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vStorage APIs for Data Protection (VADP) FAQ
Purpose
This article provides answers to frequently asked questions about vStorage APIs for Data Protection (VADP).
Resolution
What is VADP?
VADP is the next generation of VMware’s data protection framework introduced in vSphere 4.0 that enables backup products to do centralized, efficient, off-host LAN free backup of vSphere virtual machines.
A backup product using VADP can backup vSphere virtual machines from a central backup server or virtual machine without requiring backup agents or requiring backup processing to be done inside each guest virtual machine on the ESX host. This offloads backup processing from ESX hosts and reduces costs by allowing each ESX host to run more virtual machines.
VADP leverages the snapshot capabilities of VMware vStorage VMFS to enable backup across SAN without requiring downtime for virtual machines. As a result, backups can be performed non-disruptively at any time of the day without requiring extended backup windows and the downtime to applications and users associated with backup windows.
What are the benefits of VADP?
VADP enables centralized, off-host LAN free backup of vSphere virtual machines, reduces ESX host resources to do backup processing, and enables flexible backup windows.
Does VADP replace the VMware Consolidated Backup (VCB) framework?
Yes.
How does VADP compare with VCB?
Unlike VCB, which requires customers to download and install a separate component on VCB proxy server, VADP is built-in as a part of the backup product. The following table summarizes the key differences between VADP and VCB.
VADP
VCB
Requires additional download & install
No, built into the data protection software
Yes
Full virtual machine image backup
Yes, single step copy – source to target
Yes, with two step copy – source to VCB proxy and VCB proxy to the target
Incremental virtual machine image backup
Yes – using change block tracking
No
File level backup
Yes, both Windows and Linux
Yes, Windows only
Full virtual machine image restore
Yes
Yes, by using VMware Converter
Incremental virtual machine image restore
Yes
No
File level restore
Yes, using restore agents
Yes, using restore agents
CLI for image backup
No
Yes
CLI for file backup
Yes
Yes
What VADP based backup solutions are available in the market today?
Several backup vendors have released VADP-based backup solutions. These include VMware Data Recovery, Symantec NetBackup 7.0, Symantec Backup Exec 2010, CA ArcServe 12.5, CommVault 8.0 with post-SP4 update, Arkeia Network Backup - Version 8.2, EMC Avamar 5.0, EMC NetWorker 7.6 SP2, IBM TSM 6.2, Veeam 4.0, and VizionCore vRanger Pro 4.2.
Note: This list is not exhaustive. If your backup vendor is not listed, check with them directly as to whether they spport VADP-based backup solutions. Please consult your backup software vendor for more information about their integration with the vStorage APIs for Data Protection.
