About the Media Server Deduplication (MSDP) node cloud tier
Starting with NetBackup 8.3, an MSDP server is able to directly write deduplicated data to cloud object storage. This function is similar the Cloud Catalyst feature that was introduced in NetBackup 8.2, but it no longer requires a dedicated server. The cloud-tiering feature automatically uses the local block storage pool as its write-cache. This setup creates performance and efficiency improvements and prevents a network hop or requiring a dedicated cache when the cloud object storage is written to. To simplify deployment, MSDP cloud tiering enables data management in multiple buckets, storage tiers, and cloud providers from a single node.
Some of the key attributes of the MSDP cloud-tiering feature in NetBackup 8.3 include:
Fewer servers required
Increased performance
Multi-bucket support
Easy web UI configuration
API-based deployment
Self-descriptive storage
Requirements for MSDP cloud tier:
Hardware requirements for block storage only MSDP pool - No change from NetBackup 8.2 MSDP guidance. Max capacity is 960TB for the NetBackup Appliance, and 250TB for BYO MSDP.
Hardware requirements for object storage only pool - No change from NetBackup 8.2 Cloud Catalyst guidance with 1PB max capacity and 196GB of memory except for disk requirements. The default is 1 TB of local storage per cloud LSU, and the overall file system utilization should not exceed 90% full.
Hardware requirements for mixed object and block storage - Similar hardware requirements as local storage only pool. Total max capacity is 1.2 PB.
Operating system - Cloud Logical Storage Units (LSUs) can be configured on the storage servers running on Red Hat Linux Enterprise or CentOS platforms. No platform limitations for clients and load-balancing servers.
Features of the MSDP cloud tier:
One MSDP storage server can be configured to support multiple storage targets, including one local storage target and zero or more cloud storage targets. You can move data to local and to multiple cloud targets simultaneously.
The cloud targets can be from the same or from different providers, either public, or private. For example, AWS, Azure, and HCP. These cloud targets can be added on demand after the MSDP server is configured and active.
Multiple cloud targets can coexist in a single cloud bucket or multiple buckets that are distributed in a single or from different cloud providers.
Based on the OpenStorage Technology (OST), the new architecture uses multiple LSUs to manage and move data. These LSUs can be customized independently to meet different customer requirements. For example, as pure local target (same as MSDP in NetBackup 8.2 or earlier), or local target plus one or more cloud targets.
After upgrading and or installing NetBackup 8.3 and configuring MSDP, cloud tiering can be done by performing the following procedure in the web UI.
To configure the MSDP node cloud tier
- On the left, click Storage, click the Disk pools tab, and then click Add.
- In Disk pool options, click Change to select a storage server.
Enter the Disk pool name.
If Limit I/O streams is left cleared, the default value is Unlimited and may cause performance issues.
After all required information is added, click Next.
- In Volumes, use the Volume drop down to select a volume or add a new volume. Provide a unique volume name that gives adequate description of the volume.
In the Cloud storage provider section, select the cloud provider name from the drop-down list.
In the Region section, select the appropriate region.
Enter the credentials to complete the setup. You can configure additional options here such as adding a proxy server.
In the Select cloud bucket section, you can create a cloud bucket by clicking Add or select a predefined bucket from the list. If the cloud credentials in use do not have the permissions to list buckets, then manually enter a predefined bucket name.
If encryption is needed, select the data encryption option for data compression and encryption. MSDP can use KMS encryption which encrypts the data using a managed key. Using KMS requires that a KMS server has previously been configured.
Enter all required information based on the selection and click Next.
- In Replication, click Add to add replication targets to the disk pool.
This step lets you select a trusted master server or add a trusted master server. You can add a trusted master server that supports NetBackup Certificate Authority (NBCA), ECA, and ECA together with NBCA.
Replication is supported only on MSDP.
Review all the information that is entered for the replication targets and then click Next.
- On the Review page, verify that all settings and information are correct. Click Finish.
The disk pool creation and replication configuration continue in the background if you close the window. If there is an issue with validating the credentials and configuration of the replication, you can use the Change option to adjust any settings.
- Click Add storage unit at the top of the screen.
- Select Media Server Deduplication Pool (MSDP) from the list and click Start.
- In Basic properties, enter the Name of the MSDP storage unit and click Next.
- In Disk pool, select the disk pool that was created and then click Next.
- In the Media server tab, use the default selection of Allow NetBackup to automatically selectand then click Next.
- Review the setup of the storage unit and then click Save.