vCenter Server Appliance - Backup/Restore Recommendations

Image-Based Backup and Restore ^{[Not Recommended]}

Considerations and Limitations

Protecting the vCenter Server Appliance (VCSA) using Veeam Backup & Replication is no longer recommended. Instead, Veeam advises customers to utilize the native file-based backup and restore features. This method provides both the simplest and most reliable way to restore the VCSA.

In the past, the need to protect the vCenter outweighed the limitations associated with image-based backups. However, with the advancements in native file-based backups and the simplified VCSA restore process, the necessity for image-based backups has diminished. Although it's technically possible to back up the VCSA using Veeam Backup & Replication, the potential complications make it less appealing.

• Post-Restore VCSA Repair: Image-based backup software, like Veeam Backup & Replication, cannot create a transactionally consistent backup of the VCSA. Consequently, all restore points are only crash-consistent. After restoring the VCSA, it will behave as if it reboot after a hard crash, leaving tasks in an inconsistent state that may require extensive work with VMware Support to resolve.
• Post-Restore Environment State: When restoring the VCSA from an image-based backup, any differences that occurred between when the backup was created and when the restore was performed will not be known by the restored VCSA and may require extensive work with VMware Support to reconcile.
• Impact of VCSA Backup: Backing up the VCSA while backup jobs for other VMs are occurring can increase the likelihood of causing those other jobs to fail. This is due to the impact of snapshot creation and removal stun on the VCSA.
• VMware vSphere User Guide: Considerations and Limitations for Image-Based Backup and Restore