NVP vProxy: How to get the exact command syntax for running a VM recovery from CLI with debug

The following method can be used if you recently attempted a restore from the NetWorker Management Console (NMC). It can be used if you would like to perform the recover command from CLI with additional debugging or monitoring the session from a terminal.
This method relies on the NetWorker server jobquery query command which interacts with the NetWorker server jobs database (jobsdb).

1. Open a elevated shell or Administrator prompt on the NetWorker server.
2. Run the command: jobquery
3. From the jobquery prompt, enter: show name; command
4. To list the recover jobs, run: print type: recover job
   The full command the NetWorker server used to initiate the UI-based restore is returned:
   

   [root@nsr ~]# jobquery
   NetWorker jobs query utility.
   Use the "help" command for help.
   jobquery> show name; command
   jobquery> print type: recover job
                        command: \
   "nsrvproxy_recover -m I -c vcsa.amer.lan -M vm-4007 -V rhel-client01.amer.lan_\
   1 -A datacenter-3 -L domain-c8 -F group-v4 -d \"Hard disk 1/2000/datastore-12\"\
    -E datastore-12 -S 3735418268";
                           name: Test_Restore2;
   

   NOTE: The jobquery output is not showing multiple commands. Instead, it displays a single command that has been wrapped across multiple lines using backslash (\) continuation characters. These continuation characters can be used to reconstruct the original single-line command.

5. Enter quit to exit the jobquery prompt.
6. Go to Performing the CLI Restore.

The following method may be used if there is currently no restore records in the jobsdb. In this scenario the NetWorker Management Console (NMC) or NetWorker Web User Interface (NWUI) are used to create the create the recover syntax that can then be used from command line.

1. Log in to the NetWorker Management Console (NMC):

NOTE: Alternatively, you can start the recovery from the NetWorker Web User Interface (NWUI). We are only using a UI to configure the nsrvproxy_recover command. Use your preferred UI.

2. Choose The Virtual Machine Recovery type, then select the vCenter server the VM was backed up from:

3. Search for the VM and select it. Once selected it, appear in the Source virtual machine window:

4. Choose the save set date from the list of Available backups:

5. Choose the VM image recovery (In this example Virtual Machine Recovery):

6. Configure the Recovery options:
   1. Choose a target vCenter and location.
   2. Specify a name for the new VM.
   3. Select datastore locations for the VM files and disks.
   4. (Optional) Select if you would like for the VM to be powered on (default is no.)
   5. (Optional) Select if you would like for the VM to be connected to the network. This option is only available if you have also chosen to power on the VM.
   6. (Optional) Specify a vProxy appliance if you would like the restore to use a specific vProxy.

7. Choose the volume that you want to restore from:

8. Provide a Recover Name and select the option to Schedule recovery start at. Set the date a few days after the current date.

9. Click Schedule Recovery.
10. You should see the scheduled recovery job on NMC now:

11. On the NetWorker server, open an Administrator command prompt or root shell.
12. Use the nsradmin or jobquery command to get the nsrvproxy_recover command syntax:

For jobs scheduled from the NMC use nsradmin:

1. From the elevated prompt, run: nsradmin
2. From the nsradmin prompt, enter: show recover command; recover options
3. From the nsradmin prompt, use the print command to display the recovery resource created from the NMC.

print type: nsr recover; name: RECOVER_NAME_FROM_STEP_8

Example:

[root@nsr ~]# nsradmin
NetWorker administration program.
Use the "help" command for help, "visual" for full-screen mode.
nsradmin> show recover command; recover options
nsradmin> print type: nsr recover; name: CLI_Recover_Syntax
             recover command: nsrvproxy_recover;
             recover options: \
" -m I  -c vcsa.amer.lan -M vm-17020 -V 'win-client01.amer.lan_1' -A datacente\
r-3 -L domain-c8 -F 'group-v4' -o P -o N -d 'Hard disk 1/2000/datastore-12' -E\
 datastore-12 -p nsr-vproxy01.amer.lan  -S 2801297820";

For jobs started from NWUI use jobquery:

1. From the elevated prompt, run: jobquery
2. From the jobquery prompt, enter: show name; command
3. From the jobquery prompt, enter: print type: recover job
   
   Example:

