Blogs and Podcasts

Hi allDuring the last physical event of Veeam VUG BeLux at the end of 2023 I gave a session about Veeam Surebackup.What it is, why it is needed and how it should be implemented and being used.In this post I will give a summary about the content of that session so everyone can enjoy the content 😁 What is surebackup ?Automated or manual mechanismTo verify the recoverability of the backupsCan be used for :For VMs on a Vmware or Hyper-V environment Since V12 : also possible for agent backups (physical devices or cloud devices)Possible for :Regular backups Backups from storage snapshots Regular replica’s (only VMware) Why do we need surebackup ?To be sure of the recoverability of our backupsTo apply to the 3-2-1-1-0 rule - to apply the 0 of the golden backup rule Requirements : License :Perpetual socket-based license : at least an Enterprise license Veeam Universal License (VUL) SAN licenses in case of storage snapshots (Vmware only) Infrastructure :The necessary memory The necessary compu

Hi there,In this article, I’m going to look at why, as the title says, it’s now crucial to give your infrastructure object storage for writing backups.To do this, though, we need to look at a few things. I’m going to run through them now. Why Enterprise Backups Are Becoming More and More Important In recent years, the amount of data being generated has increased a lot. Companies now need to manage information that is critical to their daily operations. At the same time, with this growth, there are also a variety of risks associated with different situations, such as:Cybersecurity: Ransomware and data breaches are happening more often and are getting more sophisticated.Regulations like GDPR and NIS2 require us to keep data safe and secure.Business Continuity: Losing data can cause a lot of problems for a company. It can damage their reputation, cause financial losses, and disrupt their operations. The answer is on-premises object storage.On-prem object storage is a pretty cool solution

Hi Veeam communityThe calculator team just posted the latest build of the Veeam Calculators. You can read all about the new feature additions here: Calculators 1.2 released! | Veeam Community Resource Hub.I want to take a second to spotlight the addition of the simple Veeam Data Cloud Vault calculator. The calculators have been able to do Vault calculations for about the last 6 months or so, but in this release, and following the release of VDC Vault 2.0, we wanted to pare down the interface and make something really easy to use. We just ask the questions 'how much and for how long?'. From there you'll be given an estimate on your VDC Vault required capacity. Simple.  A couple of notes:'Source Data' refers to the...well...source. That is to say, an estimate of how much is in your datacenter and within scope. The maths behind data reduction, the magic of Veeam datamovers, repo types...all that stuff is applied but hidden away. Advanced mode opens up some additional variables if needed.

Backups with a Twist: Adding Emoji Spice to Your Job NamesBackups are serious business. They’re the safety net that saves us from a world of pain when the data hits the fan. But let’s face it—backup job names are often duller than an accountant’s Christmas party. “BackupJob01” or “DailyIncremental” might get the job done, but they won’t win any awards for creativity. Enter emojis: the little digital sprinkles that can transform a backup job name from a snooze-fest into a masterpiece of expression. 🎉Why Add Emojis to Backup Job Names? Because You Can: Many modern backup platforms now support Unicode, which means emojis are fair game! It’s like discovering that your boring sandwich can be a gourmet burger with the right toppings. Instant Recognition: Instead of trying to remember if “Backup_Week1” is for your critical systems or just a test run, a 🌐 or 💡 in the name makes it instantly clear. Fun Factor: Who says IT can’t have a little whimsy? Let your backups reflect your mood, yo

With the release of Veeam Data Platform 12.3 the Nutanix hypervisor is now displayed in the installation splash screen see figure 1 below. In addition some highly requested features have been added to this release see the screenshots below. Figure 1Enabling Nutanix Guest Tools is now an option in the backup job setup screen in the VBN AHV appliance see figure 2. The Nutanix Guest Tools setting will also be available in the VBR console once the job is created in the VBN AHV appliance. It will appear in the “Advanced Settings” Nutanix AHV tab see figure 3 below. Figure 3You will see a new guest processing settings screen on the VBN AHV appliance. It will direct you to set it up in the VBR console for the job see figure 4 below. Figure 4 The application aware processing and guest indexing is now available in “experimental support”. You can still call Veeam support if any issues arise see figure 5. Figure 5Once job changes are made in figure 5. You will see a synchronized job settings on t

I’ve created a migration guide for moving from Veeam Backup for Microsoft 365 version 7 to version 8.  As you know, version 8 introduces a lot of new changes in the technology and architecture - like postgres database, centralized cache, and proxy pools.  This document will walk through the process of upgrading from v7 to v8, and migrating standalone proxies into the new proxy pools.  Be sure to take care around a “next next next” install, as now with Postgres and NATS, that’s additional workload on the VB365 controller.  It’s recommended to separate out the DB server from the VB365 server outside of the smaller deployments.

