ESXi backup
I inherited a couple of VMware hosts running ESXi 5.0 and I'm looking for a free/cheap way to back them up at least weekly. I tried Veeam and Altaro but basically ran into the same issue: "ESXi version prohibits execution". Is there a way to backup the free version of ESXi? I'm pretty new working with VMware so maybe I don't really understand how it works. Could I just at least copy the vmdk files from the datastore without shutting down the servers so I can have a copy? The tech before me was just backing up at file level but I would like to backup the VM entirely too if possible.
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. Is there a way to backup the free version of ESXi? I'm pretty new working with VMware so maybe I don't really understand how it works. Could I just at least copy the vmdk files from the datastore without shutting down the servers so I can have a copy?
I'm afraid not. Because the files are locked, by the process which is running the VMs. It is best to backup at the datastore block level.
FREE ESXi does not have access to the licensed APIs.
Please read my EE Article, which lists applications, and how to backup.
http://www.experts-exchange.com/articles/18442/12-commercial-software-backup-products-for-VMware-vSphere-Hypervisor-ESXi-you-should-be-evaluating-today.html
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