Scheduling Exports

An export policy can be linked with a scheduler, which triggers the export automatically based on a pre-configured schedule. This is done via the configRsExportScheduler relation from the policy to a trigSchedP object (see the following Sample Configuration section).

Note	A scheduler is optional. A policy can be triggered at any time by setting the adminSt to triggered.

Troubleshooting

If you get an error message indicating that the generated archive could not be uploaded to the remote location, refer to the Connectivity Issues section.

Sample Configuration Using the NX-OS Style CLI

The following is a sample configuration using the NX-OS Style CLI:

apic1(config)# snapshot
download  Configuration snapshot download setup mode
export    Configuration export setup mode
import    Configuration import setup mode
rollback  Configuration rollback setup mode
upload    Configuration snapshot upload setup mode
apic1(config)# snapshot export policy-name
apic1(config-export)#
format    Snapshot format: xml or json
no        Negate a command or set its defaults
remote    Set the remote path configuration will get exported to
schedule  Schedule snapshot export
target    Snapshot target

bash      bash shell for unix commands
end       Exit to the exec mode
exit      Exit from current mode
fabric    show fabric related information
show      Show running system information
where     show the current mode
apic1(config-export)# format xml
apic1(config-export)# no remote path         [If no remote path is specified, the file is exported locally to a folder in the controller]
apic1(config-export)# target                 [Assigns the target of the export, which can be fabric, infra, a specific tenant, or none. If no target is specified, all configuration information is exported.]
WORD  infra, fabric or tenant-x
apic1(config-export)#
apic1# trigger snapshot export policy-name   [Executes the snapshot export task]
apic1# ls /data2                             [If no remote path is specified, the configuration export file is saved locally to the controller under the folder data2]
ce_Dailybackup.tgz

Sample Configuration Using the GUI

The following is a sample configuration using the GUI:

1. On the menu bar, click the Admin tab.

2. Choose IMPORT/EXPORT.

3. Under Export Policies, choose Configuration.

4. Under Configuration, click the configuration that you would like to roll back to. For example, you can click defaultOneTime, which is the default.

5. Next to Format, choose a button for either JSON or XML format.

6. Next to Start Now, choose a button for either No or Yes to indicate whether you want to trigger now or trigger based on a schedule. The easiest method is to choose to trigger immediately.

7. For the Target DN field, enter the name of the tenant configuration you are exporting.

8. If you want to store the configuration on the controller itself, check the Snapshot option. If you want to configure a remote location, uncheck this option.

9. For the Scheduler field, you have the option to create a scheduler instructing when and how often to export the configuration.

10. For the Encryption field, you have the option to enable or disable the encryption of your configuration file.

11. When you have finished your configuration, click Start Now.

12. Click Submit to trigger your configuration export.

Sample Configuration Using REST API

The following is a sample configuration using the REST API:

<configExportP name="policy-name" format="xml" targetDn="/some/dn or empty which means everything" 
snapshot="false" adminSt="triggered">
<configRsRemotePath tnFileRemotePathName="some remote path name" />
<configRsExportScheduler tnTrigSchedPName="some scheduler name" />
</configExportP>

Note	When providing a remote location, if you set the snapshot to True, the backup ignores the remote path and stores the file on the controller.

Troubleshooting

The following scenarios may need troubleshooting:

• If the generated archive could not be downloaded from the remote location, refer to the Connectivity Issues section.

• If the import succeeded with warnings, check the details.

• If a file could not be parsed, refer to the following scenarios:

  • If the file is not a valid XML or JSON file, check whether or not the files from the exported archive were manually modified.