Last week Veeam released its newest Veeam Data Platform version – 12.3. Though I've only recently upgraded, after reviewing their What's New document and perusing around the Console a bit, I thought I would take some time to share with the Community some hidden gems in this newest VDP release.Some of us in the Community were already aware of a “big news” feature to be released “soon”, which was spoken about at VeeamON in Ft. Lauderdale back in June – Entra ID Backup. This feature did indeed make it as part of the v12.3 release…no need to wait for v13, slated for sometime in 2025 Q1 (hopefully). But, there are quite a few other features in this release you may not be aware of. So I thought I'd do another follow-up to my previous two Hidden Features posts – v12 Hidden Features and v12.1 Hidden Features. Let's dive right in! Cyber Resiliency EnhancementsThe main one here is what I’m most anxious to test drive – Veeam Threat Hunter. This new feature may not be a "hidden" one, but if what V

About 2 years ago I decided to try out Nutanix and learn a little about how it worked along with Veeam. Like most people this started with a Google search and several blog posts of others who have deployed Nutanix CE in their home labs, mostly nesting inside their VMware environments to save on necessary hardware. So, why not. I downloaded CE, carved out a VM on my VMware host, went through the steps and before long I had a single node cluster running. I setup a couple small VMs on it, added to my Veeam server, setup backups and backup copy jobs, and was off and running. Over time I left it running and didn’t really think much about it. Occasionally, someone would ask about Veeam capabilities with Nutanix and Cloud Connect, or something else, and I could show them, or test out what they wanted to try, but otherwise just left it running. Not too long ago, Nutanix released CE 2.0, however I waited, no rush to change what was working. Then there was the IT crash heard around the world .

Back at the end of July I was able to finally get my Object First OOTBI box taken to one of our datacenters to have it racked, cabled and configured for use.  I am doing a blog series on this and here is the first one.https://just-virtualization.tech/2024/08/13/object-first-ootbi-installation-configuration/  Object First (OOTBI) – Installation & Configuration It has been a couple of weeks now since I visited our datacenter and was able to get my Object First (OOTBI) appliance racked, cabled and configured. It was a long debate on whether I would bring the device up in my home office and risk a large power bill or take it to one of the datacenters locally for the company ThinkOn that I work for. The choice was clear due to the appliance being a SuperMicro box and probably wanting some good power – DC it is!On July 25th I packed up OOTBI and took him to our Cambridge DC.OOTBI packed up heading to the DatacenterOnce I arrived and got the box transported to the racks, the installation

How-to-video series is designed to help users to get started with Veeam products and better understand how to use them most effectively when it comes to achieving comprehensive modern data protection.Want to know what backup type do you need? How to launch a specific Veeam function or make a certain type of restore? These 5 to 15-minute videos will give you a brief technical overview, including best practices on modernizing backup, cloud migration, and data security.Get access to these training videos anytime from anywhere. Start learning today! Veeam YouTube how-to-videos playlist Veeam.com How-to-Videos Playlist - https://www.veeam.com/how-to-videos.htmlNote: If you have a request for a how-to-video, please drop a comment below.

This blog post on deploying PostgreSQL 16 on Ubuntu 24.04 LTS for Veeam Backup for Microsoft 365 version 8 provides a detailed guide on setting up PostgreSQL 16 to support Veeam Backup. It covers the installation process, configuration steps, and optimization techniques to ensure efficient performance. The post emphasizes the importance of using the latest PostgreSQL version to take advantage of new features and improvements, and it includes practical tips for managing and maintaining the database in a production environment.https://koolaid.info/postgresql-16-on-ubuntu-24-04-lts-for-vb365-v8/