[root@nsr ~]# jobquery
NetWorker jobs query utility.
Use the "help" command for help.
jobquery> show name; command
jobquery> print type: recover job
                     command: \
"nsrvproxy_recover -m I -c vcsa.amer.lan -M vm-4007 -V rhel-client01.amer.lan_\
1 -A datacenter-3 -L domain-c8 -F group-v4 -d \"Hard disk 1/2000/datastore-12\"\
 -E datastore-12 -S 1971497009";
                        name: Image_Restore;
jobquery> quit

13. Go to Performing the CLI Restore.

This method does not require an existing recover record in the jobsdb or creating a new one by first initiating a restore from one of the NetWorker UIs. Instead, you must determine the recover command syntax required. See the NetWorker Command Reference Guide nsrvproxy_recover section for more information. NetWorker documentation is available through: Support for NetWorker | Manuals & Documents (You must sign-in with your Dell support account).

The standard syntax to perform a full VM restore to a new VM is:

nsrvproxy_recover [-v] [-D <debug_level>] -m I -c vcsa.amer.lan -M vm-4007 -V rhel-client01.amer.lan_1 -A datacenter-3 -L domain-c8 -F group-v4 -E datastore-12 -S 1971497009 [-k]

• -v: (Optional) Add verbosity.
• -D: (Optional) Add debug. Debug levels are outlined in: NetWorker: Debug information levels
• -m I: Virtual Machine Image Recovery to a new VM. Other -m options are outlined in the NetWorker Command Reference Guide.
• -c: Target vCenter hostname or IP address (Must be registered as a NSR Hypervisor resource on the NetWorker server.
• -M: Specify the VMware MoRef value of the VM being recovered.
• -V: Specify  the name of the recovered VM. When performing "New VM" restore operations, the recovery fails if a VM with the same name already exists.
• -A: Specify the target VMware Datacenter MoRef.
• -L: Specify the target VMware Cluster Compute Resource.
• -F: (Optional) Specify the target VMware folder MoRef.
• -E: Specify the target VMware Datastore MoRef.
• -S: Specify the NetWorker save set ID (SSID) of the VM backup to be recovered.
• -k: (Optional) Perform concurrent VM disk restore if the VM has two or more disks. If unspecified, the VM disks are performed one-at-a-time sequentially. See: NVP-vProxy: How To Perform Concurrent Virtual Machine Disk (VMDK) Restores

Nearly all of the VMware Managed Object Reference (MoRef) Ids can be collected using the mminfo command; 

1. Get the VM save set ids:
   

   mminfo -kot -q vmname=VM_NAME

2. Get the expanded details of the VM save set ID identified for restore:
   

   mminfo -aS -q ssid=SAVE-SET-ID#

However, this assumes you are putting the recovered VM in the exact same location from which it was backed up. Other methods to collect VMware MoRef values, such as from another vCenter or alternate location from the source backups are outlined in the following article: NetWorker: How To Collect MoReF (Managed Object Reference) Values for VMware Objects

The command can be reconstructed to a single line and run from an elevated prompt on the NetWorker server. Additional options such as debug levels or verbosity can be added:

nsrvproxy_recover -vvv -D9 -m I -c vcsa.amer.lan -M vm-4007 -V rhel-client01.amer.lan_1 -A datacenter-3 -L domain-c8 -F group-v4 -d "Hard disk 1/2000/datastore-12" -E datastore-12 -S 3735418268 > /tmp/nsrvproxy_recover-rhel-client-$(date -I).log 2<&1

Alternatively, the command can be run in the background so that it is not closed if the terminal session closes, example:

• Linux:

nohup nsrvproxy_recover -vvv -D9 -m I -c vcsa.amer.lan -M vm-4007 -V rhel-client01.amer.lan_1 -A datacenter-3 -L domain-c8 -F group-v4 -d "Hard disk 1/2000/datastore-12" -E datastore-12 -S 3735418268 > /tmp/nsrvproxy_recover-rhel-client-$(date -I).log &

• Windows (PowerShell):

$LogFile = "C:\Temp\nsrvproxy_recover-rhel-client-$(Get-Date -Format 'yyyy-MM-dd').log"

Start-Process -FilePath "nsrvproxy_recover.exe" `
    -ArgumentList '-vvv -D9 -m I -c vcsa.amer.lan -M vm-4007 -V rhel-client01.amer.lan_1 -A datacenter-3 -L domain-c8 -F group-v4 -d "Hard disk 1/2000/datastore-12" -E datastore-12 -S 3735418268' `
    -RedirectStandardOutput $LogFile `
    -NoNewWindow