15.3.2. Backing Up a Virtual Machine

Use the backup and restore API to back up a virtual machine. This procedure assumes you have two virtual machines: the virtual machine to back up, and a virtual machine on which the software for managing the backup is installed.

Procedure 15.8. Backing Up a Virtual Machine

  1. Using the REST API, create a snapshot of the virtual machine to back up: 
    POST /api/vms/11111111-1111-1111-1111-111111111111/snapshots/ HTTP/1.1
Accept: application/xml
Content-type: application/xml

<snapshot>
    <description>BACKUP</description>
</snapshot>

    Note

    When you take a snapshot of a virtual machine, a copy of the configuration data of the virtual machine as at the time the snapshot was taken is stored in the data attribute of the configuration attribute in initialization under the snapshot.

    Important

    You cannot take snapshots of disks that are marked as shareable or that are based on direct LUN disks.
  2. Retrieve the configuration data of the virtual machine from the data attribute under the snapshot: 
    GET /api/vms/11111111-1111-1111-1111-111111111111/snapshots/11111111-1111-1111-1111-111111111111 HTTP/1.1
Accept: application/xml
Content-type: application/xml
  3. Identify the disk ID and snapshot ID of the snapshot: 
    GET /api/vms/11111111-1111-1111-1111-111111111111/snapshots/11111111-1111-1111-1111-111111111111/disks HTTP/1.1
Accept: application/xml
Content-type: application/xml
  4. Attach the snapshot to the backup virtual machine and activate the disk: 
    POST /api/vms/22222222-2222-2222-2222-222222222222/disks/ HTTP/1.1
Accept: application/xml
Content-type: application/xml

<disk id="11111111-1111-1111-1111-111111111111">
    <snapshot id="11111111-1111-1111-1111-111111111111"/>
    <active>true</active>
</disk>
  5. Use the backup software on the backup virtual machine to back up the data on the snapshot disk.
  6. Detach the snapshot disk from the backup virtual machine: 
    DELETE /api/vms/22222222-2222-2222-2222-222222222222/disks/11111111-1111-1111-1111-111111111111 HTTP/1.1
Accept: application/xml
Content-type: application/xml

<action>
    <detach>true</detach>
</action>
  7. Optionally, delete the snapshot: 
    DELETE /api/vms/11111111-1111-1111-1111-111111111111/snapshots/11111111-1111-1111-1111-111111111111 HTTP/1.1
Accept: application/xml
Content-type: application/xml
You have backed up the state of a virtual machine at a fixed point in time using backup software installed on a separate virtual machine.
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