 Resilient Data Protection using Scality ARTESCA and Veeam Backup & Replication Welcome to the 2nd and final blog co-authored with Pierre Gueant, Director of Solution Partners at Scality.  In this blog we will discuss how Scality’s ARTESCA product can provide you the confidence that your backup data is protected and available when you need it.The object storage journey for Veeam Backup & Replication (VBR) really took off when VBR v9.5.4 was released in early 2019.  It was in VBR v9.5.4 that we saw the addition of the Capacity Tier to the already proven Scale-out Backup Repository (SOBR) which was introduced in version 9.0 towards the end of 2015.  What is a SOBR?The SOBR revolutionised the use of file based backup repositories.  A SOBR aggregates multiple repositories, called extents, into a single logical repository.  It is the ability to add extents that enables the SOBR to grow and expand to meet your backup workload demands.A SOBR typically consists of two tiers.  The Perfo

 Hello everyone,I want to share the tests performed on Beta 12.1.0.1944. From the installation of the PostgreSQL Database to VBR12.1, with a focus on the new Security & Compliance features introduced in this release. This version is particularly interesting for the introduction of new features dedicated to the security of the backup infrastructure and the related data protection.Planning and Preparation - User Guide for VMware vSphere (veeam.com) Prepare the virtual machine with requirements according to the needs of your infrastructure.Vmware Side:NEVER use a vmdk disk as a backup repository in production.Add new Disk ( vmdk for only test) for dedicate d repository NVMe Controller.VMware NVMe ConceptsFormat disk REFS 64kCheck System requirementsSystem Requirements - User Guide for VMware vSphere (veeam.com)Install from your template golden Image Windows Install Vmware Tools & Windows CU  last versionInstall & configure PostgreSQLDownload last version PostgreSQL 15.4 setup 

Hi everyoneSome days ago I posted this entry:This is a follow up, or part 2.I hope you like it. Expanding our Object First OOTBI Cluster – adding nodes and VBR space We will add an extra node to the «Single Node Cluster» to become a multi-node one.The steps are straightforward, let’s see them via screenshots with comments:First of all, we need to deploy the OOTBI VSA which will be added to the cluster,follow the guide from the previous entry, ending after the deployment (don’t create the Cluster again).Select the Option Join To ClusterConfigure your NICThe VSA will check for updatesUpdates found, let´s update itupdating…After the update, you will be pushed to the initial menu, go over it again, and the data (NIC config) will remain, just go forward and continueNTP / NTSOK, now, add your OOTBI CLUSTER IP ADDRESS,The one we used/created in the previous entry, and the objectfirst user password we created.BOOM!Node Added to the clusterNow you see the first two options blurry, and the clust

Reading Time: 4 minutesI have been using Synolgoy Nas’es for several years now. Currently, there are two in the home lab a DS1621+ and a DS923+. Both are used for various tasks, like regular file shares, iSCSI for VMware, Podman, and so on. In this post I’m focusing on the DS923+ and how to back up data to an external backup that is only on when needed.Thanks again to Synology, who have provided me with both systems!The idea is simple; if the system gets affected, an untouched backup medium is needed to restore the data. If it is live replicated, there is a chance the secondary system will get infected as well. See the 3-2-1 rule.There are different ways of creating immutable backups on Synology, which I have written about (here). But I thought, this solution I’m about to show is a quick and relatively cheap way to have your data backed up to an extra drive.It’s really quite simple. You already might have a drive that is large enough to hold your data. You might even have an older raid

This new blog post is on preparing Ubuntu 22.04 for Veeam Backup for Microsoft 365 version 8 proxy use provides a comprehensive guide on setting up an Ubuntu server to function as a proxy for Veeam Backup. It covers the installation of necessary packages, configuration of network settings, and optimization of the system for better performance and security. The post emphasizes the importance of ensuring that the server is properly configured to handle the backup tasks efficiently, including setting up the correct permissions and ensuring that all dependencies are met. To get the full instructions read the full post on koolaid.info at https://koolaid.info/prepare-ubuntu-22-04-for-veeam-backup-for-m365-v8-proxy-use/.

 “This is a beta preview of this upcoming Veeam release, this user interface is not finalized and TBDs, icons, etc. will be to the Veeam standard upon GA.”Back on track after 3 weeks of vacations, playing with a new beta is a good way to get back into the swing of things 😄.1. InstallationI bypass the installation step of the Veeam version 12.3, it’s the same step than currently.  2.  Tenant ConfigurationIn the inventory tab you will notice a new entry “ Azure Entra ID”  First step you have to specify your Tenant ID, is not the Tenant Name .onmicrosoft.com, to help you to find it : https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/entra/fundamentals/how-to-find-tenantOtherwise you will get the following error message during the configuration: You could add an description, currently the region can’t be changed and you could modify the cache repository used only for the audit log backup necessary to keep temporary metadata to track of all objects that have changed between each session.The next step is f

