Veritas NetBackup™ Virtual Appliance Getting Started Guide

To complete the initial configuration of a NetBackup Virtual Appliance

1. After you have deployed a new virtual appliance, open a console session from the VMware vSphere Client to log on to the NetBackup Virtual Appliance Shell Menu.

   The logon is admin, and the default password is P@ssw0rd.

   Note:

   You cannot log in to the shell until the automatic initial configuration is complete. Wait for about 20-30 minutes after deployment before you attempt to log in.

2. The first time you log in, you are prompted to change the default passwords.

   Change each user account password as prompted.

   Review the following password policy before setting a new password:

   • Passwords must contain at least eight characters.

   • Passwords must contain at least one lowercase letter (a-z) and one number (0-9).

   • Dictionary words are considered weak passwords and are not accepted.

   • The last seven passwords cannot be reused and the new password cannot be similar to previous passwords.

   Note:

   If you enter five consecutive invalid passwords for any user account, the appliance aborts the shell session. You must log back in and try again.

   Note:

   If you enable the STIG feature after completing the initial configuration, you may be prompted to change the new passwords you entered here to meet the requirements of the STIG password policy.

3. Use the following command to verify that the automatic configuration completed successfully:

   Main > Appliance > Status

   The command output should contain a message similar to the following:

   Appliance Version is 4.0.
   
   Appliance is configured as master appliance.
   

   If the output does not show that the appliance is configured as a master appliance, you need to redeploy the appliance or perform other troubleshooting steps to fix the issue before you proceed to the next step. See Troubleshooting NetBackup Virtual Appliance initial deployment issues.

4. Use the following command to change the nbasecadmin account password from the known default password (P@ssw0rd):

   Main > Settings > Password nbasecadmin

   Note:

   You cannot access the NetBackup web UI until you have changed the nbasecadmin user password.

5. Use the following command to set the time zone:

   Main > Network > TimeZone Set

   Select the appropriate time zone from the displayed list.

6. Use the following command to add a Network Time Protocol (NTP) server:

   Main > Network > NTPServer Add <Server>

   Where <Server> is the name of the NTPServer.

7. Add a permanent license key before the evaluation key expires with the following command:

   Main > Manage > License > Add

   You can locate your permanent license key from the Veritas Entitlement Management System (VEMS). To access VEMS, click Licensing on the Veritas Support website.

   Warning:

   If the correct license key is not installed, the appliance services stop functioning after the evaluation key expires. Make sure that the NetBackup license you add includes support for NetBackup Virtual Appliance.

   See Managing license keys on the NetBackup Virtual Appliance.

8. (Optional)

   If you want to use an external Certificate Authority (CA) for communication between the appliance and your other NetBackup hosts, run the following command:

   Main > Settings > NetBackup CertificateUsage Enable ECA

9. (Optional)

   If you plan to connect this combined master and media server to another media server in a NAT network, perform the following tasks:

   • Enable the NetBackup DNAT feature on this combined master and media server as follows:

     Main > Settings > NetBackup DNAT Enable

   • Add the name of the other media server to the NetBackup Servers list on this combined master and media server as follows:

     Main > Settings > NetBackup NATServers Add

10. (Optional)

    If you deployed a product file with an initial storage capacity of .5 TB and want to add storage up to a total of 16 TB, use the following steps to add additional disks:

    • Use the VMware vSphere Client to create new virtual disks with sizes that are multiples of 0.5 TB, or 512 GB.

    • From the NetBackup Virtual Appliance Shell Menu, run the following command:

      Main > Manage > Storage > Scan

      This command refreshes the storage disks and device information to locate available disks.

    • Run the following command:

      Main > Manage > Storage > Add

      This command launches a wizard that displays the available disks. Follow the prompts to add the disks. To add multiple disks at one time, use a comma-separated list.

11. Log on to the appliance from the NetBackup Administration Console and activate the NetBackup catalog backup policy.

    By default, the appliance creates an inactive backup policy that uses a Storage Lifecycle Policy (SLP) to protect the NetBackup catalog. The SLP backs up the data to AdvancedDisk and then duplicates it to MSDP. You are then able to use Auto Image Replication to save your catalog backup off site. Veritas recommends that you use this replication-based strategy for disaster recovery (DR) due to the combined master and media server role of the appliance.

    To activate the policy, navigate to the NetBackup Management > Policies tab in the Administration Console, right-click on the nbu-catalog policy, and select Activate.

    Note:

    You must set an encryption passphrase for the disaster recovery package for the catalog to be successful. Catalog backups continue to fail until the passphrase is set.

    For more information about the security requirements for disaster recovery, see the NetBackup Security and Encryption Guide.

    If you plan to use AdvancdDisk to back up your clients, note that the AdvancedDisk does not support Auto Image Replication. If you want to save the data off site, create an SLP to duplicate the backup data on AdvancedDisk to MSDP. You are then able to use Auto Image Replication to transfer the data off site.

12. If you want to configure the appliance for MSDP cloud, log in to the NetBackup web UI as the nbasecadmin user and configure the MSDP cloud storage as follows:

    • Create a disk pool.

    • Create a storage unit.

      For details, see the NetBackup Web UI Administrator's Guide.