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Hello,

We have three ESXi servers connected to our Nimble storage using a Brocade Fibre Channel switch, each ESXi server connects to Nimble storage with individual zone as: ESXi1_Nimble, ESXi2_Nimble, ESXi3_Nimbe.

A few months after this configuration was done, we added a physical server for Veeam B&R v12 as backup server and repository, which is also a backup proxy server. This is connected to the same FC switch and I created zone between the Veeam B&R server and the Nimble storage as:  VeeamBR_Nimble

And most recently, we added a HPE tape library to this mix for GFS tape backups. Added the library to the FC switch and created a zone between VeeamBR_HPETapeDrive. 


Each night, the Veeam B&R server runs backup jobs then stores into its local repository (D: drive). Then it runs backup to tape, which writes from the Veeam B&R backup repository into tape drive. I have already configured "Direct storage access" while configuring Backup proxy's Transport mode. 

The backup jobs do not use the FC switch path, but uses 1Gbps pnbd] network traffic as evident with this type of message on completed backup jobs: "Using backup proxy VMware Backup Proxy for disk Hard disk 1 nbd]"

As we can tell from my FC zoning, there is no zone that connects Veeam B&R server and each ESXi server. Should I create zones between each ESXi and Veeam B&R as ESXi1_VeeamBR, ESXi2_VeeamBR, ESXi3_VeeamBR for the backups to utilize the FC switch? 

And what are your thoughts on creating zones between the ESXi servers and the HPETapeDrive?

Thank you in advance for your help here. 

If you have zoned the FC volumes (all 3) to the Veeam BR server then you need to check Disk Management to see if these are present - Offline & NOT Mounted but showing.  This is the way Veeam works to do direct SAN backups.  See this section of the help - Direct SAN Access - User Guide for VMware vSphere (veeam.com)

If the zone VeeamBR_Nimble contains the datastores then you should see them in the OS.  If that is just a zone with no datastores presented on the Nimble to it, then it will use NBD mode.

Hi Chris,

Thank you for your comment.

VeeamBR_Nimble contains the datastores. However, I do not see them in Veeam B&R server’s Disk Management. They do not show with Automatic detection or even after choosing Manual selection and adding datastores manually in Veeam’s VMware Proxy properties.

Hi Chris,

Thank you for your comment.

VeeamBR_Nimble contains the datastores. However, I do not see them in Veeam B&R server’s Disk Management. They do not show with Automatic detection or even after choosing Manual selection and adding datastores manually in Veeam’s VMware Proxy properties.

Ok so that is why NBD is being used. The proxy server cannot see the datastores in the OS.  Until that is resolved you won't be able to use Direct SAN.  If you are using Nimble they have Nimble Connection Manager which I remember using but that was with iSCSI not FC.

Did you present the datastores to the backup server on the Nimble? Creating zones between both isn't enough to access the storage.

And like Chris said, as soon as the backup server sees the datastores in disk management, don't touch them our set them online, or else they'll be destroyed.

What Veeam license do you have? Maybe storage snapshots could be an alternative.

Regarding tape access. Only the backup server needs FC access to the library, not the ESXi hosts.

I added the Nimble datastores into Veeam Storage Infrastructure. But I still do not see the datastores in disk management of the backup server/proxy server.

I got the following message during Storage discovery however:

No available LUNs supported for backup from storage snapshots are detected on storage Nimble-server using Fibre Channel adapter <adapter WWN> from proxy VMware Backup Proxy.
 

We are running Veeam version 12: Enterprise Plus license. 

I added the Nimble datastores into Veeam Storage Infrastructure. But I still do not see the datastores in disk management of the backup server/proxy server.

I got the following message during Storage discovery however:

No available LUNs supported for backup from storage snapshots are detected on storage Nimble-server using Fibre Channel adapter <adapter WWN> from proxy VMware Backup Proxy.
 

We are running Veeam version 12: Enterprise Plus license. 

Until you have the LUNs showing in Disk Mangement (not touched) then backup from storage will not work.  Check the Nimble Connection Manager software and see if that helps if they still have it.  I used that but it was for iSCSI datastores not FC.

You can also check the Proxy properties and see if the LUNs show for it to see and if not then again, they need to show in the OS, but nothing done to them just offline but there.

Is there a documentation on presenting the Nimble datastores to the backup server/Proxy server?

Is there a documentation on presenting the Nimble datastores to the backup server/Proxy server?

Yes see these sites.

https://www.veeam.com/blog/nimble-storage-configuration-recovery.html

https://helpcenter.veeam.com/docs/backup/vsphere/nimble_add.html?ver=120

https://www.veeam.com/wp-nimble-storage-deployment-guide.html

 

Thank you for the links.

I have installed HPE Storage Setup Manager (formerly NCM I believe) on Veeam B&R/Proxy server, and registered our Nimble storage server but still unable to see the Nimble volumes. 

Do I need to add Veeam B&R/Proxy server’s HBAs into initiator groups in the Nimble server? I thought adding Nimble storage to Veeam’s Storage Infrastructure would take care of this. 

Thank you for the links.

I have installed HPE Storage Setup Manager (formerly NCM I believe) on Veeam B&R/Proxy server, and registered our Nimble storage server but still unable to see the Nimble volumes. 

Do I need to add Veeam B&R/Proxy server’s HBAs into initiator groups in the Nimble server? I thought adding Nimble storage to Veeam’s Storage Infrastructure would take care of this. 

Yes, you need to have the HBAs for the VBR/Proxy servers in the initiator groups for Nimble otherwise it won’t see them.  That might be the issue for you to get this configured.

You need to create a host for the backup server with its WWNs on the Nimble. If zoning was setup properly, the Nimble should already see the WWNs.

With storage integration you'll only see the snapshoted datastores in disk managment while a backup job is running. Veeam will mount and dismount them automatically.

If would like to use direct SAN without storage snapshots, then you would have to present each volume/datastore from the Nimble.

Unfortunately I don't have access to a Nimble to guide you through the menus.

Chris, regnor: Thank you very much for your help on this topic. I think I have much clearer idea now. The zoning is already setup properly in the Brocade FC switch. An Initiator Group for Veeam B&R/Proxy server in the Nimble server’s Manage → Data Access menu needs to be added then Nimble’s datastores/volumes should present themselves to the Veeam B&R/Proxy server.

 

Chris, regnor: Thank you very much for your help on this topic. I think I have much clearer idea now. The zoning is already setup properly in the Brocade FC switch. An Initiator Group for Veeam B&R/Proxy server in the Nimble server’s Manage → Data Access menu needs to be added then Nimble’s datastores/volumes should present themselves to the Veeam B&R/Proxy server.

 

Yes that is correct. Let us know how it goes. 👍

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