  • If an object property has an unknown property or property value, it may be because:

    • The property was removed or an unknown property value was manually entered

    • The model type range was modified (non-backward compatible model change)

    • The naming property list was modified

• If an MO could not be configured, note the following:

  • Best-effort mode logs the error and skips the MO

  • Atomic mode logs the error and skips the shard

Sample Configuration Using the NX-OS Style CLI

The following is a sample configuration using the NX-OS Style CLI:

apic1# configure 
apic1(config)# snapshot 
 download  Configuration snapshot download setup mode
export    Configuration export setup mode
import    Configuration import setup mode
rollback  Configuration rollback setup mode
upload    Configuration snapshot upload setup mode
apic1(config)# snapshot import 
 WORD       Import configuration name
default
rest-user
apic1(config)# snapshot import policy-name
apic1(config-import)# 
 action  Snapshot import action merge|replace
file    Snapshot file name
mode    Snapshot import mode atomic|best-effort
no      Negate a command or set its defaults
remote  Set the remote path configuration will get imported from

bash    bash shell for unix commands
end     Exit to the exec mode
exit    Exit from current mode
fabric  show fabric related information
show    Show running system information
where   show the current mode
apic1(config-import)# file < from "show snapshot files" >
apic1(config-import)# no remote path 
apic1(config-import)#
apic1# trigger snapshot import policy-name       [Executes the snapshot import task]

Sample Configuration Using the GUI

The following is a sample configuration using the GUI:

1. On the menu bar, click the ADMIN tab.

2. Select IMPORT/EXPORT.

3. Under Import Policies, select Configuration.

4. Under Configuration, select Create Configuration Import Policy. The CREATE CONFIGURATION IMPORT POLICY window appears.

5. In the Name field, the file name must match whatever was backed up and will have a very specific format. The file name is known to whoever did the backup.

6. The next two options relate to recovering configuration states (also known as "roll-back"). The options are Input Type and Input Mode. When you recover a configuration state, you want to roll back to a known state that was good before. The option for that is an Atomic Replace.

7. If you want to store the configuration on the controller itself, check the Snapshot option. If you want to configure a remote location, uncheck this option.

8. In the Import Source field, specify the same remote location that you already created.

9. For the Encryption field, you have the option to enable or disable the encryption

   of your configuration file.

10. Click SUBMIT to trigger your configuration import.

Sample Configuration Using the REST API

The following shows a sample configuration using the REST API:

<configImportP name="policy-name" fileName="someexportfile.tgz" importMode="atomic" importType="replace" snapshot="false" adminSt="triggered">
<configRsRemotePath tnFileRemotePathName="some remote path name" />
</configImportP>

Snapshots are configuration backup archives, stored (and replicated) in a controller managed folder. To create one, an export can be performed with the snapshot property set to true. In this case, no remote path configuration is needed. An object of configSnapshot type is created to expose the snapshot to the user.

You can create recurring snapshots, which are saved to Admin > Import/Export > Export Policies > Configuration > defaultAuto.

configSnapshot objects provide the following:

• file name

• file size

• creation date

• root DN indicating what the snapshot is of (fabric, infra, specific tenant, and so on)

• ability to remove a snapshot (by setting the retire field to true)

To import a snapshot, first create an import policy. Navigate to Admin > Import/Export and click Import Policies. Right click and choose Create Configuration Import Policy to set the import policy attributes.

Troubleshooting

For troubleshooting, refer to the Connectivity Issues section.

Snapshot Upload from Controller to Remote Path Using the NX-OS CLI

apic1(config)# snapshot upload policy-name
apic1(config-upload)# 
 file    Snapshot file name
no      Negate a command or set its defaults
remote  Set the remote path configuration will get uploaded to

bash    bash shell for unix commands
end     Exit to the exec mode
exit    Exit from current mode
fabric  show fabric related information
show    Show running system information
where   show the current mode
apic1(config-upload)# file <file name from "show snapshot files">
apic1(config-upload)# remote path remote-path-name
apic1# trigger snapshot upload policy-name       [Executes the snapshot upload task]

Snapshot Download from Controller to Remote Path Using the NX-OS CLI

apic1(config)# snapshot download policy-name
apic1(config-download)# 
 file    Snapshot file name
no      Negate a command or set its defaults
remote  Set the remote path configuration will get downloaded from

bash    bash shell for unix commands
end     Exit to the exec mode
exit    Exit from current mode
fabric  show fabric related information
show    Show running system information
where   show the current mode
apic1(config-download)# file < file from remote path>
apic1(config-download)# remote path remote-path-name
apic1# trigger snapshot download policy-name       [Executes the snapshot download task]

Snapshot Upload and Download Using the GUI

To upload a snapshot file to a remote location:

1. Right-click on the snapshot file listed in the Config Rollbacks pane, and select the Upload to Remote Location option. The Upload snapshot to remote location box appears.

