Installing ESX/ESXi Virtual Appliance

  Step 1: Extracting the virtual appliance's files
  1. On a machine running Windows, start the Acronis Backup & Recovery 10 setup program.
  2. Click Extract installation files. Then, in the list of installation packages, select the Agent for ESX/ESXi Virtual Appliance (AcronisVirtualAppliance.msi) check box.

    Tip: Alternatively, you can click Install Acronis Backup & Recovery 10, and then select the Agent for ESX/ESXi Virtual Appliance check box in the list of components.

  3. In Extract to, specify the folder to which you want to extract the virtual appliance’s installation package, and then click Extract.
  4. Run the installation package.

After the installation is complete, the virtual appliance’s files will be located in the folder %ProgramFiles%\Acronis\ESXAppliance. 

  Step 2: Importing the virtual appliance

Importing the agent is similar in VMware Infrastructure 3.5 and VMware vSphere. This section describes both procedures because GUI controls are named differently in those products. 

  Importing the agent virtual appliance into VMware Infrastructure 3.5
  1. Start the VMware Infrastructure client and log on to the VMware ESX server.
  2. On the File menu, point to Virtual Appliance, and then click Import. Follow the Import Virtual Appliance wizard.
  3. In Import Location, select Import from file, and then specify the path to the virtual appliance’s OVF package—normally: %ProgramFiles%\Acronis\ESXAppliance.
  4. Review the Virtual Appliance Details and click Next.
  5. In Name and Location, type the name for the appliance or leave the default name AcronisESXAppliance.
  6. In Datastore, leave the default datastore unless it does not have enough space for the virtual appliance. In this case, select another datastore. Skip this step if there is only one datastore on the server.
  7. Review the summary and then click Finish. After the successful import is reported, close the progress window. 
  Importing the agent OVF template into VMware vSphere 4
  1. Start the VMware vSphere client and log on to the VMware ESX server.
  2. On the File menu, point to Deploy OVF Template. Follow the Deploy OVF Template wizard.
  3. In Source, select Deploy from File, and then specify the path to the virtual appliance’s OVF package—normally: %ProgramFiles%\Acronis\ESXAppliance.
  4. Review the OVF Template Details and click Next.
  5. In Name and Location, type the name for the appliance or leave the default name AcronisESXAppliance.
  6. In Datastore, leave the default datastore unless it does not have enough space for the virtual appliance. In this case, select another datastore. Skip this step if there is only one datastore on the server.
  7. Review the summary and then click Finish. After the successful deployment is reported, close the progress window. 
  Step 3: Configuring the virtual appliance
  1. Starting the virtual appliance

    In the VMware Infrastructure client, display the Inventory, right-click the virtual appliance’s name, and then click Power On.

    Select the Console tab. The virtual appliance welcome screen tells you what to do next. Click Close. You will be able to access this screen at any time by clicking the help button in the virtual appliance GUI.

    You are taken to the Acronis Backup & Recovery 10 Agent for ESX/ESXi screen where you continue the agent configuration.

  2. Time zone

    Under Virtual machine, in Time zone, click Change and select the time zone for the location where the management console is installed.

    An ESX server always works in the GMT time zone. When being imported, a virtual appliance inherits the GMT time zone from the server. If the console works in another time zone, you need to synchronize the virtual appliance with the console to ensure that the tasks scheduled using the console run in the appropriate time.

  3. ESX(i)/vCenter

    Under Agent options, in ESX(i)/vCenter, click Change and specify the name or IP address of a VMware ESX/ESXi server whose virtual machines you want to back up and recover, and the user name and password for logging on to that server. You can click Check connection to ensure the access credentials are correct.

    If the ESX/ESXi server is managed by a vCenter Server, specify the vCenter Server name or IP address. The virtual appliance will back up and recover virtual machines hosted on its own host through the vCenter Server.

    Make sure that another Agent for ESX/ESXi is not already managing the same host. A conflict of snapshots may occur if two agents try to back up a virtual machine simultaneously. As a result, you will lose the ability to back up this machine.

    License server

    Under Licensing, click Provide license.

    When installing the trial product version, select Use the following trial license key and enter the trial license key. Deduplication is always enabled in the trial version.

    When installing the purchased product, select Use a license from the following Acronis License Server and specify the name or IP address of the machine with the license server. To be able to deduplicate backups, the agent needs a separately sold license for deduplication. If you have imported this license into the license server, you can select the Enable deduplication… check box to let the agent acquire this license. After you click OK, the agent will connect to the license server to acquire the licenses.

    When installing the product for online backup only, select Online backup only (license key is not required). This option presumes that you have got or will obtain a subscription to the Acronis Backup & Recovery Online service by the time of the first backup.

The virtual a
ppliance is ready to work. In addition, you can change network settings:

Network settings

The agent’s network connection is configured automatically by using Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP). To change the default configuration, under Agent options, in eth0, click Change and specify the desired network settings. 

  [Optional] Step 4: Adding the virtual appliance to the management server

The minimum configuration that enables backing up virtual machines from a host includes the management console, the license server and the agent. With this configuration, you can back up and recover virtual machines using the direct console-agent connection. If you are planning to use the management server, register the virtual appliance on the server.

To add the virtual appliance to the management server

  1. Start Acronis Backup & Recovery 10 Management Console.
  2. Connect the management console to the virtual appliance using the IP address displayed in the virtual appliance console.
  3. Select Options > Machine options > Machine management from the top menu.
  4. Select Centralized management and specify the management server IP/name. Click OK.
  5. Specify the user name and password for the management server administrator’s account. Click OK.

Alternatively, you can add the appliance to the management server on the server’s side.

After the virtual appliance is registered, a corresponding group of virtual machines appears on the management server.

Installing ESX/ESXi Virtual Appliance