Create vss enabled snapshot in a windows failover cluster

Hi josegerez

We don't yet support creating app-consistent (VSS) Nutanix based snapshots with iSCSI and volume groups.

Thanks,
Mike

Thanks mmcghee.

So, there's no way to have app-consistent snapshots in a windows cluster built with vms? 😞

Not with Nutanix snapshots that I know of josegerez at least not natively today, but let's explore in more detail.

Could you please describe your application and recovery requirements? In cases where point-in-time (time of snapshot) recovery is required, dependent-write consistent snapshots work just as well if not better IMHO. Nutanix ensures dependent-write consistency by quiescing writes through our stargate process.

VSS style snapshot requirements generally tie into coordinating recovery between a full snapshot and incremental log or differential backups taken asynchronously to the snapshot. Here, VSS is a hard requirement. A common scenario is using a snapshot to recover a SQL database into a loading state (no recovery or standby), and then applying log backups. To get restore with log recovery style backups a third party like Commvault for example would be required. I'd have to defer dlink7 or others on whether Commvault can leverage VSS in conjunction with volume group snapshots. I don't think it's possible but I'm not entirely sure.

I'll have to do some digging but I don't think Commvault can see the Volume Group today.

Hi again, mmcghee
Well, we're trying to replace a netapp filer with Nutanix.
In this filer we're using NAS services (via CIFS) to offer file services to windows clients, but AFS at this point has no quota by folder nor file screening. So, we think to offer file services with a windows file server vm but without clustering it we can provide HA during Windows maintenance (you know, tuesday patching :()
And here is where we need vss. We're providing previous versions feature of Netapp to the NAS filer.

Also, we're using the filer to provide LUNs to a bunch of physical SQL Server clusters and doing backup with Commvault IntelliSnap feature.
We want use ABS to provide iSCSI LUNs to these clusters without losing the snapshot based backup.

What is file screening? AV?User can restore thier files today with Windows Previous Version with AFS.

I dlink7,

file screening is the feature used to block certain file types (video, audio, pst's, ....) in selected folders.
Windows has it builtin. Netapp needs a 3rd party tool to manage it.

I know AFS has Windows previous versions support, but it hasn't quota by folder nor file screening and we need them.
As long as i know in AFS the server vm's use iSCSI to connect to volume groups storing data. It's a similar config I'm taking about but with windows machines.