Restoring container data

You can restore a persistent volume from a snapshot backup or a copy backup. A snapshot restore operation is generally the faster method for restoring a persistent volume.

1. To show the restore points that are available for a PVC, query all the backups for the PVC by running the following command:

   kubectl describe BaaSReq pvc_name -n namespace

2. In the status output that is displayed, identify the time stamp of the source snapshot or copy backup that you want to restore. The time stamps are shown in the Status section of the output before the type of backup.

   For example, the following output shows the time stamps for different types of backups:

   Status:
    Timestamp:  2019-05-30 13:27:21
    Type:       FAST
    Timestamp:  2019-05-30 13:32:21
    Type:       COPY
    Timestamp:  2019-06-11 18:59:46
    Type:       FAST-ONDEMAND

   where:

   FAST

   Denotes the backup type for a snapshot backup that is taken during a scheduled backup operation.

   COPY

   Denotes the backup type for a copy backup that is stored on an IBM Spectrum Protect Plus vSnap server.

   FAST-ONDEMAND

   Denotes the backup type for an on-demand snapshot backup.

3. Create a YAML file for the restore request that contains the following properties. Insert the time stamp for the source snapshot in the restorepoint parameter.

   #------------------------
   # Filename: filename.yaml
   #------------------------
   
   apiVersion: "baas.io/v1alpha1"
   kind: BaaSReq
   
   metadata:
     name: name_of_restore_request
     namespace: namespace
   spec:
     requesttype: restore
     pvcname: pvc_name
     targetvolume: target_volume_for_restore
     storageclass: storage_class_of_target_volume
     restorepoint: timestamp_of_backup
     restoretype: fast | copy | fast-ondemand

   where:

   filename

   The name of the YAML configuration file.

   name_of_restore_request

   The name of the request for the restore job. The name must be unique, and must not be the same as the name of the PVC.

   A new restore request must be created for each subsequent restore of the same PVC. In other words, if you want to restore a PVC again, create a new request and specify a different request name (name_of_request) in the YAML file.

   namespace

   The namespace for the request.

   pvc_name

   The name of the PVC that you want to restore.

   target_volume_for_restore

   The name of the PVC that you want to restore the volume to.

   For fast restores, the volume is always restored to a new PVC. In this case, provide the name of the new PVC.

   For copy restores, you can restore the volume to the original or new PVC. If you are restoring a copy backup to a new persistent volume, the PVC for the new volume is automatically created when you restore the copy backup. Except for the original location, the restore fails if you specify a PVC that already exists.

   storage_class_of_target_volume

   The storage class that is defined for the target volume.

   For fast restore operations, the storage class is ignored. The storage class of the original PVC is used.

   For copy restore operations, you can specify a storage class that is the same as the original PVC or specify a different storage class. If you do not specify the storage class, the storage class of the original PVC is used.

   If you specify a storage class but do not specify the restore type with the restoretype parameter, a copy restore is performed.

   timestamp_of_backup

   The time stamp of the source snapshot or copy backup that you want to restore from. The time stamp is in Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) format.

   If you do not specify a time stamp, the most recent snapshot or copy backup is restored.

   restoretype: fast | copy | fast-ondemand

   The type of restore operation to use.

   fast

   Restores a volume from a snapshot backup that was created as part of a scheduled backup.

   copy

   Restores a volume from a copy backup.

   fast-ondemand

   Restores a volume from an on-demand snapshot backup.

   This parameter is optional. If you do not specify a restore type, the type of restore is determined automatically. If a snapshot exists at the specified time stamp, a fast restore is run to restore the snapshot. If only a copy backup is available at the specified time, a copy restore is run to restore the copy backup.

4. Start the restore request by entering the following command on the command line:

   kubectl create -f filename.yaml

   where filename is the name of the YAML configuration file.

kubectl delete baasreq name_of_restore_request -n namespace