2. Click SUBMIT.

To download a snapshot file from a remote location:

1. Click the import icon on the upper right side of the screen. The Import remotely stored export archive to snapshot box appears.

2. Enter the file name in the File Name field.
3. Select a remote location from the Import Source pull-down, or check the box next to Or create a new one to create a new remote location.

4. Click SUBMIT.

Snapshot Upload and Download Using the REST API

<configSnapshotManagerP name="policy-name" fileName="someexportfile.tgz" mode="upload|download" adminSt="triggered">
<configRsRemotePath tnFileRemotePathName="some remote path name" />
</configSnapshotManagerP>

Rollback Workflow

The policy snapshotOneDN and snapshotTwoDn fields must be set with the first snapshot (S1) preceding snapshot two (S2). When triggered, the snapshots are extracted and analyzed to calculate and apply the differences between the snapshots.

The MOs are handled as follows:

• MOs are present in S1 but not present in S2 — These MOs were deleted before S2. The rollback will recreate these MOs.

• MOs are present in S2 but not present in S1 — These MOs were created after S1. The rollback will delete these MOs under the following circumstances:

  • These MOs were not modified after S2 was taken.

  • No MO descendants were created or modified after S2 was taken.

• MOs are present in both S1 and S2 but with different property values — If the property was modified to a different value after S2 was taken, the property is left as is. Otherwise, the rollback will revert these properties to S1.

The rollback feature also generates a diff file that contains the confiuration generated as a result of these calculations. Applying this configuration is the last step of the rollback process. The content of this file can be retrieved through a special REST API called readiff: apichost/mqapi2/snapshots.readiff.xml?jobdn=SNAPSHOT_JOB_DN.

Rollback, which is difficult to predict, also has a preview mode (set preview to true), which prevents rollback from making any actual changes. It simply calculates and generates the diff file, allowing you to preview what exactly is going to happen once the rollback is actually performed.

Diff Tool

Another special REST API is available, which provides diff functionality between two snapshots: apichost/mqapi2/snapshots.diff.xml?s1dn=SNAPSHOT_ONE_DN&s2dn=SNAPSHOT_TWO_DN.

Sample Configuration Using the NX-OS Style CLI

This example shows how to configure and execute a rollback using the NX-OS Style CLI:

apic1# show snapshot files               
File    : ce2_DailyAutoBackup-2015-11-21T01-00-17.tar.gz
Created : 2015-11-21T01:00:21.167+00:00
Root    : 
Size    : 22926

File    : ce2_DailyAutoBackup-2015-11-21T09-00-21.tar.gz
Created : 2015-11-21T09:00:24.025+00:00
Root    : 
Size    : 23588

apic1# configure
apic1(config)# snapshot rollback myRollbackPolicy 
apic1(config-rollback)# first-file ce2_DailyAutoBackup-2015-11-21T01-00-17.tar.gz
apic1(config-rollback)# second-file ce2_DailyAutoBackup-2015-11-21T09-00-21.tar.gz
apic1(config-rollback)# preview
apic1(config-rollback)# end
apic1# trigger snapshot rollback myRollbackPolicy

Sample Configuration Using the GUI

This example shows how to configure and execute a rollback using the GUI:

1. On the menu bar, click the Admin tab.

2. Click Config Rollbacks, located under the Admin tab.

3. Select the first configuration file from the Config Rollbacks list (in the left-side pane).

4. Select the second configuration file in the Configuration for selected snapshot pane (in the right-side pane).

5. Click the Compare with previous snapshot drop-down menu (at the bottom of the right-side pane), then select the second configuration file from that list. A diff file is then generated so that you can compare the differences between the two snapshots.

   Note	After the file generates, there is an option to undo these changes.

Sample Configuration Using the REST API

This example shows how to configure and execute a rollback using the REST API:

<configRollbackP name="policy-name" snapshotOneDn="dn/of/snapshot/one" snapshotOneDn="dn/of/snapshot/two" preview="false" adminSt="triggered" />