Spectrum Protect Plus, and added vSnap servers, initialize the vSnap servers. For information and steps, see Completing a simple initialization. Depending on your choice, the vSnap server is initialized with or without encryption.
Configure the vSnap server. Configure vSnap server storage options such as adding replication partners, see Configuring backup storage options. If you configured the data replication feature, replication partners are set up.
(Optional) Configure the vSnap server as a VADP proxy. If you are using a VADP proxy to optimize data movement to and from the vSnap server, you must register the vSnap server as a VADP proxy. For more instructions, see Registering a VADP proxy on a vSnap server. The vSnap server is configured as a VADP proxy.
Set up the VMware environment that includes creating a vCenter, and registering a hypervisor.

To protect VMware data, you must first set up a vCenter Server. For instructions, see Backing up and restoring VMware data. Ensure that the required vCenter Server privileges are enabled. For more information about the required privileges, see Virtual machine privileges.

A vCenter is set up with the required permissions so that you can start to protect VMware data.
Add users.

Add the users who will be required to use IBM Spectrum Protect Plus. For more information, see Creating a user account for an individual user by using the Add User form on the page.

The users are added and granted permissions to operate IBM Spectrum Protect Plus.
Create a service level agreement (SLA) policy.

Set up an SLA policy or policies for your IBM Spectrum Protect Plus workloads. For more information about SLA policies, see Managing SLA policies for backup operations.

The SLA policies for your IBM Spectrum Protect Plus workloads are set up and you are ready to run backup jobs.
Update global preferences.

Administrators can edit the global preferences for all operations such as deduplication or encryption. For more information about global preferences, see Configuring global preferences.

If global preferences are set, they apply to the entire IBM Spectrum Protect Plus environment.

Video library

To learn more about the blueprints and other product features, see the IBM Spectrum Protect Plus video library .