Snapshotless backup

• US 10,359,951 B1
• Filed: 06/30/2014
• Issued: 07/23/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 08/23/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: MidCap Financial Trust
• Original Assignee: Acronis International GmbH (Acronis AG)
• Inventors: Per, Yuri, Lyadvinsky, Maxim V., Beloussov, Serguei M., Egorov, Dmitry, Borodin, Alexey
• Primary Examiner(s): Gebril, Mohamed M
• Application Number:
  US14/320,496
• Time in Patent Office: 1,849 Days
• Field of Search: 711162
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/0757 by exceeding a time limit, i.e. time-out, e.g. watchdogs
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/14 Error detection or correction of the data by redundancy in operation G06F11/16 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1435 using file system or storage system metadata
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1448 Management of the data involved in backup or backup restore
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1451 by selection of backup contents
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1461 Backup scheduling policy
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1464 for networked environments
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1469 Backup restoration techniques
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1484 involving virtual machines
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2201/815 Virtual
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2201/84 Using snapshots, i.e. a logical point-in-time copy of the data
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0619 in relation to data integrity, e.g. data losses, bit errors
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0647 Migration mechanisms
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0664 at device level, e.g. emulation of a storage device or system
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0673 Single storage device
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0683 Plurality of storage devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/10 in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network software deployment G06F8/60; multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46

Abstract

A method, computer program product, computing system, and system for snapshotless backup are described. The method may include receiving, via a backup agent, an indication of a virtual machine to be backed up in a backup archive file. The backup agent may run outside of the virtual machine. The virtual machine may be hosted by a virtualization host device. The method may further include identifying, via the backup agent, a virtual disk associated with the virtual machine indicated to be backed up. The method may also include tracking, via a virtualization host agent running on the virtualization host device outside the virtual machine, changes to the virtual disk associated with the virtual machine on a sector level basis. The method may additionally include reading the virtual disk and transmitting sectors from the virtual disk to the backup archive file on a first pass.

Claims

1. A method for snapshotless virtual machine backup comprising:

receiving, via a backup agent comprising a user interface, an indication of a virtual machine to be backed up in a backup archive file, the backup agent running outside of the virtual machine, the virtual machine hosted by a virtualization host device, wherein a file system driver is installed on the virtualization host device;

identifying, via the backup agent, a virtual disk associated with the virtual machine indicated to be backed up;

tracking, via a virtualization host agent running on the virtualization host device outside the virtual machine, changes to the virtual disk associated with the virtual machine on a sector level basis;

reading a first set of sectors of the virtual disk, using the file system driver, wherein the file system driver is in communication with the virtualization host agent, wherein the first set of sectors are read by the file system driver when virtual disk is locked;

transmitting, using the virtualization host agent, the first set of sectors from the locked virtual disk to the backup archive file on a first pass;

storing a record of sectors of the virtual disk which changed after being read and transmitted on the first pass; and

transmitting, using the virtualization host agent, the sectors of the virtual disk which changed after being read and transmitted on the first pass to the backup archive file on a second pass, wherein foregoing steps are performed without creating a snapshot within the virtual machine to be backed up.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

iteratively transmitting sectors of the virtual disk, which changed after being read and transmitted on a previous pass, to the backup archive on a next pass.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

designating each sector of the virtual disk associated with the virtual machine as a sector-to-read before the first pass, wherein each sector-to-read is read from the virtual disk and transmitted to the backup archive file on the first pass; and

designating sectors of the virtual disk which changed after being read and transmitted on the first pass as changed sectors, wherein the changed sectors are read from the virtual disk and transmitted to the backup archive file on the second pass.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the tracking of changes to the virtual disk associated with the virtual machine on the sector level basis is terminated in response to determining that no sector changed during the second pass, wherein the virtual disk is read from beginning to end during the first pass.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the file system driver is a virtual small computer system interface (vSCSI) filter.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the vSCSI filter is configured to act as a transport layer to send (non-virtual) SCSI data to the virtual machine.

7. A computer program product residing on a non-transitory computer readable storage medium having a plurality of instructions stored thereon, which, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to perform operations for snapshotless virtual machine backup, the operations comprising:

receiving, via a backup agent comprising a user interface, an indication of a virtual machine to be backed up in a backup archive file, the backup agent running outside of the virtual machine, the virtual machine hosted by a virtualization host device, wherein a file system driver is installed on the virtualization host device;

identifying, via the backup agent, a virtual disk associated with the virtual machine indicated to be backed up;

tracking, via a virtualization host agent running on the virtualization host device outside the virtual machine, changes to the virtual disk associated with the virtual machine on a sector level basis;

reading a first set of sectors of the virtual disk, using the file system driver, wherein the file system driver is in communication with the virtualization host agent, wherein the first set of sectors are read by the file system driver when virtual disk is locked or when the sectors are in use;

transmitting, using the virtualization host agent, the first set of sectors from the locked or in use virtual disk to the backup archive file on a first pass;

storing a record of sectors of the virtual disk which changed after being read and transmitted on the first pass; and

transmitting the sectors of the virtual disk which changed after being read and transmitted on the first pass to the backup archive file on a second pass, wherein foregoing operations are performed without creating a snapshot within the virtual machine to be backed up.

8. The computer program product of claim 7, wherein the operations further comprise:

iteratively transmitting sectors of the virtual disk, which changed after being read and transmitted on a previous pass, to the backup archive on a next pass.