Understanding the ChallengeWhen you're running a hybrid environment using Azure AD Connect to synchronize on-premises Active Directory to the cloud, backing up and restoring Entra ID can become a complex task. The primary concern is the potential for conflicts with AD Sync's delta synchronization process, which can lead to unexpected issues during a restore.Key Considerations and Best PracticesTo mitigate these challenges and ensure a smooth backup and restore process, consider the following:Coordinate with AD Sync: Pause AD Sync: Before initiating a restore, pause AD Sync to prevent conflicts and ensure a clean restore process. Resume AD Sync: Once the restore is complete, resume AD Sync to synchronize any changes that may have occurred during the downtime. Leverage Azure AD Backup Solutions: Veeam Backup for Microsoft Entra ID is a solution developed for protection and disaster recovery tasks for Microsoft Entra ID. Test Restores Regularly: Conduct regular test restores to veri

I am excited to announce the launch of Veeam Data Platform v12.3! This latest version of our data platform introduces powerful enhancements that make achieving data resilience more seamless and efficient than ever before.Data Resilience Made SimpleWith Veeam Data Platform v12.3, we’re delivering a comprehensive solution that seamlessly supports the protection needs of our customers' hybrid estates. This release packs in three key areas of focus:One comprehensive platform for hybrid estates Two new cutting-edge features to safeguard against cyber threats and ensure operational continuity. Three major releases in just 12 months, all filled with enterprise-grade cybersecurity upgrades for our Advanced and Premium editions.What's New in v12.3?Veeam Data Platform v12.3 brings several advanced capabilities to enhance your data resilience strategy:Microsoft Entra ID EnhancementsAccelerated Change Detection: Detect changes faster to ensure faster, more responsive data protection. Simplified Go

Please celebrate with us because we could not do it without the all your efforts in this #awesome #community 💪😎 https://www.linkedin.com/posts/activity-7269423304170455040-pcOl?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop

Introducing Veeam’s Smart Object Storage API Veeam Backup & Replication (VBR) v12 which was launched a month ago, has many great features and new capabilities.  One of my favorite features is the Smart Object Storage API (SOSAPI).  The purpose of this blog is to introduce you to this new and powerful feature.Let’s that off with explaining what the Smart Object Storage API (SOSAPI) is.  It is a new tool which allows Veeam and our on-prem object storage partners to develop tighter integrations between our products.  So, the great part about the SOSAPI is that a customer doesn’t need to do any additional work to get the benefits of this great addition to the Veeam portfolio. However, you do need to select an object storage platform that has the SOSAPI implemented within their product.  When VBR v12 was launched last month, Scality and Object First were the inaugural launch partners for SOSAPI.  Cloudian also released a version of their object storage which was integrated with the Smar

Introduction to Scality ARTESCA’s Veeam Assistant Veeam’s Object Storage Journey:For the past several years I have had the pleasure of working with my friend Pierre Gueant, Director of Solution Partners at Scality.  Our latest collaboration is to create a series of blogs that we will publish together here on Veeam’s Community Resource Hub.  This is the 1st blog in that series and its purpose is to introduce you to Scality’s ARTESCA Veeam Assistant. When Veeam started our “object storage journey” back when Veeam Backup & Replication (VBR) v9.5.4 was released in early 2019, we realized that object storage would become the predominant storage platform for secondary storage. This realization culminated when VBR v12 was released in early 2023. One of the major features in VBR v12 was the ability to directly backup customer data to object storage. With this direct-to-object capability, enterprises can now use cloud and on-premises object storage as their primary backup repository. Object

Managing and filtering Syslog messages can reduce noise and highlight critical events. This blog post explains how the PRI value helps categorize messages by severity, describes syslog filtering, and shows how to use rsyslog in a Docker container to forward selected messages based on a filter.What is the PRI value for, and why does it matter?The Priority (PRI) value combines the facility and severity into a single numeric value. This value helps categorize Syslog messages. Each log message is assigned a Facility Code indicating its source, such as system processes, mail server, etc, and its severity. I could tell you from my memories and more about the origins of the Facility Codes 😉, but plenty of websites on the Internet describe this in detail. Veeam Backup & Replication leverages the user-level facility (Facility Code 1).Next is the severity. The table below shows how different severities map within the user-level facility (not all severities are covered in this table):PRI Val