Veritas NetBackup™ Appliance High Availability Reference Guide

• New deployments

  This method is used for new installations. These deployments require two identical 53xx compute nodes that use the same software version.

• Converting existing systems to HA

  This method lets you use an existing operational 53xx appliance as the first node. Then, add a new 53xx compute node to complete the HA setup. These systems also require two identical 53xx nodes that use the same software version.

  • Existing systems configured for Copilot

    Copilot functionality is not supported in NetBackup Appliance HA setups. If you plan to convert an existing 53xx appliance to an HA node, it is recommended that you use an appliance that does not use Copilot.

    If you must use an appliance that currently uses the Copilot feature, make sure to perform the following tasks before you convert the existing appliance to an HA node:

    • Expire all data images on all Standard, Optimized, and Universal Shares. For instructions, see the NetBackup Administrator's Guide.

    • Delete all Standard, Optimized, and Universal Shares. For instructions, see the NetBackup Appliance Administrator's Guide

The following describes the basic hardware connectivity, software compatibility, and configuration requirements for an HA setup:

• Hardware connectivity

  • The 53xx nodes are connected to each other using the NIC3/eth2 and NIC4/eth3 Ethernet ports.

  • Both 53xx nodes are connected directly to the Primary Storage Shelf.

• If you use any third-party servers in the working environment, make sure that the HA configuration works correctly with the servers. The following tasks, along with others may be necessary:

  • Add the necessary information of the HA configuration.

  • Connect the hardware properly.

  • Grant the required access for the HA configuration.

  • Configure the necessary information on both nodes in the HA setup.

• Software version compatibility

  • If the master server is a traditional NetBackup master server, it must use software version 8.1 or later. If the master server is a 52xx appliance, it must use software version 3.1 or later.

53xx node configuration

• The two 53xx nodes must use the same software version, 3.1 or later.

• The master server must use the same or a later software version than the 53xx nodes; 3.1 and later for a 52xx appliance master server, or 8.1 and later for a traditional NetBackup master server.

• The first 53xx compute node is configured using the traditional initial configuration process. After the initial configuration is complete, configure the HA setup with this node.

• The partner node only requires network and time zone configuration. After the configuration is complete, add the node to the HA setup.

Active Directory configuration

• If you plan to use Active Directory (AD) authentication, set up the HA configuration only after you first update the AD server with the following information:

  • The network information of the node you use for the setup

  • The new host name and the matched IP address

  • The network information of the partner node

NetBackup client updates

• If you use a NetBackup client to manage the NetBackup jobs, add the following information in the bp.conf file on the client:

  • The host name of the first configured node

  • The new host name

  • The host name of the partner node