Information About Backups
This section includes the following topics:
■Backup Environment
■What System Data is Backed Up
■When to Run a Backup
Backup Environment
While you can run a backup for a network environment where there is only a single Cisco Vision Director server, the recommended environment that is described in this document is a virtualized environment. In a redundant environment, you are running Cisco Vision Director on a primary server, with a secondary server connected to the same subnet where the backup data from the primary server is saved.
The backup process can be scheduled and also run manually. When a backup is completed, the Content Management System (CMS) is automatically restarted.
What System Data is Backed Up
There are several areas of Cisco Vision Director that need to be backed up. The backup process backs up the following areas of the Cisco Vision Director server:
■Cisco Vision Director Content Management System (CMS)
■Cisco Vision Director database
■Cisco Vision Director system configuration files
■Content Integration data
■Dynamic Menu Board data
CAUTION : The Proof of Play raw data in the var/sv/pofp/raw directory is not backed up.
■Proof of play report data in the /var/sv/pofp/data directory
When to Run a Backup
Run a manual backup whenever you change any item in the interfaces such as Asset Library content, Devices, Script Management, Event Management, Designer, or System Configuration.
CAUTION :
1. Stop any running script before starting a manual backup.
2. Do not start a game/event script during a backup.
3. Do not operate Cisco Vision Dynamic Signage Director until the backup is complete.
How to Manage Backups
This section includes the following topics:
■Prerequisites for Running Backups
■Best Practices for Managing Backups
■Scheduling a Regular Backup
■Starting a Backup Manually for Immediate Execution
■Verifying Backup Completion
■Modifying the Number of Backup Files to Retain
Prerequisites for Running Backups
Note : Configure the primary and secondary servers for backup operation as part of the initial server setup.
For more information about configuring the servers for backup, see the Cisco Vision Administration Guide: Dynamic Signage Director.
Before you can run backups, meet the following conditions:
■The backup account has been enabled on the secondary server
■The primary server has been set up for automatic backup and restore
Best Practices for Managing Backups
■Perform a manual system backup prior to starting the game script.
■Back up all components (highly recommended).
■Stop the active game/event script from the Device Management before starting the manual backup.
■The backup task can run even while an event script is running. As part of this change, the database is no longer optimized or repaired during the backup process—a new TUI option is added to run database maintenance manually if needed.
■Do not operate the Cisco Vision Director System Configuration or Device Management until the backup is complete.
Scheduling a Regular Backup
User Role: Administrator
After you configure the servers to support the backup process, schedule backups using System Configuration > > Dashboard in the Cisco Vision Director software.
Note : We recommend that you schedule backups while the Cisco Vision Director servers are not actively running scripts or performing other event processing.
To configure a backup to run on a regular schedule:
1. Click Configuration > System Configuration > Configuration > Scheduled Tasks (Figure 1).
2. Click + (Add). The Schedule Task — Add dialog box appears.
3. Click in the Task Type field and type BackupTask.
Note : Type the name of the task exactly as shown with upper and lowercase characters.
Figure 1 Scheduling a Regular Backup Task
4. Click in the Task Time field and specify the time (in 24:00 format) when you want the backup to run.
5. Click in the Servers field and check config.
6. Click Save.
Starting a Backup Manually for Immediate Execution
User Role: Administrator
If you want to start a backup immediately, run a backup process manually.
To start a backup manually for immediate execution:
1. Login to the Director TUI using the valid user ID and password.
2. Select Cisco Vision Server Administration.
3. Select Backup system data (Figure 2).
Figure 2 Running a Backup Task Manually
4. Type Y.
The backup begins immediately. When completed, the CMS is automatically restarted.
IMPORTANT : The “success” message that appears means the backup task has started. It does NOT mean the backup task has completed.
Verifying Backup Completion
User Role: Administrator
To verify backup completion, confirm that a backup file exists and that no errors appear in the log file.
Verifying That a Backup File Exists
IMPORTANT : Verifying the existence of a backup file only tells you that a backup file was attempted but not necessarily if there were any errors.
To verify that a backup file exists:
1. Login to the Director TUI using the valid user ID and password.
2. Select Cisco Vision Server Administration.
3. Select Restore all system data from system backup (Figure 3).
4. Verify that backup files with dates and times appear.
Figure 3 Restore all System Data from System Backup
Finding Backup Errors in the Log File
IMPORTANT : Be aware that the messages “Starting backup” and “Backup completed” will always appear in the log, regardless of success.
You can access log files in the following ways:
■Text Utility Interface (TUI).
■System State Report. Go to More > System State Report.
■By running grep –i backup sv_dev_debug.log (requires root access). Figure 4 shows an example of log output for a successful backup without errors.
To find backup errors in the log file:
1. Open the /opt/sv/servers/config/logs/sv_dev_debug.log file.
2. In the sv_dev_debug.log file, find messages that include the string “com.cisco.sv.backup.”
These are the backup process messages.
3. Find the “Starting backup” message.
4. After the “Starting backup” message (but before the “Backup completed” message), look for a “com.cisco.sv.backup” message that also includes “ERROR” in the string.
If you find this error, the backup did not complete successfully.
Figure 4 Successful Backup Log Output Example From Grep
Modifying the Number of Backup Files to Retain
User Role: Installer (Administrator)
To reduce the amount of disk storage required in your system, the default backup retention policy is to keep one backup file. This retention policy can be modified to retain 2, 5, 7, or 10 backup files.
For more information, see the Cisco Vision Administration Guide : Dynamic Signage Director.
How to Restore From Backup
Once the primary and secondary servers have been configured for automatic backup and restore, the Cisco Vision Director software automatically copies backup files between the primary and secondary servers.
When the restore process starts, the MD5 checksum of the file is verified. If for some reason you need to manually copy files between the servers, be sure that you copy both the.tar and.chksum files because the restore process automatically uses both files to verify the MD5 signature.
Note : If you need to failover to the secondary server and do a restore, follow the procedures in the Cisco Vision Administration Guide: Dynamic Signage Director.
This section includes the following topics:
■Starting a Restore Manually for Immediate Execution
■What to Do Next After Restoring
■Restarting Cisco Vision Director Software After a Restore (Required)
Starting a Restore Manually for Immediate Execution
User Role: Administrator
As with backups, you can schedule the restore process or run it manually. When the manual restore screen is displayed, it lists backups from both the backup and restore directories, concatenated together. This allows you to run a manual restore on either the primary or the secondary server.
CAUTION : You cannot run a restore while an event script is running. Also, if your venue was running an event script when the backup took place, then those scripts will be running after the restore.
An automated restore always uses the most recent backup file in the restore directory.
To start a restore manually for immediate execution:
1. Login to the Director TUI using the valid user ID and password.
2. Select Cisco Vision Server Administration.
3. Select Setup automatic backup and restore (Figure 5).
4. Enter the IP address of the currently inactive server.
Figure 5 Running a Restore Task Manually