StarWind Software

How do I rollbackup to a previous snapshot? Is that possible?

rilliam wrote:How do I rollbackup to a previous snapshot? Is that possible?

There are several ways to rollback your IBVolume:
1) If you only need some files to be restored from a snapshot, create a new IBVolume target from the snapshot in RO mode and mount it to restore the files.

2) To clear the recent changes to the volume, remove the IBVolume target from the StarWind server and create a new IBVolume from the snapshot you like. The old IBVolume will be untouched.

3) There was a way to directly rollback an IBVolume, but we removed it from the user interface as it permanently deletes snapshot sessions and because of tis it was not safe to use.

I don't know what "RO mode" is, can you expand on that?

My goal is not to restore specific files only, I would like to roll the entire volume back. But even if I was doing one file, what does not make sense to me is how to specify what snapshot. As I recall the open dialog does not display every snapshot file, if that is even what I am seeing. Are snapshot files .ibvss?

Hello rilliam,

"RO mode" - is readonly mode.

There are a few ways in which a user can restore files on a StarWind Disk. The first option is to restore individual files selectively. Another option is to revert the whole StarWind Disk to a previous snapshot. Restoring a file from a previous snapshot is used in cases when the number of files to be restored is small. The other, more drastic, approach is suitable for cases when a large number of files or the whole volume needs to be restored.

Snapshot can be used to create a new IBVolume image. In this case all data stored in the snapshot will be shared with the new IBVolume image, but any changes of the new volume will be stored separately.

Restoring Individual Files
1. Select the Add device in the Device menu.
2. In the appearing wizard in the device type selection choose IBVolume device.
3. Select Mount existing image and press next
4. Press the … button. Specify the snapshot, which you have created before (*.ibvss).
5. Specify device parameters (readonly image).
6. Choose name of the target under which the device will be known to the initiators connecting to StarWind through network.
7. Check if all the parameters are correct. Click Back if some changes are required. Click Next to continue.
8. Click Next to proceed to the final page with information about the recently created device. Click Finish to close the wizard.
9. Connect recently shared device and copy files.

To revert the whole StarWind Disk:
1. Run the Start Management console.
2. Click localhost with the right mouse button and select Add Device from the popup menu.
3. Select a device type (IBVolume).
4. Select Create new image and press next.
5. Select Specify advanced creation options checkbox.
6. If Clone IBVolume Image is selected then a snapshot can be used to create a new IBVolume image. In this case all data stored in the snapshot will be shared with the new IBVolume image, but any changes of the new volume will be stored separately
7. Select cloning options and specify parameters.
8. Specify existing snapshot name (*.ibvss).
9. Specify new image name.
10. Specify directory where journals are created.
11. Select type of the device operation and other relevant options.
12. Choose name of the target under which the device will be known to the initiators connecting to StarWind through network.
13. Check if all the parameters are correct. Click Back if some changes are required. Click Next to continue.
14. Click Next to proceed to the final page with information about the recently created device. Click Finish to close the wizard.

If it is necessary to do creating and copying in order to get a new fast compressed image. Then changes data from all the journals will be copied into a new volume and the old one may be completely deleted.
1. Run the Start Management console.
2. Click localhost with the right mouse button and select Add Device from the popup menu.
3. In the appearing wizard in the device type selection choose IBVolume device.
4. Select Create new image and press next.
5. Select Specify advanced creation options checkbox.
6. Select Create IBVolume Image and press Next.
7. Select “Create based on existing image”.
8. Specify new image name.
9. Specify existing snapshot name.
10. After specifying click Next.
11. Specify IBVolume device parameters.
12. Specify target name.
13. The device was added, click Finish.

I have gone through the directions you have given and have found they don't work. Maybe I am doing something wrong but I will detail my results.

Restoring Individual Files:

Step 4:
Snapshots are not listed in the "open image" dialog, only files of type ibv. If I specify the exact filename, it accepts the input but when I try to progress to the next step of the wizard an error is displayed. "provided existing image file name has invalid extension! Allowed extensions are: ibv

To revert the whole StarWind Disk:

Step 6:
Again, the "open image" dialog is filtering files of type ibv. The same behavior as detailed above.

Please, double click "Snapshots" node on the left side of the Open image dialog but not the "My Computer node". As soon as you have done it "Filtered with extensions: ibvss" message appears at the bottom of the screen.
After that specify the the snapshot.

cough...duh.

?

rilliam wrote:cough...duh.

"cough...duh." = I was wrong. You are right.

P.S. Most of us here are not native English speakers...

rilliam wrote:"cough...duh." = I was wrong. You are right.