9. The computer program product of claim 7, wherein the operations further comprise:

designating each sector of the virtual disk associated with the virtual machine as a sector-to-read before the first pass, wherein each sector-to-read is read from the virtual disk and transmitted to the backup archive file on the first pass; and

designating sectors of the virtual disk which changed after being read and transmitted on the first pass as changed sectors, wherein the changed sectors are read from the virtual disk and transmitted to the backup archive file on the second pass.

10. The computer program product of claim 7, wherein the tracking of changes to the virtual disk associated with the virtual machine on the sector level basis is terminated in response to determining that no sector changed during the second pass, wherein the virtual disk is read from beginning to end during the first pass.

11. The computer program product of claim 7, wherein the file system driver is a virtual small computer system interface (vSCSI) filter.

12. The computer program product of claim 7, wherein the vSCSI filter is configured to act as a transport layer to send (non-virtual) SCSI data to the virtual machine.

13. A computing system for snapshotless virtual machine backup, the computing system comprising one or more processors, wherein the one or more processors are configured to:

receive, via a backup agent, an indication of a virtual machine to be backed up in a backup archive file, the backup agent running outside of the virtual machine, the virtual machine hosted by a virtualization host device, wherein a file system driver is installed on the virtualization host device;

identify, via the backup agent, a virtual disk comprising a first set of sectors associated with the virtual machine indicated to be backed up;

track, via a virtualization host agent running on the virtualization host device outside the virtual machine, changes to the virtual disk associated with the virtual machine on a sector level basis;

read the first set of sectors, using the file system driver, wherein the file system driver is in communication with the virtualization host agent, wherein the first set of sectors are read by the file system driver when virtual disk is locked or when the sectors are in use;

transmit, using the virtualization host agent, the first set of sectors from the locked or in use virtual disk to the backup archive file on a first pass;

store a record of sectors of the virtual disk which changed after being read and transmitted on the first pass; and

transmit the sectors of the virtual disk which changed after being read and transmitted on the first pass to the backup archive file on a second pass, wherein foregoing steps are performed without creating a snapshot within the virtual machine to be backed up.

14. The computing system of claim 13, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to:

iteratively transmit sectors of the virtual disk, which changed after being read and transmitted on a previous pass, to the backup archive on a next pass.

15. The computing system of claim 13, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to:

designate each sector of the virtual disk associated with the virtual machine as a sector-to-read before the first pass, wherein each sector-to-read is read from the virtual disk and transmitted to the backup archive file on the first pass; and

designate sectors of the virtual disk which changed after being read and transmitted on the first pass as changed sectors, wherein the changed sectors are read from the virtual disk and transmitted to the backup archive file on the second pass.

16. The computing system of claim 13, wherein the tracking of changes to the virtual disk associated with the virtual machine on the sector level basis is terminated in response to determining that no sector changed during the second pass, wherein the virtual disk is read from beginning to end during the first pass.

17. The computing system of claim 13, wherein the file system driver is a virtual small computer system interface (vSCSI) filter.

18. The computing system of claim 15, wherein the first pass is performed while the virtual machine is running and wherein the second pass tracks changes made during the first pass.

19. A system for snapshotless virtual machine backup comprising:

a virtualization host device hosting one or more virtual machines having one or more associated virtual disks on which the one or more virtual machines are stored, wherein a file system driver is installed on the virtualization host device;

a backup agent comprising a user interface, wherein the backup agent receives an indication of the one or more virtual machines to be backed up in a backup archive file, the backup agent running outside of the one or more virtual machine indicated to be backed up;

a virtualization host agent, running on the virtualization host device outside the one or more virtual machines, which tracks changes to a virtual disk using the file system driver, the virtual disk associated with at least one virtual machine of the one or more virtual machines, wherein the virtualization host agent tracks the virtual disk on a sector level basis, reads the virtual disk and transmits a first set of sectors from the virtual disk to the backup archive file on a first pass, wherein the file system driver is in communication with the virtualization host agent;

a storage device which stores a record of the first set of sectors of the virtual disk which changed after being read and transmitted on the first pass, wherein operations of backup agent, virtualization host agent, and storage device are performed without creating a snapshot within the virtual machine to be backed up; and

wherein the virtualization host agent transmits sectors of the virtual disk which changed after being read and transmitted on the first pass to the backup archive file on a second pass.

20. A method for computing device backup comprising:

receiving, via a backup agent comprising a user interface, an indication of a computing device to be backed up in a backup archive file, the backup agent running outside of the computing device, wherein a file system driver is installed on the computing device;

identifying, via the backup agent, a disk associated with the computing device indicated to be backed up;

tracking, via a tracking agent running outside the computing device, changes to the disk associated with the computing device on a sector level basis;

reading a first set of sectors of the disk, using the file system driver and transmitting the first set of sectors from the disk to the backup archive file on a first pass, wherein the file system driver is in communication with the tracking agent, wherein the first set of sectors are read by the file system driver when virtual disk is locked or in use;

storing a record of sectors of the disk which changed after being read and transmitted on the first pass; and

transmitting the sectors of the disk which changed after being read and transmitted on the first pass to the backup archive file on a second pass, wherein foregoing steps are performed without creating a snapshot within the virtual machine to be backed up.